Costumed Interpretation – all in a day`s work at Artemis Cultural

Costumed Interpretation – all in a day`s work at Artemis Cultural

Costumed Interpretation – all in a day’s work at Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Jackie Lee, Director, Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd This paper was presented as part of The Vital Spark interpretation conference held in Aviemore in the Cairngorms National Park, Scotland from 30 September to 3 October 2007. Published by the Association for Heritage Interpretation and Interpret Scotland. Conference papers are available from the AHI website www.ahi.org.uk The Vital Spark conference was supported by the following organisations
Costumed Interpretation – all in a day’s work at Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Jackie Lee, Director, Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd Interpreting the past using costume has long been a part of history. The love of costume and “dressing up” can be traced through time. Previously, it was the prerogative of royalty and nobility who could afford the fine materials from which such costumes were made. The lavish display of religious festivals and the traditional mystery plays and mummers’ tales gave ordinary people colour and spectacle in their lives. The tradition of putting on your best clothes or dressing up for a special occasion does seem to be inherent in most societies so perhaps this helps to explain the growing interest in what people wore in the past and how they lived wearing these clothes. Setting the scene Once it has been decided that Costumed Interpretation is to be part of the overall interpretation of your site, it is important to set the scene for the event taking place. Whether it be a 16 th century banquet for Mary, Queen of Scots or a Victorian afternoon tea around which the interpretation is to take place, it is of vital importance that the props be accurate and appropriate to their setting. Making do in the hope that is won’t be spotted is not good enough and we at Artemis pride ourselves on the historical accuracy of our settings. When setting the scene it is also important for the management of the heritage site to make clear to its visitors what is happening that day – who they are to meet and what they might find themselves doing. Characters and the use of costume Costumed Interpretation can be used in a variety of ways. It has proved to be most useful in education programmes, where children become involved in learning the manners and customs of an earlier age. Having a Costumed Interpreter meet them in the character of Mary, Queen of Scots or as a 1950s “granny” enables them to interact with their surroundings. A heritage site or museum is different from school; therefore, the learning experience must be different too. Children learn in many different ways and to have a costumed character guide them through a particular period with all the right manners and expectations of a period is a valuable way of bringing history to life. Costumed interpretation is not, however, the preserve of the schools’ education programme. It is successfully used in events for adults and children alike. There is no doubt that Costumed Interpretation is growing in popularity with the visiting public. When asked why they have attended such an event, the response invariably has something to do with making it more interesting and alive and seeing how it would have looked “then”. For the interpretive planner with an event on the horizon here are some reasons why you should consider Costumed Interpretation as part of your overall programme:
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Costumed Interpretation increases visitor numbers – evaluation about why people have visited a property or site hosting a costumed event flags up that the chance to speak to people was one of the reasons for visiting.
Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd ·
From the educator’s view point there is evidence to show that it is remembered by children and adults alike, more so than information panels or a conventional tour. This is because it engages the senses with active participation rather than making visitors passive observers: a. there is sound because the Costumed Interpreter(s) will be speaking and there may even be music involved; b. there is touch as the visitor will be encouraged to handle the props, perhaps even “dress up” themselves so therefore feel the fabric; c. there are often smells – of cooking, food preparation or perhaps perfumes in a bedroom or bathroom; d. movement in the rustle of the costume and the interpreter(s) moving about, perhaps a dance demonstration; e. spectacle – the combination of all these factors to make it visually pleasing; and finally and most important; f. emotion – if an individual reacts to the spectacle there is an emotional response to a heritage site which in many ways is more lasting. The cook prepares afternoon tea in the kitchen of the Hill of Tarvit Mansionhouse. Image courtesy of The National Trust for Scotland
Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd
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Following on from the previous point, it acts as a vehicle, a time machine, for the visitor to have tangible contact with history be it a site, a building or an object. The Costumed Interpreter can manage that contact so that the site, property or object receives the respect and understanding it deserves. Each visitor also gains the maximum impact possible from the interpretation, tailored by the interpreter by gauging the agenda of the visitor. In this way an enthusiastic historian can gain far more insight than, say, from panels while a person simply looking for a quiet day out can opt out if he/she wishes. With a tour, play or re­enactment, say, both parties are subject to indiscriminate and impersonal involvement
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With active participation, the visitor becomes part of the Costumed Interpretation presentation, engaging in their own history to develop a deeper understanding of events that lead to the world they inhabit today e.g. learning the social skills for life in the Georgian New Town of Edinburgh.
Mrs Grant shows a visitor how to tie his cravat in the style of a gentleman in the th early 19 century. Image courtesy of EWHT
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Visitor participation makes each day’s events unique and provides additional motive for an individual to return to a property as experience in the field has proved.
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From our work at various sites, it is clear that people sign up for membership of heritage organisations on event days.
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Costumed Interpretation can be used for linking organisations as in Doors Open Day in Edinburgh when Edinburgh World Heritage Trust and The National Trust for Scotland work in partnership. As another example, Historic Scotland’s Education Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd
Department, the Royal Palaces – Palace of Holyroodhouse – and Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd work in partnership to produce a Costumed Interpretation workshop on Mary, Queen of Scots called from “Castle to Palace”.
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It provides an opportunity to explain processes with live demonstrations. For example: how tea to take tea in the 18 th century. Demonstration on how to take tea in the 18 th century at “Riddles Court”, Museum of Scotland Image courtesy of the National Museums of Scotland
Is there proof that Costumed Interpretation works? There is now more evaluation of Costumed Interpretation events including those of education programmes. These evaluations re­enforce the feedback that Costumed Interpreters get on the job from the visitors and children with whom they interact. These evaluations show that the public responds positively to the experience. The University of Manchester is currently building on an earlier study called “Seeing it for Real” published in 2002, undertaking research to examine the variety of styles available in the world of live interpretation of which Costumed Interpretation is a part and looking at their impact as a learning tool for both schools and the wider heritage audience. The results of this study are to be published in April 2008. (Jackson, Johnson, Leahy, Walker (2002) Seeing it for Real) At Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd we have been involved in research at a local level on the impact of a Costumed Interpretation event at Dumfries Museum. We compared how much was remembered of the exhibition by visitors who had not come on the days when there had been a programmed Costumed Interpretation event with those who had come on the day of an event. Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd We found the following results: Dumfries visit without costumed interpretation Percentage of visitors finding visit uninteresting/uninformative 100 90 Percentagee 80 70 60 Male Female All visitors 50 40 30 20 10 0 Visitors Dumfries visit with costumed interpretation Percentage of visitors finding visit uninteresting/uninformative 100 90 Percentagee 80 70 60 Male Female All visitors 50 40 30 20 10 0 Visitors From these two tables, it is quite remarkable to see the dramatic fall in disinterest in the exhibition among women when there is no Costumed Interpretation. This is particularly important as women often make the decision about where the family group will visit at the week­end. Clearly if there is some kind of costume input this is an attraction. It was also interesting to see that more people were prepared to give feedback on their visit at the costumed event than on a day when no event took place.
Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd Dumfries visit without costumed interpretation Percentage of visitors leaving comments 100 90 Percentagee 80 70 60 Male Female All visitors 50 40 30 20 10 0 Visitors Dumfries visit with costumed interpretation Percentage of visitors leaving comments 100 90 Percentagee 80 70 60 Male Female All visitors 50 40 30 20 10 0 Visitors In addition to the above study, we at Artemis Cultural & Educational Services continue to evaluate all the events in which we are involved. We now have considerable evidence that our work provides a dimension in which people can discover the history of a particular place, building or object holistically, rather than by conventional means of presentation. Therefore, Costumed Interpretation is a valuable tool to the heritage industry and will grow in its importance.
Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd Jackie Lee can be contacted at [email protected] or by phone on 01848 200222. Jackie Lee, based in South West Scotland, established Artemis Cultural & Educational Services in 2000 to provide living history workshops to schools in Scotland for whom the cost or distance of travel to museums made regular visits impossible. Initially delivering costumed character workshops to schools as far afield as the Isle of Canna, one of the small isles of the inner Hebrides, this developed quickly into a business focused on costumed interpretation of the highest quality with clients as diverse as the National Museum of Scotland, Historic Scotland and the Moffat Initiative, a local group of businesses in the town of Moffat aiming at raising the profile of their town. Building on the achievements of 2006, the climax of which was being chosen by the Historic Scotland Education Team to deliver the costumed interpretation workshop at Stirling Castle which won the prestigious Sandford Award, 2007 has been very exciting, with one of the highlights being The Vital Spark Conference in September. The other major event of this year was Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd being asked by the Museums’ Association to provide the main event at their evening function at Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery. 2008 promises to be equally interesting. For more information on Artemis Cultural & Educational Services please visit our website at www.artemisscotland.com
Costumed Interpretation Jackie Lee Artemis Cultural & Educational Services Ltd