The British Museum in London is known worldwide for its extraordinary collection of over 8 million objects, and its extensive touring exhibitions programme has been developed to share these artefacts and their stories with audiences beyond the museum’s beloved Bloomsbury location.
Its international touring exhibition catalogue currently includes 15 shows, ranging from exhibitions inspired by its stunning ancient Egyptian collection to ones that examine historic works using cutting-edge scientific imagery.
Olivia O’Leary, manager of international exhibitions at the British Museum, spoke to blooloop about the complexities of designing this programme, emerging technological trends in the sector, and the importance of sharing stories.
Built on stories
“It’s the stories that matter. We always try and lead with that,” O’Leary says when asked about developing the touring exhibitions programme.
“You think about what intriguing story you are telling, and then you build the objects and message around that. And that’s your hook. You’ve got to appeal to the young, to the old, everybody in between. The subject matter expert or someone who doesn’t know anything.
“It’s the kernel of an idea, of a story, of a narrative that is so critical for us.”
It is this appreciation of storytelling that drew O’Leary to the cultural sector almost ten years ago, following roles in business development and marketing in the legal sector.
“I wanted to work in museums because they’re just wonderful places,” she says. “The exchange, collaboration, sharing stories and objects.”
Since joining the British Museum, she has worked exclusively on travelling exhibitions, touring an extensive range of shows worldwide that epitomise the organisation’s tagline, “A museum of the world, for the world.”
“It’s a way to unlock these incredible objects, reach new audiences,” explains O’Leary.
“We have a mission to share, and then we’re also generating important income to help keep the museum free for everybody.”
See also: Touring exhibitions: bringing the British Museum to the world
Creating meaningful engagements with touring exhibitions from the British Museum
International touring exhibitions from the British Museum are shown worldwide, and the team works closely with its partners to develop meaningful experiences that engage highly diverse audiences.
“It’s exciting because the museum is in London, but its reach is so much greater. We’ve got 15 exhibitions on the portfolio now, and we’re always trying to think about what the market wants. What do people want to see? Because it can be quite subjective, can’t it?” O’Leary says.
“Everyone has their own driver for going to a museum. So, we try and think about things that have audience appeal. It is something I scratch my head about: How can you make a show work in Hong Kong, America, or France?”
With such a diverse partner base, O’Leary says it is critical to think carefully about the desired outcomes.
“Success means totally different things to different venues. If you measure visitor figures, for example, over 2 million visitors saw our shows internationally last year. That’s a big figure, that’s great. Some venues will make up a huge proportion of that, but for others, it will be amazing that they got a percentage of extra visitors, or maybe they were targeting family audiences. A show from the British Museum was able to bring that type of audience in.”
Long-term impacts
“But it’s also the legacy of a show.” O’Leary continues. “How much other programming can you do around it? How can you build this into your communities? Can you build it into the wider mission and purpose of your museum? Because we love to bring shows that do that, that helps the museum support their mission as well.
“The effort is a lot to put into a touring exhibition for a host venue, but I think the work is worth it, to put something really high quality on and blow your visitors away.”
To enhance this legacy, host museums can often include relevant objects from their own collection.
“That works well as it makes the local audience understand, ‘Why is this show in my home town? What’s the relevancy for me?’
“People sometimes commission contemporary artists to respond; there’s a way to bring in the environment around you that makes it so special. Because it is a success in that particular venue, it’s not just a carbon copy show that goes from this place to this place to this place.
“And they can look so different, the same exhibition in different venues. Each venue can do its own design and marketing, and the look and feel of them can be utterly different. I always say we know our collection, and you know your audiences. Do what you need to fulfil those expectations and make it a success for yourselves.”
Iconic artefacts
O’Leary says the British Museum is planning its touring exhibitions programme approximately eight years ahead, a critical timescale given the significance of the museum’s objects.
“You need to programme everything into the schedule,” she says. “There can be quite a pull on the same group of objects. There might be a loan request from a different museum, we might want to use it for research purposes, or it might need some special conservation work.
“And when you build tours, you’re conceiving an idea that you hope would go on to three venues, six venues.
“One of our really long touring shows, The History of the World in 100 Objects, toured for about ten years. It’s incredible. So that one was able to interchange objects. As it was story-led, you can put the objects in to support the story.”
“Because sometimes it’s not safe for objects to be out to travel. Some can’t be exposed to light for very long; if they’re fragile works on paper, the exposure to light is an issue. It’s not safe to travel all things, and it’s a significant endeavour to move things around on crates, planes and pallets.
“We try to create exhibitions that can hold up to the travel and continue to attract audiences in different regions of the world, to build that longevity.”
An evolving approach to the British Museum’s touring exhibitions
Asked about the challenges facing touring exhibitions, O ‘Leary says:
“Cost is an issue for sure. It’s not an overstatement to say that the geopolitical trends of the world impact our work, but they do. It depends on how far up culture is on a government’s agenda. Are they supporting their statement? Are the National Museums being refurbished? And are they able to host exhibitions? Or are they something that a government put by the wayside?
“That’s important to us, and we’re thinking about how to manage that and how to make exhibitions. Because they can be expensive endeavours.”
The museum is now developing digitally delivered packages, such as The botanical world of Mary Delany, an exhibition of 18th-century flower collages which has recently opened at Beningbrough Hall, a National Trust property in Yorkshire.
“The works are so fragile you can’t display them for long. We’ve taken really high-quality resolution photographs, and the National Trust has blown them up and put them on display at this historic property. And it looks beautiful.”
This approach to touring exhibitions not only reduces costs for host venues but also enables the British Museum to tour works unsuitable for inclusion in traditional travelling shows, such as fragile or light-sensitive pieces.
Accessing untold stories
“We send the package online, and then partners can download those images, “ O’Leary says.
“That’s not involving transport costs, that’s not involving objects that need conservation, all that extra work and expense that would go into it.
“We developed four of these exhibitions called British Museum Unseen. We were trying to unlock stories in the museum that aren’t necessarily known but through this new digital way.”
In addition to The botanical world of Mary Delany, this series of exhibitions includes African rock art, which presents 30 images and stories that reflect the British Museum collection of digital images of rock art from across the African continent.
This is joined by The ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, with 35 images from the British Museum’s extraordinary Book of the Dead collection, and Collection up-close. This exhibition explores objects as never seen before through images from the museum’s department of scientific research.
“Technology is moving us on really fast,” says O’Leary. “Somebody can download an exhibition from a link. And that presents a really good opportunity.
“So, we’re thinking about new ways of working with partners that historically wouldn’t have been able to work with us because, for example, they don’t have the floor loading to support a massive ancient Egyptian sculpture, or their doorway was a little bit too small, or they don’t have a lift.”
Reaching new partners & new audiences
By reducing physical barriers to touring, the British Museum can show exhibitions in previously unimagined venues and reach a wide range of new audiences.
“We’re thinking about new partners, like historic houses, libraries, and botanical gardens, that we wouldn’t normally work with. And that’s exciting for us. Because it helps us share beyond the collection and also takes us out of the mindset of always working in a traditional way.”
However, O’Leary notes that selecting the right technology is vital.
“I think museums are historically slow to adopt technologies,” she says. “It’s expensive. And could be obsolete in a couple of years. It’s so fast-moving, and you have to think about how quickly you can adopt new approaches. Technology can move you forward, but you have to do it in a considered way.”
A further consideration is the potential for new technologies to help the British Museum and its partner venues work more sustainably.
“Sustainability is so important, and partners we work with also have their own sustainability practices and agendas that we need to consider.
“The very nature of a traditional temporary exhibition is it goes up, it comes down, it moves on. These parameters are not inherently sustainable. So, we’re thinking about shows that can be delivered more sustainably, such as just online only or less intense.”
Virtual worlds
The shift to digital delivery opens up a wealth of possibilities.
“I’m excited about the opportunities for completely non-object exhibitions. It’s something I’ve been working on a lot,” says O’Leary, as she reflects on the high-quality immersive experiences now available.
“The brand new players in the market aren’t even taking out original works. It’s not about that – it’s about experiencing. You go in, you enter the paintings, you go into an imagined VR world.
“For example, the VR experiences by excurio, such as Horizon of Khufu in London, are very immersive virtual reality worlds. It’s a massive opportunity. It’s redefining what an exhibition experience is.”
Spellbinding experiences with British Museum touring exhibitions
The British Museum is leveraging these technologies to drive its international touring exhibitions programme forward.
“We are developing our own immersive experience called Journey through to the afterlife, working with AGB Creative,” O’Leary says.
“It’s inspired by the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, a collection of spells that accompanied you into the ancient Egyptian afterlife. You can move through and see how objects like that were used. Rather than just looking at them in a case and seeing one angle of it, we will put it in an immersive environment where you can understand how it was used and what it was for.
“It’s not substituting the object; it is elevating the object. I think that’s hugely exciting. It’s a new concept; we’re looking for our first partners to take this show.
“It’s different for us, and it’s about reaching new people. I’m always trying to think about finding that mind-blowing sweet spot that visitors don’t even know they want until they see it.”
Please email the team to enquire about hosting a British Museum international touring exhibition.
