Culture of Exhibition and Display - Essay Example

?Cultures of Exhibition and Display By [Presented to] of INTRODUCTION Art and history has been an integral part of the society offering rich experiences and information in a significant manner. From a student point of view, it is important to assess the significance of art and history in a critical manner. This discussion is based on penning an experience of visiting the British Museum located at Great Russell Street, London. From the media and communication point of view, it was important to assess the messages being exhibited by the historical things placed in the museum. The discussion basically revolves around showcasing the overall experience of visiting the museum and capturing minute details and information adding value to the personal learning along with helping in forming a critical thinking leading to the assessment of a rich experience. It can be assumed that there are a number of exhibitions being conducted in the United Kingdom with some sort of significance offering great source of value. The reason behind choosing museum for the critical analysis and experience was based on the historical aspect associated with it. Museums offer details about the history of a nation along with enlightening a number of people through messages and wide arrays of information. The overall experience of entering the museum created a sense of excitement that further motivated to collect great source of information along with understanding them in a critical manner. The British Museum is dedicated to human history and culture and this acted as a motivation to study in detail about the museum and its works. Moreover, the museum has an old and significant history in the context of the UK art, history, and culture. This also impacted the decision of studying and critically analysing the works and history of the museum. Based on the discussion, it can be said that the discussion has been presented in a critical manner covering details of the experience in an illustrative manner. The next part of the discussion presents an overview of the British Museum in a brief manner. An Overview of the British Museum The British Museum is located in London showcasing the human history and culture in a significant manner. It has more than eight million works highlighting the rich human history from the existence till the present in a comprehensive manner. Moreover, it is among the largest museums highlighting the human history in a detailed manner and thus gaining immense popularity all across the world (Wilson, 2002). The museum was established in 1753 showing the collections of the scientist Sir Hans Sloane and was opened to the public in 1759. With time, the museum was expended in a great manner with the inclusion of many other works highlighting the history and significance of the global human culture and evolution. The museum does not include collections of natural history and all books and manuscripts have been made an independent part of the British library. However, the museum holds artifacts representing the cultures of different countries; ancient and modern (Caygill, 2006). Moreover, the museum has a library comprising of more than 150 million works offering rich source of information. It also has a website offering information over various works and objects and thus helping individuals and organisations to garner varied source of information from all across the world. The museum is sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport. It has 25 trustees responsible for controlling and managing the works of the museum in an effective and efficient manner (Jenkins, 2006).The British Museum also houses Egyptian antiquities and is of immense importance especially from the range and quality point of view. The museum showcases the works and history of Egypt through different works and objects and holds great significance in the present era (Reeve, 2003). Overall, it can be said that the British Museum is an epitome of history and quality helping individuals and organisations in accessing wide arrays of relevant and historical information in an easy and illustrative manner. Experience at the British Museum The British Museum has a remarkable collection of human history spread over two million years. The visit to the museum was a fascinating experience considering the fact that, it is one of the oldest and largest museums in the world showcasing the human history through a number of fascinating objects. The treasures of the world revealing and illustrating the cultures of different countries have been the best experience of the Museum. Usually, first time goers try to witness objects such as the Rosetta stone, Parthenon sculptures, and Egyptian mummies. All these objects have been a great source of inquisitiveness and curiosity in last many centuries and people from all across the world seemed to be impressed and awestruck by all these objects. Moreover, these objects hold great association with the history that is unfolded again and again but the overall experience of witnessing these objects was not only a source of inspiration but also a source of contentment. The museum is visited by more than 6 million people every year highlighting the relevance and admiration for the place. Moreover, the most striking feature of the museum has been the inclusion of wide arrays of cultures and facts evoking great degree of curiosity leading to a stupendous learning. The museum organises a number of events attracting millions of visitors every year. These exhibitions are designed to raise awareness along with developing advance level of understanding of different cultures and objects. My first impression of the museum was surprising considering the fact that the magnitude and history was quite old and appealing. Moreover, with so many objects and collections unfolding various stories of different eras, it was a learning taking me back into different eras through images and emotions. The learning was quite interesting but the fact that it became monotonous after a while resulting in plummeting my enthusiasm level that was further elevated by witnessing and reading something interesting. One of the striking areas of the museum that attracted the most was; 'Enlightenment: Discovering the World in the 18th Century'. It is a permanent exhibitions of more than 5000 objects selected to shed light on the period between 18th-19th century. This area focused on the human history of late centuries that evoked great deal of interest along with offering an enriched experience and wonderful memories. The period between the 18th and 19th century can be considered as a period of discoveries and learning and wide arrays of objects. The enlightenment room is divided into seven sections exploring seven major disciplines of the age in the form of Religion and ritual, Trade and discovery, the birth of archaeology, Art history, Classification, the decipherment of ancient scripts and Natural history. It can be believed that all these ages have been significant in the human history adding great deal of value along with offering enlightenment in different ways. Some of the objects of 18th and 19th century have been presented as follow: Source: The British Museum (2013) Explore Galleries. British Museum. [Online] Available at http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/galleries/themes/room_1_enlightenment.aspx. [Accessed November, 26, 2013] This picture is of the medals of the kings and queens from AD 1731. The picture shows the portrait of different kings and queens etched into different metals. This picture has all the more significance considering the fact that history and relevance of those kings and queens in those eras have been stated in a great manner. Source: The British Museum (2013) Explore Galleries. British Museum. [Online] Available at http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/galleries/themes/room_1_enlightenment.aspx. [Accessed November, 26, 2013] This picture is of The Piranesi Vase belonging to the 18th century highlighting the architectural view of the ancient and modern Rome. Two of the bull heads showcase the ancient history of Rome along with illustrating the association of vase with the Roman Emperor of the 18th century. This picture also created curiosity for the roman culture and history and was quite effective in terms of putting an impression. Source: Source: The British Museum (2013) Explore Galleries. British Museum. [Online] Available at http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/galleries/themes/room_1_enlightenment.aspx. [Accessed November, 26, 2013] This book provides an insight of the travel and observations made by Sir Hans Sloane during his Jamaica exploration offering relevant information on travel and Jamaican culture. Another striking feature of the museum is the ‘Living and Dying” permanent exhibition in the Wellcome Trust Gallery. This section deals with the notion of how people diagnosed and treated diseases in last few centuries along with coping with death. The exhibition also showcases the perception on rituals and mourning along with encompassing galleries of ancient Iran, Persian Empire, and pre history of Europe and Middle East. It also examines the fundamental changes to the human society because of the birth of agriculture. This section offered an in-depth knowledge and learning regarding the histories of different nations in an illustrative manner. Furthermore, the overall experience can be termed as quite unique but a bit monotonous especially the history part. The part covering information over the treated diseases was quite enriching as it offered profound information over various diseases and how they were diagnosed in past centuries. It was found that the treatment of many diseases have changed a lot in last centuries mainly because of the advent of technologies and improvement and innovation in the field of health sciences and medicines. The history part of the Iran and Persian Empire was not very interesting but the fundamental changes to the human societies and reasons behind it was very much impressive in terms of evoking great deal of interest. The concept of living and dying was showcased quite beautifully especially covering the historical aspects of dealing with diseases, deaths, and mourning. At the same time, different cultures treated diseases and mourning differently and thus adding value in the overall understanding. It can be believed that the overall awareness and learning was from historical and cultural point of view covering different eras and periods in an elaborate manner. This learning was quite impressive resulted in great deal of inquisitiveness in phases. At times, the images and writings created curiosity while many formed a monotonous impression. There have been a number of objects in the museum but there were a number of objects that attracted me. Some of the objects grabbed my attention were making us human that were more than million years old showcasing the human evolution from different ages and eras. It was outstanding to go through the human evolution along with understanding different phases in a clear and precise manner. Another object in the form of life after ice age showed human evolution in the quest of food and sex that offered great insights over the needs and desires of humans. The beginning of science and literature in 1500-500 BC was another theme that evoked great attraction and information extracted was of great value and understanding. The evolution of science and literature in the human life was quite brilliantly covered offering information over wide arrays of literature and science tools. It also helped in understanding how the literature and science has developed and improved in last few years adding great value to the human life in last few years of the existence. The threshold of the modern world also grabbed great source of attention and curiosity. The information offered was quite updated and useful in terms of understanding from an amateur point of view. The first global economy was another theme that helped in understanding the usefulness and impact of globalisation in a clear and precise manner. Furthermore themes like enlightenment, exploitation, exploration, and the world of our making helped in understanding the past and the present changes in the societies and the global economy. It can be believed that the societies and global world has changed a lot in last many centuries and technologies and science has been the major reason behind it. Moreover, the learning and understanding of people has also been empowered because of the innovation and in the field of science and wisdom. The entire experience of understanding the human evolution and growth over a period of time helped in understanding the changing face of the world along with identifying key reasons behind it in a logical and systematic manner. Source: The British Museum (2013) A History of the World in 100 objects. British Museum. [Online] Available at http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/a_history_of_the_world.aspx. [Accessed November, 26, 2013] The above image shows hundred different objects that hold great degree of significance in the current world. All these objects are related to the past and present of the human evolution and can be considered as of great value in terms of understanding the human growth and evolution along with the contribution of different eras in building the current global world. It can be said that the overall explanation of all the objects was not possible but few objects and images have helped in sharing the overall experience in a zealous manner. The next part of the discussion concludes the entire experience. Conclusion After going inside the British Museum, I was a bit black in terms of my mindset but the moment, I steeped in; the entire mind was full of vivid images compelling me to be inquisitive in a positive manner. Though, the museum is quite big and large in terms of exploring every bit of it but the overall experience was quite thrilling and enriching in every regard. The glimpse of every object evoked curiosity and questions while the information offered further took me into a different world. Within hours, there was a sense of knowing different cultures and human evolution from a closer perspective. There is no denying that the entire experience was objective in the beginning but later it became a reality that created rich sense and feeling of enlightenment and learning in a unique manner. In the later part of the exploration, there was a feeling of boredom and restlessness as past pages were unfolding making me unable to relate to considering the life of the present world. However, this feeling did not continue for long as new and different objects were creating a sense of excitement and curiosity in a great way. Overall, the experience was quite satisfying and enriching enhancing my learning and thinking level. The British Museum is the hub of cultural amalgamation and human evolution and anyone interested in knowing the human evolution and global cultures will be able to cherish the entire experience in a valuable manner. After getting out of the museum, there was a sense of excitement and amazement that will result in further exploration of the place in a detailed manner. This will help in understanding the cultural existence and evolution along with the importance of history in the present societies and world. REFERENCES Caygill, M (2006). The British Museum: 250 Years. London: The British Museum Press Jenkins, I (2006). Greek Architecture and its Sculpture in The British Museum. London: The British Museum Press Reeve, J (2003). The British Museum: Visitor's Guide. London: The British Museum Press The British Museum (2013) Explore Galleries. British Museum. [Online] Available at http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/galleries/themes/room_1_enlightenment.aspx. [Accessed November, 26, 2013] Wilson, D M. (2002). The British Museum: a history. London: The British Museum Press Read More