National Museums Liverpool Blog - Dawn

Come and have some creative messy fun

Every Tuesday morning during term time we have been running sessions called ‘Tiny Liverpool' in our Little Liverpool gallery. These sessions are especially for 0-3 year olds and their parents, grandparents or child minders. At the end of each term these sessions conclude with an extra special session called ‘Messy Tots’ which takes place in one of our education spaces.

Messy Tots is extra fun as we are able to get out Play-Doh, chalks, paint pens and colouring in materials. As well as having a large space to enjoy the craft sessions children can play with our lovely toys, dress up, build towers with our blocks and, when in need of a break, our giant bean bags are on hand to provide a comfortable place to curl up for a story!

The end of another term approaches and the Museum of Liverpool is getting into the Christmas spirit with workshops, talks and reminiscence sessions, all themed around the season. As Tiny Liverpool prepares to take a break until 2013 we will finish in true Messy Tots style on Tuesday 18 December with a Christmas party, from 10am until 12noon.

This event is suitable for all 0-3 year olds. If you would like to book please contact Hannah Gilbert on 0151 478 4329. We hope to see you there for some festive fun.  

Earlier this year, the Museum of Liverpool launched the House of Memories dementia awareness training – an innovative programme which assists social carers to help people to live well with dementia.

"Why would a museum be delivering training to carers in the health sector?", you may wonder. Well the answer is quite simple. Museums may not be clinical experts in dementia but they are quite literally ‘houses of memories’, where precious objects and stories from the past are collected, and where people come to enjoy and revisit collective memories. The museum has developed new activities such as memory boxes and memory walks, which can really make a difference to someone living with dementia, alongside their families and carers. 

The response to the House of Memories training has been phenomenal. More than 1800 carers and other support workers have attended so far, but the scale of interest is not surprising. Dementia has been referred to by the Prime Minister as a ‘national crisis’, with one third of people over the age of 65 to die with the condition and over 800,000 cases in the UK today.

Carol Rogers is greeted by the Prime Minister

To tackle the crisis, the Prime Minister launched his challenge on dementia, tasking champion groups to lead the fight against this catastrophic disease. Seven months on, the champions have launched a progress report detailing some of the excellent work being done across the nation. We are delighted that House of Memories which was supported by the Department of Health, has been included in that paper (page 8).

Our Director of Education, Visitors and Communities, Carol Rogers (pictured) was invited to attend the launch of the report, which coincided with Alzheimer’s Society’s announcement of the Dementia Friends scheme, which is being backed by Number 10.

You can see the House of Memories in action here. The programme is set to run until 2015 and the museum team is looking forward to welcoming many more participants.

If you have been affected by dementia or are supporting someone living with dementia, there are some excellent organisations that can help advise you, including the Alzheimer’s Society and Dementia UK. 

This weekend, the Merseyside Maritime Museum and International Slavery Museum are hosting a free weekend of special events on the theme, 'Docklands Extravaganza'. Education manager Vikky Evans-Hubbard tells us more about the ‘Jiving Lindy Hoppers’:

The popular dance group The Jiving Lindy Hoppers will be making a return visit to International Slavery Museum on Saturday 4th February, as part of our Docklands Extravaganza weekend. They last visited during Black History Month 2009, leaving us all speechless with their daring and acrobatic dance moves and they look set to do the same this year – have a look at them on YouTube performing at the JLA Real Variety Show. After watching them in action, there will be the opportunity to learn the basic step yourself in a fun workshop.
 
The Lindy Hop (or Lindy) is a partner dance that originated in 1920s and 30s Harlem, New York. The dance contains footwork borrowed from the Charleston and Tap. It can be wild and spontaneous, with frenzied kicks and body movements, or it can be cool and sophisticated.

'Lindy' is considered a cultural phenomenon that broke through the race barrier when segregation was still the norm. Looking back on where the Lindy Hop came from, we encounter American history and a the global cultural change facilitated by the American GIs that travelled in World War II. Modern dancers, interested in cultural history are piecing together the roots of Lindy through the tales and film footage of the original dancers, now in their 80s and 90s. Although the lineage and history of Lindy may be muddled, it is certain that it was born from the blending of African rhythms and movements with European structured dance.

The incredible Jiving Lindy Hoppers - wow!

The influences of the Charleston and Tap dance are evident still in the Lindy we do today and the dance is also said to have come from an early version of the Foxtrot. Remnants of older dancers such as the Cakewalk, Texas Tommy, Black Bottom and popular "animal" dances such as the Turkey Trot and the Buzzard Lope are also expressed. It’s interesting that these came from African social dance culture. Some, such as the Cakewalk, were created when free Blacks and enslaved Africans alike, imitated and mocked the formal dance structure of the Europeans, which they would then use in their entertainment routines. Ironically, the white spectators would then copy the entertainers, and a social dance that bridged the divide emerged.

You can see (and do) the Lindy Hop at 1pm, 2pm and 3pm at the Merseyside Maritime Museum on Saturday 4 February - just one of the activities we'll be running as part the Docklands Extravaganza.

Local artist Angelica Vanasse reports on recent ‘Alphabet Collages’ workshops for schools, inspired by Sir Peter Blake's 'An Alphabet' display:

" Sir Peter Blake's fantastic collection of prints, An Alphabet, provided the perfect inspiration for a series of school workshops at the Walker Art Gallery last month. The activity involved drawing, collage and layering, focusing on the letters of the alphabet as subject matter and taking inspiration from the ‘found-object / collage’ aesthetic of prints.

Both primary and secondary school groups took part, starting with a closer look at the artworks. There's so much imagery in each one - lots to look at, discover, and discuss. We talked about how the prints were made and warmed up with some drawing, before getting creative with collage. We also looked at the differences between writing and drawing, and whether it is possible to do both at the same time in a work of art. Most agreed that it was. The students added collage images representing a letter of the alphabet to their drawings, and also worked with pencils, felt tips, tracing paper, stamps, and stencils.  Each class took away a unique, handmade alphabet made of individually-designed collage letters - with no two alike! 

St Nicholas Primary School, Liverpool, show off their 'Peter Blake' inspired pictures

You can see Sir Peter Blake’s ‘An Alphabet’ at the Walker Art Gallery.

To find out more about sessions for schools, view our new Education Live publication and online database.

Little did we know when we opened the Hitched: wedding clothes

A dress fit for a Princess. (Traveller wedding dress, 2010).

and customs exhibition last Summer that its closing weekend would coincide with that most lauded of all nuptial ceremonies – the Royal Wedding.

As speculation grows about Ms Middleton’s dress, wedding fashion through the ages is once again the subject of intense media and public interest. Kensington Palace is displaying a set of Royal dresses to mark the occasion, tracing style changes from Princess Charlotte’s 1816 silver-embellished number to Princess Alexandra of Kent’s magnificent 1963 lace creation. And tomorrow another dress (and designer) will join the history books!

Speculation over who has designed the dress has reached fever pitch. We haven’t witnessed this sort of excitement since Carrie Bradshaw nearly made it up the aisle with Mr Big in a stunning Vivienne Westwood gown. Original speculation put Dame Vivienne in the mix, but given her anti-establishment stance (and let's not forget the Sex Pistols' high jinx on the Thames during the Jubilee), it’s not really that surprising she’s out of the running. Names like Sophie Cranston, Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen, Phillipa Lepley, Alice Temperley and Jenny Packham are currently being bandied about while Bruce Oldfield says it’s definitely not him.

The Hitched exhibition at Sudley House features wedding outfits from the Victorian age to the present day and includes dresses from Jewish, Chinese and Traveller communities, as well as civil partnership suits. Sudley House also has a pretty garden and traditional tea room – a lovely place to continue the celebrations and toast the Royal newlyweds with a scone and a brew.

'Hitched: wedding clothes and customs' closes this Monday 2nd May, so this weekend is the last chance to see it. Later in the year you will be able to see Costume Drama: Fashion from 1790 to 1850 at Sudley House, exploring outfits from the ‘Jane Austen’ era - the type of designs you might see in a TV adaptation. If you can’t wait until then, the Lady Lever Art Gallery will be hosting The Finishing Touch: women’s accessories, 1830-1940 from later this month.

This blog is by Bethan Mackenzie, a PR student and volunteer at National Museums Liverpool.

The Inside DNA exhibition at World Museum is an intellectual treat. Walking into the exhibition I am greeted by human skeletons showing off how far we have come. Our nearest surviving relative to humans is the chimpanzee, very cute!

Walking around the gallery there are loads of things to explore. The exhibition is very hands on, there are plenty of touch screens to delve deeper inside DNA and visual activities for literal explanations. One activity, where I had to answer a series of eight questions about eye colour and knuckle hair, told me “Out of 299383 people, you are only the 152nd like you.” This is always nice to know. 

I loved the genome explorer, the results of Human Genome Project where they successfully made sense of the DNA sequence. It was able to tell you which chromosomes where responsible for genetic traits, including behaviour and diseases. I consider myself a bit of a talker therefore I was very grateful to chromosome seven which is the genetic link to our language development and speech.

Even how we react to horror films can be down to our genes! Chromosome 22 is home to a gene called COMT which can influence how we react to extremes of anxiety and stress. All this information fascinated me; I can now blame all my flaws to my genes, total result.

I spent a lot of time in the “courtroom” discovering how studying DNA can help to solve crimes. I now feel prepared for jury service. There is also the opportunity to experience how DNA is collected at the scene; it’s a unique system which I have never seen in a museum before, great fun.

The Inside DNA exhibition (which is open until 8 May 2011) has exceptional, interesting facts, activities and games for all ages. It is very informative and fun. Definitely recommended.

Bethan Mackenzie (PR student and volunteer at National Museums Liverpool).

Last year we invited you to share your pictures of spectacular scenery, unusual locations and far-flung destinations as part of our photography competition, inspired by the 'Endurance: Shackleton’s Antarctic Adventure' exhibition. We teamed up with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic to give one lucky winner and three friends the chance to see the live orchestral & cinematic production, 'Polar'.

The quality of entries was exceptional, but we’re thrilled to report that the prize was won by Mr Bernard Bowler for his truly outstanding photograph, Skiddaw. Despite the apparent Antarctic conditions depicted, the picture was taken in the Lake District.

Communications Manager Dickie Felton explains:

“ Mr Bowler's stunning picture was taken on Skiddaw, Cumbria, but it's such an epic shot it could be the edge of the earth. The sloping edge looks like a sheer drop. It gives a sense that one false move and the tiny walkers, explorers, adventurers would be sent tumbling. The picture is vast and oozes with chilly atmosphere. What's also interesting is you have to look twice to see if it's a black and white or a colour photograph. I think, and I'm still not sure, that it is in fact colour. Is that a hint of orange in the distant sky beyond? A great picture worthy of winning our Shackleton competition. I hope that the brave figures on the slope had packed their Kendal mint cake.”

You can view more fabulous photo entries on Flickr. Mr Bowler has since contacted us to say his party had a very enjoyable evening at the Philharmonic Hall. 

If dramatic photography appeals to you, you’ve only got a couple of weeks left to visit Endurance: Shackleton’s Antarctic Adventure. The exhibition at the Merseyside Maritime Museum comes to a close on 27 February. This really is a not-to-be-missed exhibition, featuring striking images that tell an unprecedented tale of peril and adventure.

While Dinomania is sweeping Liverpool, at the other end of the motorway Manchester is set for an acute attack of mummy-mania. The Museum of Museums (adjacent to the Trafford Centre) has unveiled its biggest exhibition, Tutankhamun - His Tomb and His Treasures, and is about to launch a series of family fun days.

The exhibition features over 1000 replicas of the treasures discovered in the tomb of the famous Pharaoh, recreating the splendour of the chamber as discovered by Howard Carter.  It’s an interesting approach from a visitor perspective because the replica objects are seen ‘in situ’. This is something that cannot even experienced in the Valley of the Kings, because the treasures have been removed and are safely stored in Cairo Museum.

Ancient Egypt at World Museum is one of our most popular galleries housing some amazing, genuine artefacts, like ‘Rameses Girdle.’ So we know our regular visitors will be thrilled to hear that we also have a family ticket for four to experience Tutankhamun (at the Museum of Museums) to give away. The winner will also receive a special goody bag!

Reply to the blog and answer the following question to enter into the draw. We’ll email the winner in January to let them know they have won.

Which item belonging to King Rameses III can you see in World Museum’s Ancient Egypt gallery:

a)  Rameses pants
b)  Rameses crown
c)  Rameses girdle

Closing date for the competition is 31 December 2010.

Terms and conditions apply: One correct entry will be chosen at random. The prize is non-transferable and there is no cash alternative. The winning family must make their way to and from the venue as transport is not included. NML’s decision is final and correspondence will not be entered into. NML and Museum of Museums' employees are unable to enter.

Update: Congratulations to Ms Jayne Knowles-Smith who correctly identified the answer as being c) Rameses girdle and wins the family ticket to the 'Tutankhamun - His Tomb and His Treasures' exhibition.  

Andrew Lloyd Webber visited the Lady Lever Art Gallery and the Walker this week in pursuit of his passion for Victorian art. The man who brought us Evita, The Phantom of the Opera and a host of other hit shows that have filled theatres for decades, first called into Port Sunlight with the TV crew.

Art collector Andrew focused on The Scapegoat by Holman Hunt for the cameras and also paused by The Tree of Forgiveness by Burne-Jones. Next morning he was at the Walker where he talked about Lorenzo and Isabella by Millais.

Andrew revealed, “I’ve been to both these wonderful art galleries several times but not recently. It was lovely having the opportunity to look around again.”

The documentary, part of a series called A Passion for Pre-Raphaelite Art, is scheduled for screening on ITV 1 in February or March next year.

He's not the only theatrical star to have complimented the galleries in recent time. Last week Liverpool Empire panto star Les Dennis commented on the Walker's, 'most eclectic and brilliant collection of art' in the Liverpool Echo.

Fabulous darlings!