Western Bay Museum to open in August

Western Bay Museum volunteer and retired medical laboratory scientist Nigel Yates is painstakingly restoring this pair of Hagan Special wooden snow skis, which will be part of the ‘Fun and Games’ exhibition at the museum in August.

‘Fun and Games’ of pioneers to the swinging 1960s is the focus of the interactive exhibition to mark the opening in August of the new Western Bay Museum in Katikati.

“The exhibition will feature items from our collection which tell the stories of the fun and games both adults and children enjoyed from our district’s early pioneering days up until the 1960s,” says museum manager and curator Paula Gaelic.

“There will be a strong emphasis on music from those times too and we are trying to find a record of Claude Grayling’s song ‘Sailing along on a moonbeam’ recorded by Pixie Williams on the TANZA label in 1951, so we can play it as part of the exhibition,” says Paula, who is keen to hear from anyone who has that record.

Housed in Katikati’s former fire station, the Western Bay Museum is a member of Museums Aotearoa, New Zealand’s professional association for public museums and art galleries.

Paula has the support and guidance of the Auckland War Memorial Museum and access to workshops and best practice advice from National Services Te Paerangi – Te Papa. It also has the support and assistance of many businesses, organisations and institutions from within the region but also Tauranga and nationally. Western Bay of Plenty District Council is a stakeholder in the museum.

Now the new museum, right in the heart of Katikati, is poised to launch its first official exhibition, following on from the ‘Unexpected Hero’s’ exhibition it hosted from November 2015 to March 2016, as a centennial commemoration of World War 1, featuring the war experiences of five Western Bay individuals.

This set of bone-handled tools in a velvet case is believed to be for lacing corsets and boots, but the team at the Western Bay Museum would like to hear from anyone who has more information about their use.

“The ‘Unexpected Heroes’ exhibition is now about to open in Maketu. The booth is designed to be moved around the district so it may pop up anywhere. Once we have exhausted all possible homes in the Bay of Plenty we are discussing plans for the booth to be transported to the Wairoa Community. All enquiries are welcome,” says Paula.

“Our entire collection won’t be on display at any one time in Katikati, but instead we will hold four themed exhibitions each year to evoke the desire to revisit time and time again, with the only permanent display being the Samuel Middlebrook collection, consisting of mostly of Maori artefacts,” says Paula, who is studying for qualifications in museum practices and management.

A feature of the ‘Fun and Games’ exhibition will be the 1880 Killen Gown, which hasn’t been on display before.

“We have a textile conservator from Te Papa coming to mount the gown and hold an afternoon workshop in July for anyone who wants to learn about handling textiles,” says Paula. The following day the Killen Gown will be mounted for display by the conservator and this will be open to the public.

Numbers are limited and to register for the workshop, email Paula at info@westernbaymuseum.nz

The gown, and other items from the collection, will be displayed inside glass cases made and installed by museum showcase specialists Designcraft Australia and mounted on plinths made by Gateway Kitchens of Katikati.

The exhibition coincides with the school holidays and kite-making workshops will be part of the activities. “Later in the year we’ll hold a public picnic with lots of fun and games, including egg and spoon and three-legged races where children will be able to fly the kites they have made,” says Paula.

She would like to hear from anyone who has a copy of the TANZA record of ‘Sailing along on a moonbeam’ which could be added to the museum’s collection. Anyone with a copy is invited to contact the Western Bay Museum on 07 549 0651.


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