DEFENDERS OF THE GATE: A SOLDIER'S STORY
Reflective Discussion of Challenges and Issues
During the planning process for the “Defenders of the Gate: a Soldier’s Story” exhibit, my supervisor Amanda Williford told me that the best quality to possess during this project was flexibility. This piece of advice turned out to be vital, especially during the planning and exhibit design phases.
Since the exhibit was being presented at the San Francisco History Expo, continual changes happened along the four-month development period. In the beginning I had started planning the exhibit to feature seven panels and four cases of object and archive materials. With the addition of more local organizations to the History Expo’s lineup, it became necessary to share a room with another individual. As a result, I had to reduce the amount of information I was writing about and find a successful way to narrow down the topic and interpretive information. Although it was a difficult task to leave out core information, I strongly feel the educational value of the exhibit was maintained.
Another challenge I faced was editing. Since the Park Archives and Records Center has many employees, each with varying and rotating schedules, the editing stage took much longer than I expected. The wall panels went through about five stages of edits so everyone had a chance to add or verify the information. Although it put the planning a few weeks behind schedule, different perspectives and points of view proved important when it came to writing and communicating the exhibit’s story with historical accuracy.
One of the last issues I encountered did not arise until the day of exhibit. In order to maximize space in our small room and to ensure the safety and stability of the objects, we placed our display cases up against the walls. However, the other individual in the room had placed chairs behind their tables in order to sit behind their display. In pushing the tables out more into the center of the room, the area of standing room became much smaller. I believe visitors were left feeling cramped in the room, therefore limiting the amount of time they spent looking at the wall panels and display cases.
Conclusion and Recommendations
As I reflect on the process this exhibit took me through, I notice all of the various angles of museum studies that I encountered. From the very beginning I was utilizing research methods and organizational skills. During the internship I had with the GGNRA, I was able to become knowledgeable of their history and collection, and was even able to plan a small exhibit that gave me the knowledge and confidence to go forth with this exhibit. While my emphasis in the Museum Studies program is collections management and registration, I feel that orchestrating the exhibit put me in a realm where I would be able to perform other career or professional services outside my specialty.
My recommendations for those conducting creative work projects are to know and understand your time commitments. Such projects require you to wear every hat in the museum field. You are the curator, exhibit designer, collections manager, and director of the project. I was very fortunate to have a great team at the Park Archives and Records Center helping me along the way, in addition to having a three-month internship that enabled me to become familiar with the collection.
In the end, my number one recommendation for those curating exhibits is to be flexible. You may be able to plan an exhibit down to the smallest detail but you cannot control the outside forces that can arise at the last moment. Another strong recommendation is to know the museum’s collection. Every item or piece of archival material tells a story, and with the right amount of zest and passion, those items can make a great story, and an even better exhibit.