Have you ever longed to display your beloved collection of dolls…or cars…or owls…or dresses in a place where everyone can admire and marvel at it? Now’s your chance!
Raglan Museum is planning a “Collectors and their Collections” Exhibition and is inviting you to come forward to share your collecting passions with the community. It is hoped that the response will be so enthusiastic that it will take them to the end of the year to ensure that all collections can be viewed.
In these days of minimalism and the “less is more” approach to home décor, one could be forgiven for being a bit coy about that stash of loved items moldering in a dark corner of your house. Author of “Collectomania”, Claudia Chan Shaw says: “Collecting can create an association to the past and give comfort in reconnecting with the familiar. It can establish a bond with fond memories and give fulfilment and gratification”.
So, you can come out of the closet with your precious collection, as Claudia regards you as a “fascinating lot”! She says that the world is made up of “collectors and non-collectors”.
A quick flick through the Guinness Book of records reveals the vast variety of items that people regard as precious and thus form collections of them.
Perhaps you never intended to be one of those collectors, but one day you suddenly have five of something. That’s the beginning of a collection.
Who of us hasn’t, since our childhood days, enjoyed accumulating items that have some special meaning for us, and also for others. We exchanged cards and marbles, paper dolls and yoyos… as we aspired to have the most, or the best, of them. Whether we pursued quality or quantity did not matter. Claudia says that “People collect for many reasons e.g. for investment, because it’s fun, for social interaction, for the thrill of the hunt. For some there is great satisfaction in arranging, rearranging, collating, cataloguing, displaying and establishing order”.
Whatever your reason was for starting and building your collection, there are many who would be interested in viewing it and hearing the story behind it.
So come in to see us, give us a call on 8258925, or send an email (perhaps with some photos) to info@raglanmuseum.co.nz so that we can start planning this wonderful display of items precious to you!
