Hidden Treasures - Capturing an Object

Hidden Treasures - Capturing an Object

The Hidden Treasures: Capturing an Object project, a collaboration between six small museums in the New England North West, Arts North West, and ABC Open, was recognized as the winner of the 2016 Museums and Galleries Engagement Programs award in the "Volunteer or Up to Two Paid Staff" category. The participating museums included:

• Saumarez Homestead
• Armidale Folk Museum
• The History House
• McCrossin’s Mill
• UNE Museums
• Tamworth Powerstation Museum

This innovative project equipped museum volunteers with new skills through workshops on scriptwriting, voiceover techniques, photography, lighting, and video editing. These sessions aimed to enable participants to create short films capturing the unique stories behind objects from their collections. The narratives were based on new research conducted by the volunteers, showcasing the depth and historical significance of their museum artifacts.

Impact

• Volunteers gained digital storytelling skills, enabling them to develop an online presence for their collections using readily available equipment.
• The project introduced many participants, who previously had little or no experience with digital technology, to tools that expanded their ability to share museum stories.
• Skills learned were transferable, allowing participants to train other volunteers in their respective museums.
• The initiative fostered networking among the museums and helped to elevate their profile within the region.

This project highlights the power of collaboration and skill development in enhancing community engagement and preserving cultural heritage. ABC Open in partnership with Arts North West offered a special workshop to six of the Country Art Escapes (Arts North West Connect) regional art trail museums to capture the story behind special objects in their collections.

The two workshops in May 2016 in Armidale and Uralla covered scriptwriting, creating a voiceover, photography and lighting, and editing.

Acquired skills were taken back to the museums and used to develop the online presence of their collections.