Kari Moodie – Curator (Collections)
As well as delivering the fabulous programme of exhibitions and events, which you can read about in our bi-monthly newsletters, the museum staff are always busy behind the scenes, working on collections, enquiries and future projects. Regular visitors may have noticed a few changes during 2024, as we aimed to improve the fabric of the museum.
Early in the year we closed for a few days, in order to replace the carpet throughout the ground floor. Everything had to be moved out so the fitters could do their work, then moved back in, to look as if nothing had happened! But the smart new floor was worth the effort.
We received funding for two projects to update our lighting throughout the building. In spring our track and ceiling lights were replaced, thanks to Salix funding awarded to The Highland Council. In autumn our cabinet lights were replaced, thanks to Museums Galleries Scotland’s resiliance fund. The results will mean lower energy bills, less staff time spent on changing bulbs and, best of all, our displays look gleaming instead of gloomy!
Volunteer Sophie Dickson with the display she curated.
Areas of the museum updated in 2024 included our Jacobite gallery, which was redisplayed to make space for three additional paintings and several artefacts not previously on show. A new display of medical items, based on our 2022 Health, Wealth and Happiness exhibition, was installed upstairs. Our ‘art wall’ was given an Indian theme, with a set of 19th century prints of Calcutta (Kolkata) by Inverness artist James Fraser, shown alongside some Indian artefacts – this display was curated by Sophie, one of our regular volunteers. For several months, the Foyer Gallery has been hosting an eclectic display of recent acquisitions, while the photographic collections have featured regularly in our Community Gallery and Photographic Gallery shows.
A collections project that took up lots of time and attention in 2024, was moving our museum database to a new product, which involved individually checking and editing over 22,000 images! The new database will make cataloguing easier and ultimately will make public access to our records easier too, which is a long-term goal.
Our staff and volunteers, along with colleagues from the Highland Folk Museum, have also been working hard on collections management tasks and updating policies and procedures in order to pass our Accreditation review. Accreditation is the UK’s professional museum standard, reviewed every 5 years. We are delighted to say that our Accredited status was renewed in November.
Along with colleagues in High Life Highland’s Archives service, we have been working with the Northern Meeting Park project team to uncover stories of the park, and look forward to seeing this come to fruition in 2025. Our Exhibitions team have an exciting programme lined up, including shining a spotlight on the humble spoon with an exhibition which will feature items from the collections of Inverness Museum and the Highland Folk Museum. And of course, we are in great anticipation for what 2025 will bring when our neighbour, Inverness Castle, opens its doors as a visitor attraction for the first time. Lots to look forward to in the year ahead!
Best wishes to all for 2025,
Kari Moodie, Curator (Collections)
