Mornings in the Museum sometimes feel like the movie Night at the Museum.  I cannot say that I have ever experienced anything coming to life when I am inside an exhibit or diorama, but when my colleagues walk by and see two Conservator’s standing beside a bull moose – I am sure it may seem like that to them! So, what happens before visitors, school and tour groups walk through the gallery doors to immerse themselves in Manitoba’s History? You will most likely see the Conservation department fixing, repairing, or cleaning many of the wonderful displays before everyone arrives. 

The Conservation team is responsible for the long-term preservation of all 2.9 million artifacts and specimens in the Museum’s collection. That means that we look after not only what is held in our collection vaults, but also everything that is on display the 52,000 square feet of exhibition space – including the beautiful dioramas.  Gallery maintenance is an ongoing daily, monthly, and annual job where we rotate between different exhibitions to make sure they are being preserved in the best possible way. 

This maintenance happens in many different forms. It usually involves brushes, vacuums, drills, glass grippers, ladders and scissor lifts! We investigate exhibit cases for pests that may be attracted to eating certain types of objects and remove them from display if they are found.

Image below: Senior Conservator, Carolyn Sirett, vacuuming the exhibits in the HBC gallery.

The Conservation team will also carefully go into dioramas to vacuum dust-off furry mammals, wash plants that line the riverbed streams, and repair branches on trees.  Perhaps what many visitors may not know is that most of the material in our dioramas are real – yes, the plants and mosses are real.  These plant materials have been carefully sourced during fieldwork, pickled in a solution for preservation, and painted to bring back the “living colour” of what it looks like in the natural environment.  It is irresistible to reach out and touch these very real pieces of art that are just within arm’s reach, but Conservator’s are big on no – touching!  Asking visitors to not handle specimens stems from our passion to preserving history for many visitors to enjoy, and it is also the most challenging part for Conservation department to repair in the galleries. 

Image above: Assistant Conservator Estelle Girard adjusting some of the phragmites in the Delta Marsh diorama.

Next time you visit the Museum, I hope you have a moment to look around at all the amazing pieces on display, and now know that there are folks hidden behind-the-scenes caring for them each morning before you arrive.