National Museums Liverpool Blog - Monday, July 20, 2009

Here's a special report from Isobel, who spent last week helping out behind the scenes at World Museum Liverpool for her work experience placement.

"When asked to choose a work experience placement, the traditional primary school or office jobs didn't really appeal to me. So instead I decided to work in the World Museum. My mum works there, but I didn’t really have a clue what she actually does. Maybe the readers of this are more knowledgeable than I am, but 'curator of numismatics' doesn't mean much to me! I wanted to find out what museum work entails, as I, like a lot of people, didn't really know what goes on behind that 'no entry' door.

My first day was with Emma, head of Ethnology, in the museum stores. Along with Chrissy, I helped measure, handle and photograph Buddha figurines. I learnt so much about different types of Buddhas and symbolism in Buddhist figurines and felt so lucky to pick up and hold things that are usually behind a glass case! It was so amazing to think about the culture and history surrounding each Buddha.

On Tuesday I was lucky enough to be shown the zoology stores by Tony, including vast cabinets of insects, spirit stores full of interesting samples, and stuffed animals from old displays.  I was at the National Conservation Centre on Tuesday as well, watching an interactive activity for the Weston Discovery Centre being made. In the afternoon I was with my mum looking at a new acquisition, a set of bravery medals being awarded to a seaman who gave himself up to the Japanese during World War II to save his ship. The human story behind those medals was really interesting, and more valuable to me than the solid gold coin I had been handling minutes before!

Wednesday was back at the museum stores, putting together Egyptian pots. This is a challenge, but very rewarding when you find two pieces that fit together. I can describe it as the most difficult and oldest jigsaw I have ever attempted! I also held a pot that was seven thousand years old and still had the potter's fingerprints on it. Among the Egyptian stores I also saw a mummified cat's head, which looked disturbingly like my pet, Boots.

My favourite day had to be Thursday, spent at the Clore Natural History Centre. I'm interested in Biology and it was great to spark the kids' interests in something and see how excited they got. Additionally I had spent all my other days behind the scenes, so it was a nice change to be front of house. Although I didn't have the knowledge to answer all of the children's questions, I learnt through listening to the demonstrator's answers, and, like what I've been told by many staff at World Museum Liverpool, working here means you are constantly learning!

Finally, my last day, Friday, was spent in the museum stores working with Roman coins. I've learnt so much this week, and the variety of the work I've done has been wonderful. I enjoyed my time there so much I am considering doing some volunteer work at the museum!"

If, like Isobel, you are interested in a career in the museums and would like to volunteer to get more experience you can find out more on the Volunteering pages on our website.

Bug House Demonstrator, Rebekah Beresford, tells us about the latest addition to the Bug House...

The weird and wonderful Wandering Violin Mantis

So, may I present to you the Wandering Violin Mantis or Gongylus gonglodes. This awesome looking insect is our newest addition to the Bug House. We have eight of these funky little creatures and they’re one of the most bizarre looking out of all the mantids.

These insects are part of the order Mantodea and are characterized by their slender limbs and stocky upper body. As suggested by the name, this mantis looks somewhat like a violin with leaf like appendages protruding from the legs to aid camouflage and a leaf like head. They’re from Southern India and Sri Lanka and come in a variety of different shades of brown.

The wandering violin mantis is more of a ‘sit and wait’ species rather than a hunter but that’s not to say that they’re picky. These mantids are confident, ravenous feeders and will snatch a variety of flies and moths from the air, if the dare to fly close enough. Most mantids are solitary and have to be kept individually but these are unusually social. Given plenty of space they can be housed together in small groups of 8-10 and pose no threat to each other. 

So, keep your eyes peeled for them in the Bug House! I’ll be putting them out on display in the next few weeks in a mixed exhibit with the hermit crabs and fresh water shrimps. Also keep an eye on the blog for my next posts on how I set up their new vivarium.

Jazz at the Walker - free on Sunday afternoons

I think we are all used to the concept of free museums and galleries and there’s nothing that my family likes better than a bit of free art and culture. The words ‘free entry’ are music to my husband’s ears. He doesn’t like to pay for anything that he doesn’t have to and is, by his own admission, ‘tighter than Rambo’s headband’ which I think is fair enough in these frugal times. I have just been looking at the possibility of a summer visit to Cadbury’s World which will cost just short of £40 for the two adults and one paying child, so we may well be hunting down free museums and galleries instead. Not that we won't fork out for special occasions - but there's a long summer holiday ahead that's a lot of days to keep little people entertained!

The one thing that we don’t begrudge paying for is live music. Whether it’s a local band or blockbuster tour, there’s generally a cost associated and I am more than happy to put my hand in my pocket - particularly for struggling musicians and bands starting out. Anyway this weekend we are lucky to have not just one, but two bands playing for free on William Brown Street. At World Museum on Saturday 18th July (1.30pm and 3pm) there will be live music in the atrium from The Nile Band as part of the Arabic Weekender. Then on Sunday up the road in the art gallery there will be another of our Jazz at the Walker sessions. This week it is the turn of the Tony Judge Quartet from 12.30-3pm. (And by the way, if you’re a jazz lover then don’t miss a special guest session on Sunday 2 August featuring The Downtown Dixieland Jazz Band).

So it looks like it will be a weekend of entertainment on the cheap for me – topped off on Saturday by a trip to see some of my colleagues (including at least two blog writers who shall remain nameless) dangling from the Liver Building for the ‘Liverpool Rocks’ abseiling event. If you want to know which ones they are, turn up at 3pm and just think Rambo’s headband – therein lies a visual clue.

Hello there

Thank you to everybody who voted for the International Slavery Museum in The National Lottery Good Causes Awards. We find out if we have made it through to the final on 3 August so watch this space. If we do make it through to the live TV show then I'll have to get my suit down to Johnson's, dig out my Homer Simpson tie and practice my TV smile!

Talking of smiles (now that is a good link) I saw the most famous in the world recently whilst I was on a weekend break to Paris. We spent nearly a whole day in the Louvre and 'tried' to get a close look at Leonardo Da Vinci's 'Mona Lisa' or 'La Gioconda' (an alternative title as the sitter is probably the wife of an Italian merchant called Francesco del Giocondo). As you can see from the picture the Mona Lisa draws crowds of visitors most museums can only dream of. It really is a sight to behold although there is hardly any room to stand and admire the picture as people are busy barging past. As a museum professional I am almost as interested in the behavior of the visitor as much as the collections themselves though. Don't expect to be able to stand in front of her and act like an art connoisseur but still worth the effort if you ever visit.

The Louvre really is an enormous place and deserves days rather a day to see it. I suggest setting your sights on seeing a couple of galleries or even just several specific objects. It will still take you a while to get there! We also visited the sumptuous apartments of Napoleon III tucked away in their own wing and the Egyptian collections. I think the same goes though when you visit one of our venues here in Liverpool. You will never be able to see everything in one day so think about what interests you the most and start from there. You will undoubtedly pass something else which catches your eye. I loved visiting museums before I worked in them so I still have to fight the urge of spending all afternoon wandering the galleries at the World Museum Liverpool or Maritime Museum after a meeting!

Whilst in Paris we also went to visit the apartment of Le Corbusier, one of the most important figures in modern architecture and design. Something of which I am particularly interested. Another seamless link here is that Le Corbusier, like Da Vinci, used the proportions of the human body to improve both the function and appearance of architecture. Le Corbusier called his system the Modulor whereas Da Vinci's produced a famous version of the Vitruvian Man. You might not know his name or that Da Vinci drew him but think of the multi-limbed man in the square and the circle! 

Le Corbusiers apartment was not particularly large or in any way luxurious as one might expect from someone of his standing but it was truly functional and built around his own needs. It made me think of just how much space we actually need to use in our own homes. The apartment also contained many pieces of furniture and design features we now take for granted – such as its open plan feeling where the living and dining areas are integrated. I could go on but I might become a bit of an anorak.

Closer to home, the Walker Art Gallery has a new exhibition called New Radicals: From Sickert to Freud which features some fine examples of Modernist art for those of you who have a Modernist streak in you.

Au revoir for now.

Sarah and Louise enjoy a rest in the Big Art gallery!

Here's a photo of a double celebration in the volunteers team. On the left is Sarah, who you may remember received her first v50 certificate for completing 50 hours as a volunteer in March. Sarah has just achieved her second v50 - bringing her total to more than 100 hours now.

With Sarah is another Big Art volunteer, Louise, who has just received her first v50 certificate. After all those hours of hard work with the younger (and therefore more energetic) visitors to the Walker Art Gallery, I'm sure you'll agree that they deserve a sit down!

The v50 certificates are awarded as part of National Museums Liverpool's dedicated youth volunteering programme aimed specifically at 16-25 year olds, funded by v, the youth volunteering charity.

If you would like to find out more about youth volunteering at National Museums Liverpool please email our youth volunteer officer Claire Olson.

Louise told us:
 
"I have enjoyed helping the children in Big Art to appreciate and be inspired by art through fun art activities. I have gained many skills and it has been a great opportunity."

As a child I spent a time living in Riyadh, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We moved out in the mid 1980s when Britain was still dealing with the fallout of a recession. There couldn’t have been a greater contrast between a northern pit town reeling from miners' strike and the opulence of this beautiful city. Fountains, chandeliers, marbled floors, lavish buildings and startling architecture set against the evocative backdrop of red sand dunes and desert plains. I’d never seen anything like it. It’s such a fascinating city full of wonderful contrasts - Bedouins with camels, princes and palaces, souks and luxurious shopping malls, unimaginable wealth and the observance of sober traditions.

Perhaps it is because of this that I have always found Arabic artwork to be uplifting and inspirational, the patterns and intricacies, the traditional craftsmanship and the mathematical precision. Whenever I visit V&A Museum I always love to visit the Islamic Middle East gallery and soak up the atmosphere – there’s something incredibly calming and yet awe-inspiring about the immense rich tapestries and the subtle colours. I’m really thrilled that the inaugural Jameel Prize  - a new prize for contemporary artists and designers inspired by the Islamic traditions of craft and design - is bringing such beautiful work into the spotlight.  The winning piece 1001 Pages (2008) by Iranian born Afruz Amighi is absolutely stunning.    

Halima Cassell's work is on display at the Walker

If you haven’t experienced any Arabic artwork then I urge you to come along to the Arabic Weekender which is being hosted by the Bluecoat and other venues across the city. At World Museum there are displays, talks, music and craft activities while at the Walker we have ‘The Art of Halima Cassell’. Halima was born in Pakistan in 1975, brought up in Manchester and is now living in Blackburn, Lancashire. Her ceramic work has been inspired by traditional forms of Islamic art and architecture but ‘juxtaposes established styles with a more modernist approach’. I have strong memories of Riyadh’s King Khaled International Airport and for some reason these beautiful creations remind me of the architecture. When you take the intricate and complex forms of traditional Islamic art and turn them into three dimensional structures something really special happens. Halima Cassell will be talking about her work at the Walker on Friday 17 July (tomorrow) at 1pm.

I have always been interested in the Anglo Saxons who dominated England before the coming of the Normans and it’s astonishing how long they ruled. The great Anglo Saxon historian Bede said that his people were descended from three Germanic tribes – the Angles, Saxons and Jutes.They migrated from northern Germany and Scandinavia from the 5th century onwards, seeking better lives in the fertile lands of England. They subdued the native people, the Celts.

At one time it was thought that the Celts literally fled to the hills and moors to form distinct Welsh, Scottish and Cornish peoples. However, most historians now agree that the native Celts were assimilated into the new Anglo Saxon kingdoms from 400 onwards. These lasted around 600 years until William of Normandy invaded England and defeated the last Anglo Saxon king, Harold II, at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

Anglo Saxon enthusiasts Linda and Sonnie Raee

This Sunday 19 July 2009 from 11am to 4pm visitors have a chance to meet the nearest you will get to a real Anglo Saxon, at an exciting free event called 'Clues from the Grave' at World Museum Liverpool. Part of the Festival of British Archaeology, it features a group of Anglo-Saxons carrying out a burial in the museum’s Weston Discovery Centre.

You can find out what the clues in the grave tell us about the lives of people who lived in England more than 1,000 years ago. Visitors can also discover how these ancient peoples used leeches, what they ate, their clothes, weapons and much more.

I met two of the Anglo Saxon enthusiasts when we did a media photo opportunity to promote the event. Linda and Sonnie Raee, of Wallasey, are pictured at the museum entrance. They are wearing authentic Anglo-Saxon style clothes and carrying weapons essential in those far-off days. Sonnie says: “Clues from the Grave gives an insight into the world of the Anglo Saxons. Visitors get a sense of what it was like to live in a very different England.”

My ancestors probably came over with William the Conqueror and I wonder what they made of their new home – the most beautiful islands on earth. I love the names of those long-gone Anglo Saxon kings – Egbert, Aethelwulf, Ethelred (the Unready) and Eadwig along with the more familiar Alfred, Edward, Edmund and Harold. It is a joy to occasionally come across people with ancient names in our own time.

Planetarium Operator, John Moran, gives us his thoughts on one of the most important anniversaries of the year...

On 20 July 2009 we will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of arguably the most momentous occasion in history, the moon landing by the crew of Apollo 11.

The lunar module on the moon's surface. Image courtesy of NASA.

We are marking this occasion at World Museum Liverpool with the launch (no pun intended) of a brand new show in the Planetarium about the moon called 'Magnificent Desolation'. The title of this new show was taken from the words of Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, one of the Apollo 11 astronauts, as he set foot on the moon after Neil Armstrong. When he surveyed the landscape he described it as "magnificent desolation".

The rocket they used to push them to the moon is still the most powerful rocket ever created. It was the 363ft, three stage, Saturn V, 95% of which was filled with fuel and would be jettisoned once the fuel had burned up. It was also the most advanced machine of its time.  

When I think about what it must have been like for these men I can't help but wonder where they got their courage from. They were sitting atop the biggest firework of all time travelling at a speed of 25,000 mph and although men had been into space quite a few times at that point, the testing of rockets had been rushed to say the least. We can assume that because it was a 'bragging rights' competition between America and Russia that was fuelling (again no pun intended) this space race, there must have been a lot of corners cut just to get it ready. Also this mission was going a lot further than most; 238,857 miles to be exact, so these guys were going to be spending about three days just getting to the moon. That is a long time to spend twiddling your thumbs and imagining what could go wrong. 

Once the command module reached lunar orbit (piloted by the often forgotten Michael Collins) Armstrong and Aldrin would then make their way down in the lunar module called Eagle. This was probably the most unlikely looking flying machine of all time. It was so flimsy that it couldn't be flown anywhere else but in the vacuum of space because a fierce wind on Earth would have probably blown it apart; however, weather is not an issue in space. In fact, whilst practicing flying a machine similar to the lunar module here on Earth, Neil Armstrong came close to losing his life when he lost control and had to eject. Because there is only one sixth of Earth's gravity trying to pull you down on the moon, the lunar module would be much easier to control and manoeuvre. 

Mission control had picked out what they thought to be the perfect landing spot in the Sea of Tranquillity. However, when Armstrong and Aldrin headed for this spot they realized that it was nothing more than a huge crater filled with rocks and boulders. This is where Armstrong’s cool, unflappable mind came into its own. He had to fly around and find a suitable landing site or the whole mission would be a failure. So with the fuel gauge reading only twelve seconds of fuel left, alarms going off on the instrument panel and mission control telling him to abort, the message the world had been holding its breath for came back: "Houston, Tranquillity base here, the Eagle has landed".  

Later, leaving behind their back-packs, tools, boots and other needless weight - so they could bring back some moon rock - they successfully blasted off and met up with the waiting command module. After safely making their way back through the Earth's atmosphere and making a perfect slash-down in the ocean, the celebrations could begin.  

Imagine what the feeling must have been like for these guys knowing that you had just written your name into the history books for all time. I guess this is how they were able to overcome their fears; the national celebrations, the ticker-tape parades and the endless affection that was going to be felt by the whole world.

They truly must have felt over the moon (and that pun was definitely intended!)

Guests at the New Radicals private view

New Radicals From Sickert to Freud opened this weekend at the Walker Art Gallery. The photograph above was taken at the private view where guests had the opportunity to view the fascinating exhibition, drawn entirely from the gallery’s own collection, for the first time.

I have been reading a biography of Walter Sickert in preparation for this exhibition and it has given me a small insight into the art world of the time. I haven’t got very far through the book yet, but I have been struck by what an exciting time it must have been for Sickert as a young and promising artist, particularly one with connections. From early in his career he worked under the close guidance of Whistler whose work and artistic philosophy he greatly admired as well as holidaying in France with Degas, which often included chance meetings with other great names such as Gauguin. Such holidays influenced Bathers, Dieppe, one of my favourite paintings in the Walker's collection, and also included in this show.

These connections of Sickert's had a huge impact on his work and ensured he was a significant figure in the transition from Impressionism to Modernism, one of the themes of the exhibition.

The exhibition runs until 20 September 2009.

Whistler: The Gentle Art of Making Etches is on at the Lady Lever Art Gallery until 20 September 2009.

SS America. Image courtesy Liverpool Daily Post and Echo

I’m a great admirer of beautiful ships but in the tough realm of trading it also helps to be practical and economical.

In the shipping world, like any other commercial enterprise, you have to be competitive – there is no sentiment in business and profits literally keep ships afloat.

The steamship America was a stunningly lovely ship, as a 1:48 scale model in Merseyside Maritime Museum’s new emigrant gallery clearly demonstrates.

This is my favourite ship model in the museum, displaying the graceful lines of the America to perfection. Her two black and white funnels are finely proportioned and tiny detailing such as individual deck planking adds an air of reality. The remarkably-detailed figurehead shows a woman in flowing white robes.

Perhaps the America was too good for the work she had to carry out – a transatlantic passenger liner with the Liverpool shipping company, National Line. The 5,528-ton America was built in 1884 for National by J and G Thomson of Clydebank. Her owners hoped she would be faster than any of her rivals in the highly-competitive north Atlantic passenger trade. The 442 ft long liner was powered by 9,000 hp engines and could travel at 18 knots.

On her first voyage between New York and Liverpool she made a record crossing of six days, 14 hours and 18 minutes. As is so often the case, her moment of glory was soon eclipsed and the record was beaten by other vessels on the route.

America was an elegant ship looking like a very large steam yacht. However, her large coal consumption and high fares made her too expensive for the north Atlantic with its cut-throat competitiveness.

Just three years after being built the America was sold to the Italian Government, renamed Trinacria and was used by the Italian Navy. She was scrapped in 1925. There is more on the SS America on our main website.

Another model of a J and G Thomson ship is on the gallery - the Friesland (more on that ship on our main site). However, she was a profitable ship that saw many years of service on the north Atlantic. Friesland was built in 1889 for the Red Star Line’s Antwerp to New York passenger trade which she served until 1903.

Red Star was eventually absorbed into American financier J Pierpont Morgan’s International Mercantile Marine along with White Star, Dominion, Leyland and Atlantic Transport Co shipping lines.

The International Mercantile Marine was set up in an attempt to monopolise the North Atlantic shipping trades.

A new Maritime Tale by Stephen Guy appears every Saturday in the Liverpool Echo. A paperback – Mersey Maritime Tales (£3.99) – is available from the museum, newsagents, bookshops or from the Mersey Shop website (£1.50 p&p UK).