Museum Curating: the Industrial Revolution

The curating process is a long, but very interesting, process that is done in museums around the world. It has many different parts that all need to be done well. One of the most important parts of the curating process is the analysis. The analysis is where the objects that are to be displayed are observed and described so that a summerization of the object can be written later in the form of a well written caption. This is important because it allows your exhibit to be fully informative to whoever views it.  The exhibit pictured above is comprised of photos and articles that show what life was like in London before and after the industrial revolution occurred. Through the previous explanation, our group was able to come up with the title Before and After which gives a simple introduction to what the exhibit will be. My hopes are that having the contrast of life before and after the revolution will teach people just how much of an impact it had on daily life of the people during that time.

The first exhibit I viewed after my own was about the transportation, exporting and importing of goods, during the industrial revolution. It focused on how the steam engine was used to provide faster transportation and was able to transport goods further than before as well. Next, an exhibit about how the industrial revolution brought poverty and pollution to England. it focused on how factories that sprung up in cities created mass amounts of both air and water pollution and how workers began to earn such a small amount of money, they could not support their families. The following exhibit was primarily about child labor and how rampant it was during the industrial revolution. It was a very dark exhibit that showed how children were given very dangerous jobs that paid very little. Finally, there was an exhibit on how cotton and slaves were two of the most lucrative business during the industrial revolution. These two trades worked hand in hand, as the cotton trade boomed, so did the slave trade. These exhibits provided a very informative look at the industrial revolution and its effects on life as it was during that time period.