Anatomy of an Exhibition: Preparing a Catalogue

With our exhibition only days away, we are continuing our series about the Anatomy of an Exhibition by discussing one of the most important parts of the exhibition: the catalogue.  Exhibition catalogues provide an invaluable resource during the exhibition and once it has finished, as a record of the pieces brought together for the show.  We often cite exhibition catalogues in our own publications to provide context to the history and provenance of an individual piece.

For this exhibition, we decided to publish our catalogue online, to make it widely accessible and easy to read from anywhere.

The catalogue provides a short introduction on the thoughts behind putting this exhibition together as well as an overview of highlights in the show.  The rest of the publication provides a description and history of each piece along with photographs and comparative details.

We are particularly pleased to have two George I gilt gesso card tables in the exhibition, which represent two of the four known examples of this model.

The catalogue contains a number of pieces with fascinating histories, and the details of the provenance can be found in the catalogue descriptions.  For example, the pair of George III giltwood demilune tables come from the collections of the Earls of Pembroke at Wilton House.

The catalogue is the perfect way to preview the exhibition before it opens.  And now with only a couple days left to go until the show opens in the gallery, we look forward to sharing these pieces in person.

To read the catalogue in full, please see below.

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