Object in focus

During the summer programme, as the major project for the ITP, each participant is asked to plan and propose a temporary display for a single ‘spotlight’ object. Drawing on their existing museum knowledge and experience and the skills learnt during the Programme, each participant selects an object from the Museum’s collection around which to design their exhibition. Participants are encouraged to think not just about objects, concepts and interpretation, but also audiences, marketing, merchandising and events.

Over the years, the scope of the project has changed markedly.  From fellows giving their proposals through PowerPoint presentation in a lecture theatre to proposals developed with the physical objects and supporting materials; from working alone to working in partnership, this project is an essential part of the ITP and always proves to be a highlight of the programme.

Today, the Object in focus project is worked on collaboratively which provides an excellent opportunity to develop strong working relationships, enhance the ITP global network and demonstrate the benefits and challenges of working in collaboration.  They also work with an object from outside of their areas of expertise which brings a new dynamic to the project as cross-cultural conversations are created and exhibition proposals can be based on themes that are not limited by geographical boundaries, but instead contemplating the similarities and differences between cultures.

However the project has been structured we hope you will agree that the results – shared in this online exhibition – are dynamic and creative and clearly demonstrate the hardwork, enthusiasm and imagination of our ITP global network’.

Purpose of this Exhibition Site

This site is a showcase of all Object in focus exhibits. Exhibits contain a poster, panel text, label and other supplemental material created for each object. Each exhibit also contains links to the ITP fellow directory and the British Museum archive if you want to learn more about the fellows and objects themselves.

The WPI Team

This exhibition site was originally created during the summer of 2021 by a team of students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in collaboration with the ITP. Throughout the development process, the team incorporated feedback from the ITP network through a survey and live beta tests with fellows. The team created the site in fulfillment of their Junior Year Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP).