Behind the Scenes, On Display: Self-Curated Journeys through the Museum Archive

"The museum and gallery visit has long been a highly curated experience. Visitors are guided through a carefully orchestrated sequence of rooms, with hand-picked works arranged to tell a specific narrative, supported by signage, graphics, scenography, and calibrated lighting. Even the rarely changed exhibitions - the permanent collections, also typically rely on a strong curatorial voice - led by noted artists or curators-to set institutional stance and shape interpretation."

"At the same time, storage areas for museums and galleries are typically kept separately-often within the same building but under tightly controlled access, and not infrequently off-site in dedicated facilities, such as the Louvre Conservation Centre. These zones have long been understood as highly controlled spaces not only in terms of access, but also in relation to climate, humidity, archival order, handling protocols, maintenance, and repair."

Museum and gallery visits present highly curated experiences. Visitors move through orchestrated sequences of rooms with hand-picked works arranged to tell specific narratives, supported by signage, graphics, scenography, and calibrated lighting. Permanent collections also rely on a strong curatorial voice, often led by noted artists or curators, to set institutional stance and shape interpretation. Storage areas for museums and galleries are typically kept separately, often within the same building or off-site, and are under tightly controlled access. Storage zones prioritize climate control, archival order, handling protocols, maintenance, and repair, and primarily serve academic researchers and art practitioners by request. The general public rarely gains a comprehensive picture of safeguarded works.

Read at ArchDaily