Not for the faint of heart: MoL's Crime Museum

The Crime Museum at the Museum of London has to be one of the most hotly anticipated museum exhibitions of the year. From Resurrection Men to Sherlock Holmes, MoL seems to be building its brand on the curious and the slightly morbid. The Crime Museum (otherwise known as the Black Museum) is the Metropolitan Police's own collection of evidence from history of policing, stretching back to the end of the nineteenth century. This is the first time that their objects have been seen by the public. So - plenty of cache, but how does the real thing stack up?

The exhibition is divided into two sections which are meant to reflect the lay our of the actual museum within Scotland Yard. The first section is modeled on older drawings of the Crime Museum, complete with fireplace and old fashioned cases. A broad-sheet style information pamphlet guides you through. Note: if you do not pick up this information pamphlet you will be very very confused as very little text is included with any of these objects. As a historian - this is the stuff I came here for: death masks of Newgate prisoners, execution ropes, textile and hair samples from the Harley Street mystery, and the cunning ladder of the cat burglar Charles Peace. 

Somewhat controversially, there isn't much here about Jack the Ripper. To be honest, after seeing some Ripper objects from the Crime Museum at the Wellcome's recent Forensics exhibition I was quite looking forward to seeing them again. But on reflection, Jack has really had his day, and crime in London is so much more than that. A few examples of police appeals for information from the era should satisfy someone who is a Ripper-ologist. 

I couldn't help but wish that more space had been given to the nineteenth century section - which so effectively transports the visitor into the space of the hidden crime museum. But unfortunately this section abruptly ends as you enter into one large, violently orange space dedicated to the Met in the 20th and 21st century. On one side, themed displays cover topics like weapons, drugs, and counterfeits, while along the other, individual cases are given over to particular trials or crimes. 

Staring into what feels like an endless abyss of labels, one visitor near me commented 'Wow, this is not the exhibition for you if you don't like to read.' As astute a comment as they come. I felt tired before I even really got started. Coming from the first section where text was sparse, the rest of the exhibition felt like reading a book. But then again, trying to imagine how you communicate the basics of a case: who it was, what happened, why it is relevant to the history of crime or policing, it's a necessarily verbose affair. Critical as I might be of so much text, I can't really imagine a better curatorial technique. It's just a difficult subject matter.

Speaking of difficult. While I probably should have considered this when going to see an exhibition called 'The Crime Museum', it is a very disturbing experience. There is a really strong sense that many of the famous crimes were perpetrated against women. With case after case of horrifically murdered women, I actually felt glad to see some gangsters shooting each other up. Even the one case which features a female perpetrator, Ruth Ellis, you kind of feel for her. In 1955, she shot her ex five times after he kicked her in the stomach, causing her to lose her child. Ellis was the last women to be executed in Britain. This, displayed near a case showing the different techniques used for illegal abortion over the years, speaks strongly about the place of women in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The exhibition ends with terrorism- of course one the biggest threats to London and the Met in recent years. The cases on IRA bombings are interesting, and its certainly relevant to include modern policing work. Although for me, the section about the 7/7 bombings still felt a little too recent. Bizarre to think already this has become museum-ified history.

The Crime Museum is certainly not a romp through London's seedy history. Despite it's bright colours and sleek fonts, this is really a very serious look into crime and punishment in the metropolis. Not for the faint of heart or for those who don't feel like reading. An exhibition to be pondered and a slow pace, and maybe followed by a calming cup of tea!

The Crime Museum is on at the Museum of London until the 10th of April, 2016. Pre-booking strongly advised. 

#hipstermuseum - Museum of London Docklands

Oh dearest followers it's been far too long since we've done one of these. We know that its a very exciting time with McQueen still ruling the roost, slides at the Hayward and the RA's Summer Exhibition - but we like to take some time for our city's smaller and lesser known museums. For this hot July we've picked somewhere dark, atmospheric and by the water- its the Museum of London Docklands!

The MoLD might not at first seem like a good contender as a hipster museum - I mean really, would a hipster by caught dead in West India Quay? We think most people are probably scared off by the cross-City trek from Canada Water to this little gem tucked away in an 18th century warehouse on the other side of all the skyscrapers and commuters. In fact, our first impressions upon arriving were 1) this building is f**king awesome and 2) why is there no one here?

Well we would like to change that. You might maybe have the impression from the name that this is just a small, slightly sad out-posting of the big Museum of London near the Barbican. Not so. Not only is the museum absolutely enormous compared to what we were expecting (cafe, kids gallery, archival research centre and three floors packed full of exhibits), the exhibition design is absolutely GORGEOUS. They've got everything about docklands history from the Romans to the Blitz to more recent social history and the regeneration of the Isle of Dogs.

Museum of London has always been known for its innovative dense display - bringing together art, objects, archives and large-scale industrial pieces, and the MoLD does not disappoint. Add to that the atmospheric re-purposed hardwood floors and warehouse rafters and the effect is stunning. This isn't a museum purely for school groups, this is a museum for trendy openings! Parties! Weddings!

And if you weren't convinced to make the trip already, here are two more incentives. The first, is Sailor Town. Oh my god I love Sailor Town. We know its probably aimed at kids but we get so damn excited about re-created streets in museums - with their low lighting and sound effects. Is there anywhere more perfect for instagramming than the MoLD's recreated rough riverside town?

If you are of a more cultural persuasion, then you'll be excited to hear about the Dockland's new photographic exhibition- Soldiers and Suffragette's: The Photography of Christina Broom. Step into the world of the UK's first female press photographer and follow her work around London, particularly her postcard images of suffragette rallies and soldiers heading off to the First World War. Being a woman in a male-dominated field wasn't going to keep Christina Broom out of the action, and her badass-ness paid off, famously photographing the Royal Family.

So basically it's all happening at MoLD- so you'd better get down there before everyone else figures it out...

Film, archive or art? Who cares- it's Sherlock Holmes at the Museum of London

A few months ago we were, well, a little critical of the Museum of London and their penchant for exhibitions that tie in with recent television and film releases (see: this article from November). In fact this question of films, promotion and temporary exhibitions has been picked up elsewhere, including a feature in January's Museums Journal. We wondered whether all these PR driven, crowd pleasing, Hollywood inspired displays were a good enticement or an indication of the decreasing importance of collections. Well, a Christmas visit to MoL's Sherlock Holmes exhibition set us right- it is possible to build something which lures in film fans and also shows off your objects.

Regardless of this debate, I would have gone to see this exhibition anyway. I mean- who doesn't love Sherlock Holmes? Admittedly when most people say this they mean Benedict Cumberbatch or Robert Downey Junior - but who can blame them. It occurred to me as I walked through the party trick door that MoL loves so much- Sherlock Holmes is not a real person. How are they going to pull off an exhibition about a fictional persona? Essentially the MoL had three ways they could go with this- a British Library style archival exhibition with original manuscripts, a media-dense exploration of the major themes and historical context of the works, or to focus on London as an essential character in Conan Doyle's stories. Eureka! thought the curators, we shall do all three.

Sherlock Holmes does very much feel like several exhibitions stuck together, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It begins with exactly what most visitors expect as they walk through the bookcase- lots of videos and film posters creating a cacophony of sights and sounds of Sherlock over the past 150 years. But this is no film exhibition, before you know it...BAM! We are getting archival up in here bitch. Look at these manuscripts, original prints of the Strand Magazine, even some Edgar Allan Poe. Personally I enjoyed the video clip of Conan Doyle himself (although did any one else notice how this was introduced as an interview about his close connections with the spiritual world?! Guess we are just skipping over that one...)

If you only briefly looked at the faded pages of early Sherlock, you may well have been equally surprised to find yourself in the next section - oh its an art exhibition! Personally I like this bit- the Sherlock Holmes stories have been inspired for students of London and undoubtedly the metropolis itself shapes the mysteries even more than the great detective himself. Plus hey, we are in the Museum of London and I'm sure they have infinite amounts of London based photographs, etchings, paintings, and whatnots they are dying to get out of the store. So go on then, relish it art curators. You put up all those Victorian photos of foggy London-town.

The last portion of the exhibition is probably what most people had in mind when they bought a ticket- a dense display about Sherlock as a character featuring historical objects related to the stories plus film props (swoon, Benedict's coat and all). And why not- when it comes the Victorian London I imagine MoL is bursting at the seems with stuff for people to see. Clay pipes, medicine chests, carriage models, boots, guns- you name it. Personally I found the displays around the outside which looked at the development of fingerprinting, phrenology, iris-matching, and all other fodder for Sherlockian detective work fascinating. It's so much stuff in one tiny space you probably need at least 2 times around to see it all.

Is this a good exhibition- overall, yes. It's certainly feels like several exhibitions rolled together, but maybe that's necessary when addressing a topic that people think about in so many different ways. MoL seems to be trying to please everyone in their relatively small exhibition space, and to that I say, hats off to them. When faced with the challenge of creating an exhibition about a fictional detective, the museum turned to their collections to provide the solution. Although slightly disjointed, Sherlock Holmes is well worth a visit for lovers of the original stories, its recent incarnations or just the city of London.

Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived And Will Never Die is on at the Museum of London until the 12th of April. 

Museum of London: Clever or evil? You decide...

I came across this image on the internet recently of superstar du jour, Benedict Cumberbatch, posing next to a Paddington Bear statue dressed as Sherlock in the Museum of London. At first I didn't think much of it, and then my brain became rapidly muddled with the stunning amount of cross promotion encapsulated in these images. Cumberbatch, star of the BBC's immensely successful Sherlock, at the Museum of London where they are having their Sherlock Holmes exhibition - fair enough. But the museum also has a Paddington Bear exhibition, which funnily enough coincides with the release of a major motion picture just in time for Christmas. And now they have a Sherlock themed Paddington Bear? Is the Museum of London run by a production studio? Is this incredibly brilliant or incredibly evil?

First off, let's be clear- Benedict I really doubt you designed this paddington sculpture. That is just a bear holding a deer stalker. Everyone calm down. I know he's amazing, but clearly not a particularly original sculptor.

But isn't what's more concerning that the MoL's exhibition masterplan seems to based around popular tv and film programmes? On the one hand, I will admit that both of these franchises are based in London and so would fall within the museum's remit. Also, the MoL has always focused on engaging school children audiences, and these two exhibitions can hardly fail to please. But on the other- the museum has commissioned a new deerstalker hat to be on sale at Liberty- is this an educational institution or an incredibly clever business?

I would say without a doubt the MoL is clever- indeed all we seem to talk about at conferences these days is building our brands, making the most of our collections, increasing visitor figures and income. Check check check- the MoL is on that like, well, like the PR savvy place it is. In fact, I would think the museum would be a paragon of a clever heritage institution - if it still had any of its collections staff.

I don't personally have a problem with the PR and cross-promotional wizardry that the MoL is pulling off. What does bother me is that it seems to come at the expense of its curatorial staff, or just its staff more widely, as we all have seen in its well publicized redundancy plan. The exhibitions are easy to market, because they aren't developed from the collections they are developed to sell, carried out by external contractors. And the scary part is- it is working.

So every time we buy our Liberty/MoL hat or pose for photos with Paddington Bear- are we condoning the rise of museums run with exposure and profit in mind? Or are museums finally getting their fair share of attention from the media? I just don't know guys. For the moment I'll have to leave it that the Museum of London might be the most savvy institution out there, but whose success appears to come at a terrible price.

Into the vaults at the Cheapside Hoard

Here at The Ministry we often visit exhibitions together yet rarely review them as one, but when it came to Museum of London’s latest blockbuster ‘Cheapside Hoard: London’s Lost Jewels’  we had too much to say for ourselves so why not reveal our critical personalities and combine our assessments into one post for the first time ever! 

Terri says... 

‘The mysteries that remain, lost among the cataclysmic events of the mid- 17^th Century: who owned the Hoard, when and why was it hidden, and why was it never reclaimed’ – Museum of London.

What is so significant about the Cheapside Hoard? The mystery of why and who buried the collection of jewellery in the seventeenth century is a key theme of the hoard’s history and its current exhibition at the Museum of London. Who owned the hoard? Why was it hidden? And why did the owner never return to claim it? Opinion is varied yet one story predominates; in some sort of a hurry a jeweller buried his working collection containing rings, brooches, necklaces, gemstones expecting to return. Regardless of the jeweller's personal life and absence due to Elizabethan drama/death the hoard provides the most fantastic examples of 16^th and 17^th century craftsmanship and consumption.

Filled with Jacobean and Elizabethan treasures the simple wooden box of sparkling and shiny jewellery was unearthed at the City of London’s Cheapside in 1912.  Cheapside was considered the Hatton Gardens of its day, occupied by jewellers, markets, dealers the area even provided a site of pageantry for Elizabeth I the day before her coronation in 1599. Beneath the commercial hub of the City the hoard was left untouched for hundreds of years, until a high priced game of Finders Keepers when workmen evacuating a cellar unearthed the cache. The lucky sods soon sold all of their loot to ‘Stony Jack’ a notorious antiques dealer and ‘Inspector of Excavations’ for the London Museum, who then sold it majority to the London Museum, a few pieces to the British Museum and one chain to the V&A

The Museum of London’s exhibition ‘Cheapside Hoard: London’s lost jewels’ is the first time in since that sale in 1912 that the entirety of the hoard has been displayed together. The sheer amount of sparkle makes the show a ‘must see’ but what does it contents tell us?

Jacobean and Elizabethan London was a site of conspicuous consumption, with the birth of travel and overseas trade in the sixteenth century London was becoming a notorious site of consumerism – that has lasted until today. The rich were getting richer and a new middling merchant class was emerging. With this, the dramatic effect of status loomed heavy among those merchant classes and upper parts of society. A need to prove wealth and standing and what better way was there than to adorn oneself in jewellery. The more exotic to show travel and the larger quantity to show wealth equaled a theatrical need to express who you are by what you were consuming.

The Cheapside Hoard offers examples of some of my favourite conspicuous consumption habits of the period; ladies littering their dresses with rings and droplets of diamonds, pearls and any other gems – images we are familiar with in painting of the period but due to the nature of such ornaments little examples have survived. Beautiful enamel necklaces that hung down to the waists of males and females and exotic gemstones; amazonite from Brazil, rubies from India and perhaps most prolifically of all a watch made of Colombian Emerald. The watch not only shows the length and depth of travel and the need to consume but the craftsmanship of an unknown individual, the emerald would have had to have been the size of an apple to accommodate the watches movement. 

The sheer amount of examples is thrilling yet it is surprising to hear that the curator of the exhibition Hazel Forsyth believes that many of the treasures are still out there, Citing stories of ex- London Museum workers bringing back the odd ring or brooch as they leave the institution coupled with the 1912’s workmen’s fondness for a few drinks. Are there more treasures to be exhumed from the Cheapside Hoard?

If only my jewellery box looked like this... 

Kristin says... 

With objects like these, you can be damn sure that Museum of London is expecting Cheapside Hoard to be its blockbuster exhibition of the year. And in true MoL style, the exhibition design matches the theme of ostentation. Entering the exhibition, you will be expected to leave all your belongings behind and pass through barred doors that make you feel like you are entering the Bank of England. Security procedure or exhibition design? Unclear, but the effect is amazing. It’s almost difficult to read the introductory text panel you are so distracted by a lighted sculpture of precious jewels hung from exposed wood beams. The beginning contextualising displays are, thankfully, blocked from the rest of the exhibition because if you knew what was coming next you would probably be spending considerably less time examining that painting. Around the corner is a reproduction jeweller's shop and once you make it past there, well, jewellery bonanza. 

The sheer scale of the hoard is brought together in one large room where you can circulate around the cases examining the minute details of each piece using your own spy-glass. On the one hand it brings an interactive element to an otherwise quite distant exhibition of expensive jewellery, but on the other hand it’s necessary as each item is so minute. Despite the very exciting subject matter, I don’t really envy the person who had to plan out a major exhibition based only on incredibly intricate 17^th century jewellery. But with beautiful high resolution videos, complementary textiles and paintings and your trust magnifying glass, it all feels way more accessible.

 As it should be in an exhibition about the beauty of small things, it is the little touches that really makes the exhibition design a stand out. Contemporary shop signs actually hung at their proper height make a great change from the way such objects are normally displayed. What is really quite an average looking wooden carving seems ominous and somehow more real mounted above the rest of the displays. Someone on the exhibition team has even thought to push for tactile replicas which you can covet as you examine the real thing close up. Who said that an exhibition about jewellery had to be fiddly?

If we could fault the exhibition on any front it would be the video at the end. Why have they found it necessary to commission a dramatic video that expounds the secrets of the hoard and very tenuously tries to link it to modern life? We came for the shiny things, you gave us the shiny things, and we are pleased. 

The Cheapside Hoard: London’s Lost Jewels is at the Museum of London until the 27^th of April.

Prancing to Playlists: Museums on Spotify.

Maybe it’s just us, but museums seem to be everywhere at the moment? We live and breathe museums whether it’s starting the day with a mug from The Museum of London gift shop, working in one or spending our evenings checking out events. Here at The Ministry we just can’t get enough, and luckily for us their large presence on social media and collections online means that we can be part London’s museums 24/7. So it’s not too much of a surprise that they have even found a place on our favourite free music player is it?

When recently bopping along to some very cheesy music on Spotify I was interrupted (of course I can’t afford to pay monthly fees on a museum wage!) by an advertisement for Lowry: The Painting of Modern Life at Tate Britain. ‘Eh?’ I thought to myself is this really the best way to advertise something so visual? London has been inundated with those matchstick men stomping across posters on the underground and every other wall space in London this summer.  Is it a bit of a sneaky reminder that when I’m shaking my bum to Rihanna I must go and do something of cultural significance or just my Museum geek guilt?

I soon found out however that not only was there an advertisement but a whole Playlist inspired by the Exhibition produced by Tate.  Created by Adrian Shaw, Programmer for Late at Tate he often draws connections between music and art for the Lates. Offering a bit of ‘northern realism’ through The Smiths, working class culture with the Verve and a commentary on Thatcherite Britain by Billy Bragg Shaw the Lowry playlist attempts to echo the moods of the show.  

Upon conducting some more research I found that Tate wasn't the only one engaging in this musical outreach. The V&A have a playlist dedicated to the Post Modernism exhibition of 2011 – 2012 celebrating the music of the 70’s and 80’s ‘when style became an attitude and postmodernism ruled’ But it’s the Museum of London who has perhaps the most comprehensive playlist, not only frolicking on the links of art and music but with playlists inspired by permanent displays, exhibitions, events and even their film club. 

I’ve even heard from very reliable sources that the Horniman are in the later stages of creating a playlist including little gems like this.Horniman advert.

All very exciting for the non stop museum geek like myself. But what is the marketing strategy behind these? A recent  survey conducted by the Digital Media team at the V&A for the Online Managers Forum discussed statistics about ‘what visitors say about using mobile devices in Museum's'.  Typical use of Wi-Fi and engaging with younger audiences came out top. But they also found that participants responded well to the idea of music related to period or place.

However with such playlists its unclear where their use should take place in the museum or at home? I myself would hate to visit a calm and quiet gallery disturbed by the tinny feedback of headphones.  But in a sound appropriate area I think it’s a great way to engage audiences, encourage contextualization and get down to some new  tunes. 

Exploring the Sick City of London

At the Ministry we love meeting, promoting and participating in all of the exciting multi-disciplinary projects that London has to offer. From Museums Showoff to UCL Researchers in Museums there are so many interesting people doing great things at the moment. So it was only a matter of time before we heard about the Sick City Project supported by the Wellcome Trust. Organized by Wellcome Engagement Fellow Dr. Richard Barnett, the Sick City Project takes the history of medicine in London to the streets. 

Starting out our snowy tour at the Royal College
of Surgeons in Lincolns Inn Field

Building on the cultural and historical geography of our great city, the Sick City projects aims to engage the imagination my immersing participants in the history of medicine by bringing them directly to the places where it happened. Why read about medicine in London when you could walk the streets walked by the historic persons themselves? Get out of the library and get into history!

Heading up the strand towards the heart
of the City 

Sick City offers a variety of tours from exploring tropical diseases in Greenwich to the sex trade of Soho, but I opted to attend Richard Barnett’s ‘Sensational Bodies’ walk organized through the Museum of London. Accompanying the ‘Doctors, Dissection and Resurrection Men’ exhibition, Barnett took us on a tour of anatomical teaching in the heart of London, covering the rise of the surgery from the four humours to the foundation of the Royal College of Surgeons in Lincoln’s Inn Fields. Even living in London, it’s sometimes hard to really appreciate the physical closeness of medical London. But walking from Holborn along the Strand to St Paul’s and St Bartholomew’s Hospital, its easy to see how the trade in bodies and anatomical knowledge was linked. Surgeons and student, physicians and booksellers, body snatchers and the poor, all milled together within a claustrophobic two miles at the centre of the city.

You can see why people weren't too keen on dissection
in the early eighteenth century. 

I was also thrilled by the amount of emphasis Barnett placed on the importance of the two brothers who revolutionized surgery and anatomy teaching in the 18^th century: William and John Hunter. I know I am incredibly biased, but it made me happy. I also learned that the Hunters’ pioneering anatomy school in Covent Garden was located right where the Apple store is today. The history of London is all around us, if only we knew where to look. Throw in a ghost story or two, and I was one happy girl (despite the terrible weather- a danger of any outdoor adventure in London).

Without sounding like too much of an advertisement (note that the Ministry is not affiliated with Sick City!), you’d be crazy not to try and get yourself on one of these walks! You can find out more about the project at sickcityproject.wordpress.com plus download their app, podcasts and see future Sick City events. You can also follow them on twitter @SickCityProject. 

The Ministry's Gift Shop Guide.

Here at The Ministry we love the gift shop just as much as the exhibition. How else can you feel like a collector on a Museum professionals salary? Well, we have found ten of the best pieces in London Museum's Gift Shops for under £30

Thanks to That Fall by Naomi Campbell in the 90's
I'm far too scared to ever wear platforms this high but I
can still ogle Viv Westwood's beautiful shoes with
this postcard 
70p @  V&A

Who doesn't want a giant pen lid as a desk tidy.
At least you can't choke on it.
£11.95 @ Design Museum

It looks like she needs a cuddle. 
Grab this cushion cover for only £15 from Tate

Make a mistake and let David Bowie
correct it with this rubber
£1.50 V&A

Every Cabinet of Curiosity needs an indication that
you have been somewhere or are planning to travel.
This book is the perfect starting point and its colourful!
'Folio Society: What are the Seven Wonders of the World'
£24.99 @ British Museum

Isn't Vintage style apothecary a darling?
 For only £10 @ Museum of London
you pretend you're a medical collector like Henry Wellcome.

It couldn't get any cuter! Influenced by Ice Age Art
Exhibition the British Museum have these Mamommoth Tagua
Necklaces for £24.99. And it's fairtrade.

It's a Lego Lunchbox!
£10 @ Science Museum

Ermmm, so I found this 'Poo in a Box'
 @ Natural History Museum for £5
It's basically a great fertile starter to grow the sunflower seeds provided.

We all need a momento like this so we can ask ourselves
What Would Darwin Do?
This 11cm high Charles Darwin Bust is only
£18.00 from @ National Portrait Gallery