Book Review: Micromuseology by Fiona Candlin

Everyone knows that we love to visit London's small museums and promote them through our #hipstermuseum series. We usually like to focus on the more entertaining side of things, focusing on all the insta-worthy experiences you can have beyond the city's big nationals, but of course there's much more to visiting small museums. In Micromuseology, Dr Fiona Candlin, museum studies lecturer at Birkbeck, takes a more academic approach to why small museums rock. Sure to be a required reading for all you aspiring museologists, Candlin's book is accessible enough for everyone who loves Britain's quirky independent and specialist museums.

The Bakelite Museum

What is a micromuseum? This is the basic question that Candlin seeks to answer in her book, and one that is actually incredibly complex. Is it to do with funding? Size? Staffing? Subject matter? Visitor number? Floor space? In trying to define a micromuseum, Candlin ends up questioning what it is to be a modern museum altogether. For example, does a museum need to be accredited to be a museum? Does it need a professional curator? Does it need a scholarly or impartial viewpoint? Considering over fifty micromuseums across the UK, Candlin will slowly change your mind about what you think a museum is or can be.

Museum of Witchcraft 

Compared with the institutions featured in this book, our hipster museums seem enormous! From the Museum of Witchcraft in Boscastle to the Bakelite Museum in Somerset and the Cornice Museum of Ornamental Plasterwork, Candlin travelled the country in a campervan to visit some of the most obscure small museums she could find. And finding them does indeed sound like half the battle- many of these institutions being run by families, or a small group of volunteers with limited hours and in out of the way places. In order for museums to be listed in the Museums Association Yearbook they have to submit their own details; something small non-accredited museums probably haven't even considered doing. Without any real listing of these museums, Candlin relied on local guides, word-of-mouth, and the trusty hotel lobby pamphlet to find her source material.

Vintage Wireless Museum

I've been to plenty of small museums in my day, including the Museum of Witchcraft which Candlin features prominently in her volume, and I have to admit I've always been a little bit of a curatorial snob. From label tenses to lighting, or the overly enthusiastic museum docent, I have a pretty fixed idea in my mind of what a museum experience should feel-like. But Candlin's book has prompted me to reconsider some of my own professional bias which undoubtedly comes from my background in large museums. I have an idea of what I think the museum should be, but does that match up with what the public wants? Candlin summarises the conundrum brilliantly: 

'There is some irony in this situation because the Museums Association strongly advocates for inclusive museums- which are open to everyone and not just the upper middle classes who historically dominated museum audiences, but they simultaneously disqualify museums that are founded and run by people who do not necessarily belong to an institutional or professional elite...major museums need to acknowledge and represent diverse views. Individual institutions should be open to the populace at large but it is also important to re-evaluate official conceptions of museums, of how they operate, who runs them, and to what purpose: democratization requires that other type of museums are recognized' (Candlin 2016 p.11). 

Two examples from the book address this imbalance perfectly: The Bakelite Museum and the British Vintage Wireless Museum in Dulwich. When Candlin visits the Wireless Museum, she finds a huge specialist collection stuffed in a private home. Sitting drinking tea with the curator/owner and his specialist friend, in a gallery which doubles as the kitchen, Candlin ponders on the idea of public and private space. And yet isn't this more personal interaction with a collection more affecting, more informative, and more in-line with the original idea of the cabinet of curiosities than a large institution with everything behind barriers? In the Bakelite Museum, there are hardly any labels or order at all to guide the visitor through their massive collection dedicated to this versatile material. Does this lack of professional standards put off visitors? Not at all- people report finding the display even more thrilling as they are able to discover things for themselves. 

Personally, I found the chapter on the British in India Museum very affecting as it encapsulates one of the reasons why I personally love working in museums. Established in memorium to the British Raj, the British in India Museum has an unapologetically nostalgic perspective on the British rule of India in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Filled with mementos of lives spent in India, the museum is a 'family sepluchre' for elderly individuals who want their memories saved in perpetuity. The political context of the museum, that is colonialism, makes the memories enshrined in these objects very difficult. However, it is also a perspective which is both often missed out in museums (as I can't imagine any funders being particularly happy with it) and one which is very genuinely felt by a formerly large, but now dwindling group of people. In large museums we so often have members of the public send in family knick-knacks, often very ordinary, unremarkable items, which are hesitant to look after. But aren't all objects in museums just memories that someone really cared about? Isn't all preservation in the end an act of kindness and love? 

Sewing Machine Museum 

Professional or no, after reading Micromuseology I have a much greater understanding of the value of small museums for individuals, for communities, and really for our national memory of the past. Of course we would rather that objects be looked after to the highest standard, but that's not to say there isn't something valuable in, say, a group of engineering enthusiasts running and repairing steam engines. I only wish the book included a listing of all the museums Candlin visited so we could try to hunt down some of our own. The Wireless Museum in Dulwich and the Sewing Machine Museum in Balham are definitely on our list for the near future!

Our January Hipster Museum: the MusEYEum

It's been a few years now we've been doing this, and you've probably got the sense that we might sometimes play favourites with our city's museums. Alright, you've caught us, we just love medical museums! I mean - who doesn't right? And while we spend lots of time at the Wellcome or the Hunterian, London is chock full of small medical museums yet to be discovered! For this month's hipster museum, we take you into the history of spectacles at the British Optometry Association's museum, the MusEYEum. When you see the badass glasses in store for you, we know the hipster crowd will come in droves.

Not too long ago we went on an expedition to the Benjamin Franklin House museum, which we never even realised was tucked away on a cute little 18th century street just next to Charing Cross station. Without even knowing it we walked straight past the BOA museum, which is housed inside the Royal College of Optometrists. If you didn't know, London is full of the medical colleges and most of them keep a little museum or displays of their specialty's history. Smaller, more focused versions of what you might find at the Royal College of Physicians or Surgeons. Most, like the BOA museum, require you to make an appointment to visit- but don't let that put you off!

Much like the cabinet of curiosities of yore, you need a guide to get you into the MusEUum - in this case their dedicated Curator Neil Handley. While booking an appointment might be a bit of a hassle, its definitely worth it for every visitor to get to speak directly to the collection's keeper, and get a brief tour to boot! The museum itself is surprisingly large for a specialist medical collection, stretching over two good sized rooms absolutely packed with cases, wall displays, videos, drawers and interactives. While like most collections the majority of objects are in storage, the MusEYEum certainly has a go at getting out as much as is possible.

So what is the history of optometry then? Basically, the long history of man attempting to correct or enhance his eyesight. The Chinese culture invented spectacles centuries ago, with the first recorded European discovery of eye glasses being Marco Polo's journey to the east. By the 18th century, spectacles have really hit their stride. However - unlike the quirky hipsters of today, glasses weren't a go to fashion accessory. In fact to wear them meant admitting something was wrong with you; spectacles were viewed almost as a disfigurement. As a result, opticians of the 18th and 19th centuries came up with amazing and often beautiful ways to make these accessories.

From opera glasses, to early coloured spectacles, contact lenses, and magnifying glasses; humans have come up with some pretty impressive objects to help us see. Rather than focusing on the more technical aspects of optometry, the MusEYEum tries to put the history of spectacles in its social context, and really gets you thinking about how important sight, and its correction, can be. Personally, I got a little too excited about the handling collection, which allows you to try on actual historic spectacles, including Victorian pince-nez, monocles, 50s plastic retro behemoths, and early 19th century blue specs. Some of the displays feel downright steam-punk, but then again this is the history that our modern Victoriana trends are based on. 

An old-fashioned museum packed with things to explore, the MusEYEum is rapidly increasing in popularity and visitor numbers. So you'd better arrange your visit before it gets way too mainstream. For appointments, contact Curator Neil Handley. 

Uncovering the secrets of the Masons (or not) at the Museum of Freemasonry

If you have ever walked from Holborn to Covent Garden, then you have almost certainly seen the Art Deco giant which is the Free Masons Hall. But did you know that it has a museum inside of it? Well maybe you did but if you have never been inside you are definitely missing out on our first #hipstermuseum.

Oh right that's what that building is.

Let’s just start out by talking about the museum itself. I can honestly say I walked around this 2 room museum for a good 45 minutes, and left not really knowing anything additional about Freemasonry. But then again I don’t really think this is the purpose of the museum. Like with most small museums housed in larger institutions (think the Colleges of medicine) the main audience is really the members, and they probably know the basics. For a casual observer though, the displays are more difficult to read. So don’t try to find the chronological panel on the development of Freemasonry in London, it’s no there. Also watch out for text panels speaking in the collective ‘we’. cringe.

 As a museum professional, this would normally really bother me about a museum. But you know what, I loved this place so much I don’t even care. You enter the Museum through the Library, which itself has a series of display cases on portrayals of the Masons in literature. It’s worth a browse, and I personally got very distracted by the amazing titles in the museum stacks. But just wait until you enter the museum room: one enormous two story space absolutely packed to the brim of mason memorabilia and bric-a-brac. The balcony is lined with incredibly imposing looking throne chairs which watch you as you browse ceremonial garments, chains, teapots, punch bowls, pipes, ceramic elephants and basically anything else you can imagine which would possibly be stamped with a masonic image.

Treasures like this await you. 

Again, I’m not 100% sure what I am meant to be taking away from the collection of drawing tables (what’s a drawing table?), ceramic figures, certificates of membership or engraved nautili, but I loved every minute of it. Top that off with a few full-size dummies in full ceremonial garb and you definitely have my vote for a pretty ace ‘cabinet of curiosities’ style museum.

The star of the show really is the Grade II building itself however which the public are allowed to access thanks to the museum. On a weekday, the museum hosts up to 5 tours of the building a day and believe me when I say, they are definitely worth it. When else are you going to get a chance to see the Prince Regent’s enormous ceremonial throne (specially built to accommodate his bulk) or marvel at the enormous Grand Temple used for the masons most important meetings? Completed in 1933, the Freemasons Hall is the only intact ‘as built’ Art Deco building in London in all it’s wood-paneled, stained glass, marble-covered glory. The whole thing feels like a very expensive film set, and indeed it has been used in many films and tv shows including Guy Richie’s Sherlock Holmes.

The Grand Temple. Yes it's really big. 

None the wiser about Freemasonry and now obsessed with art deco architecture, I’m already keen to go back. Why this isn’t a number one ‘don’t miss’ in the Covent Garden area I’ll never know. But for the love of god, don’t skip the building tour!

Love it, want it, need it.

For more information visit: http://www.freemasonry.london.museum/

New Ministry Series: London's #hipstermuseums

We liked these museums before they were cool...

The nationals are like, soooo mainstream. Everyone knows that London is full of amazing museums. We are certainly the first in line to try and get ourselves into blockbuster exhibitions at the British Museum or the V&A. But what we love just as much is this city’s small museums, who can sometimes be forgotten in the shadow of the bigger nationals. We do our best to promote their events on par with the heavy hitters in our twitter updates, but now we are going to push it even farther with a new blog series on London’s smaller, offbeat, lesser known, shall we say #hipstermuseums. 

Each month we’ll be visiting a new small museum and writing up a review so all of you know the essentials: where it is, when to go, and what makes it so special. But don't just take our word for it, in the true hipster spirit, these museums are so much better live. Watch out for the #hipstermuseums hashtag and let us know if there is a small London museum we just have to visit before it gets too popular for its own good.