It’s been an eventful year at Exeter’s museum, so here’s a round-up of some of our highlights since January!
In January the Dawlish Hoard went on display in RAMM’s Courtyard Wall, thanks to generous donations totalling £12,000 from over 200 individuals. The hoard was discovered in 2017 by metal-detectorists in a boggy field near Dawlish. It had lain buried for about 3,000 years, since the late Bronze Age. The treasure consists of four gold bracelets, eleven fragments of bronze ingot, two small tin nuggets, two fragments of axe and a section of bronze sword. Read more.
The Dawlish Hoard joined artist Simon Pope’s Here’s to Thee, which was also displayed in the Courtyard Wall in January. The work comprises of a selection of communal drinking vessels from RAMM’s collections. These are presented alongside contemporary works made in response to wassailing events held at Gray’s cider farm in Halstow in 2020 and 2022. Find out more here.
And landmark exhibition In Plain Sight: Transatlantic slavery and Devon opened at the end of the month, investigating aspects of Devon and Exeter’s relationship with the Transatlantic Slave Trade that are all around us, but for some remain ‘hidden in plain sight’.
‘In Plain Sight will allow people to explore the topic of local links to the Transatlantic Slave Trade in a safe and respectful environment. As an organisation RAMM strives to be open and honest about past injustices. RAMM is an inclusive space where people from all communities and backgrounds are welcome to discuss ideas, and we hope that visitors to the exhibition will feel empowered to have important conversations about the history all around us.’
Cllr Amal Ghusain, Exeter City Council’s former lead for communities and culture
Read more about In Plain Sight and its legacy here.
In February the wonderful Stand + Stare interactive butterfly was installed at RAMM. This permanent installation showcases LGBTQ+ people’s responses to objects in RAMM’s collections. The installation is part of the National Lottery Heritage funded project Out and About: Queering the Museum, run in partnership with the University of Exeter. We also opened the doors to Funded with Thanks, a two-part exhibition showcasing the quality and diversity of Exeter’s Fine Art Collection, thanks to the generosity and foresight of donors and funding bodies, past and present.
In March we held our first RAMM Lates of the year, celebrating African cultures with song, storytelling, music, capoeira, craft activities and a tour of In Plain Sight. RAMM Lates are eclectic and unique after-hours events, held two to three times a year at the museum. We were also honoured to be awarded Gold in the Ethical, Responsible and Sustainable Tourism category at the Visit Devon Tourism Awards.
In May we popped up on the High Street with RAMM About Town. Designed to get people thinking about the High Street of the future, the pop-up experience in the old Gap shop included displays about the history of Exeter’s High Street, LEGO® building stations and Minecraft sessions where ideas were brought to life, an archaeology day, and talks by members of the community.
We were also honoured to host members of the Siksika Nation, a First Nations tribe from Canada. Led by Chief Ouray Crowfoot, the Siksika delegation arrived at RAMM to take possession of sacred regalia in a handover event in Exeter on 19 May. Following a blessing the regalia and other belongings, which have been housed at RAMM since 1878, were packed and returned to Canada for display at the Blackfoot Crossing Historical Park. The items handed over included a buckskin shirt, pair of leggings, a knife with feather bundle, two beaded bags and a horsewhip. These objects once belonged to Chief Crowfoot, an important late nineteenth-century Blackfoot leader. Read more.
In June we opened the doors to our very successful exhibition Brick by Brick: A LEGO® brick history of Exeter. A colourful, playful family experience, the stars of the exhibition were meticulously crafted LEGO models, displaying the history of Exeter through the ages. Visitors plunged into Jurassic seas where menacing ichthyosaurs prowled, relaxed in a recreated Roman bathhouse, defended the city from the walls of Rougemont Castle, and glimpsed inside the newly built St. Sidwell’s Point Leisure Complex. Alongside these models, visitors could unleash their imaginations at LEGO playzones, create LEGO graffiti, and follow themed trails. We trialled relaxed sessions, before the museum’s normal opening hours. These were hugely popular, and allowed those with sensory issues, autism etc. to enjoy the exhibition in a quieter atmosphere. The exhibition was accompanied by a sold-out programme of LEGO building events. Find out more.
We also announced the acquisition of The Sweetest Thing, a tapestry commissioned from internationally acclaimed artist Joy Gregory by RAMM, in response to In Plain Sight. The work was purchased with support from the Contemporary Art Society and the Friends of RAMM.
‘I am interested in the stark contrast of the lives lived in grand houses in Devon – all daintiness, pretty dresses and sitting down to tea – compared to the lives of the enslaved or the factory workers. I see my job as an artist to create curiosity and bring histories together. I am making things of beauty to talk about ugliness.’
Joy Gregory
Read more here.
Another exciting acquisition was announced in August – Amy Shelton’s Biophilia: The Exeter Florilegium. Originally made for RAMM’s Covid-19 commission and funded by Arts Council England, this delicate, intricate and moving work was purchased with generous assistance from the Friends of RAMM, the Kent Kingdon Bequest and an Arts Council England/V&A purchase grant.
Funded with Thanks temporarily closed its doors in August to make way for the short exhibition 150 years of Exeter Rugby Club: From Local Heroes to European Champions. Showcasing an array of memorabilia spanning the Chiefs’ history, the exhibition was co-curated with the club to celebrate its 150-year anniversary.
In September Funded with Thanks returned, with a refreshed catalogue. RAMM also partnered with The Museum of Colour on the creation of a response gallery for their exhibition My Words. Ten internationally renowned writers, spoken word artists and a composer explored and reinterpreted RAMM’s collections as part of the project, with a performance held on 6 September where the ten poets’ responses were performed to a live audience, accompanied by music and vocals composed by Randolph Matthews. The digital exhibition My Words opened on 14 September and can be found here. September also saw the launch of SoundTracks, a series of free guided listening walks in partnership with sound artist Emma Welton.
On the first day of October medical history exhibition A Picture of Health opened its doors, curated with help from the RD&E. From body snatching surgeons to pioneering use of inoculation and medical statistics, and a revolutionary hip replacement, this exhibition is engaging audiences of all ages with a lesser-known aspect of Exeter’s rich history, and highlighting parallels which have particular contemporary relevance in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. A Picture of Health runs until 22 January.
October half-term was filled with spooky and gruesome delights, with fun kids’ events inspired by A Picture of Health. Younger visitors enjoyed creating their own stethoscopes and microscopes, were treated to an icky journey through the digestive system in the Explorer Dome, and ran through the museum after-hours at the spooky UV-lit Skeleton Crew evening.
In November we received the good news that the Arts Council had agreed to provied NPO funding to RAMM for another three-year period, allowing us to continue providing the city of Exeter with history, art and cultural experiences. And later that month we took part in Exeter Carnival, which returned to the city after a 14-year hiatus, with music, storytelling, dance, games and crafts at the museum. We also published our 2021-2022 annual review which you can read here.
And in December we were treated to live Christmas music in the museum from the Exeter Railway Band and Unexpected Item in Bagging area, as well as a fantastic free printmaking workshop courtesy of Double Elephant Print Workshop.
Plenty of activity has also been going on year-round as well – exciting kids’ art project Project Buzz has been inviting local children to create works around insects and swarms; mindfulness photography project Frame of Mind, which launched last year, continued to engage young people; and many more acquisitions, conservation projects, art commissions and community engagement projects went ahead. We’re now looking forward to 2023, with contemporary art exhibition Earth Spells: Witches of the Anthropocene opening in February, accompanied by a programme of fascinating talks and workshops, followed later in the year by more exciting exhibitions and events.
We couldn’t do all of this work without our visitors, supporters and donors, as well as the support we receive from Exeter City Council and Arts Council England. If you would like to find out how you can support our work, including volunteering with us, donating, and following us on social media, visit Get Involved – RAMM.
Thank you and Happy New Year!
