08/10/2025
Every object in a museum has its own record on a collections management system (CMS) and it is good practice to update records, whenever we have new information to add. ...
18/09/2025
It was obvious there was something below the egg ‘tray’ and on turning the cabinet around, we were able to make out a very discoloured brass drawer handle. On opening it we discovered it was a divided drawer.
11/09/2025
Egg collections are vulnerable to pests such as woolly bears, being damaged by being kept in non acid free packing, and becoming disassociated from their donor details.
08/12/2024
Interestingly, the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum in Coventry also has a small collection of Warwickshire Natural History and Archaeological Society specimens, transferred to them long ago.
05/12/2024
In late spring, the Unlocking Collections team recruited a small group of researcher and tour guide volunteers to join the project. The team was looking for those who had an ...
28/11/2024
During the late summer of 2024, the Unlocking Collections project recruited a group of co-curation volunteers to develop a small exhibition at Market Hall Museum.
14/08/2024
Our county museum collections have many uses and mean many things to many people. Displays and exhibitions at Market Hall Museum, in county libraries and other venues are key examples of our visibility, but much else goes on, behind the scenes.
15/11/2023
I was immediately distracted, by Jack (one of the team at the record office), resembling something between Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and a circus ring master in a rather warm but fetching outfit...
14/10/2022
Venues and dates have been secured for the Near Belonging exhibition. There’s now a really comprehensive tour in place with just one set of dates still to be confirmed.
06/09/2022
I’m very excited to share the news that we’ll be holding an outdoor screening at the record office itself in Warwick in September.
31/08/2022
We’ve recently held the test screening so participants and close friends of the project could see, and share feedback on, the first edit.
25/07/2022
This is more a pictures than words update, as the merged new and old portraits are now all complete and have been shared with participants, so I’d love to share them here too
18/07/2022
The Near Belonging group meeting at Warwickshire County Record Office has been making what I suggested could be called ‘archive box homes’.
04/07/2022
I loo for the youngest, oldest, most decayed, most unusual, most striking images. My selection was roughly representative but also inevitably personal.
27/06/2022
Near Belonging has evolved unusually, in that the activity has happened simultaneously in three groups
23/06/2022
Part of the ‘adoption’ process for participants has been having their portrait made in a similar pose or style to the archive image. Very few people like having their photograph ...
13/06/2022
This month is all about sharing and being brave, which is why I’m finally publishing thoughts and experiences from the project here, online.
05/01/2022
Some of the photography archives at Warwickshire County Record Office are going to be the centrepiece for a new creative project with the public and volunteers, devised by artist Faye Claridge.
01/01/2022
Since September, I’ve been working alongside Proud Youth group who are based in Leamington Spa. The group, supported by Warwickshire Pride, is around thirty LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Plus) young people, aged 12-18.
01/12/2021
Hi, James here. I am currently taking my PhD at the University of Liverpool, where I focus on gender-nonconformity in pagan Anglo-Saxon England, which was much more prevalent and respected than you would imagine, but that’s another question for another time
29/09/2021
Socially Engaged Art with its collaborative approaches usually includes a fair bit of negotiation and lots (and lots) of chatting!
22/09/2021
All the projects I’m involved in are driven by an endless curiosity about the social uses of art and a fascination about the relationship between collaboration and creativity. I always work alongside other people, often communities drawn together by their location, shared experiences or interests.
13/05/2021
I like the idea of the archive as a beehive or giant bird house- with local histories flying in and out and we’ll use this as a starting point for the artwork. I’m interested in the role of the archive in the community.
21/12/2020
It's safe to say 2020 has been an... interesting year
