What I've learned from Exhibition Design I: Salon Hangs

I was inspired by some exhibitions I’d worked on and others I’d visited to do something crafty with some of the family photos at home.

Exhibit A - a project I worked on, graphics inspired by Victorian scrapbooks:

Exhibit B - District 6 Museum:

Word got out among my siblings that I was planning to create a typical Irish family shrine. For those not familiar with this concept, it consists of photos of the family offspring in their First Communion and/or Confirmation clothes, ranged round a piano (or a picture of the Sacred Heart, depending on the family’s interests.) No, no, I said. Not a shrine – a salon hang.

To create my salon hang (as we call it in the business) I purchased ten or so wooden frames of different sizes from Ikea. They’re all the same basic wooden design, but come in different sizes and colour. I chose mostly black, with a few white and red frames for contrast.

Using my newly-acquired Takker (as featured on Dragon’s Den – apparently; I never watched Dragon’s Den) I hung the frames above the dresser. I did make a rough plan before I started and while this was useful, I did change it a bit as I went along. My advice is to step back after you’ve added every frame so you can get a sense of how the next one will complement the whole.

Et, voilà:

My parents conceded that it didn’t look so bad, after all. My sisters wanted to know how many times they featured in the shrine (and woe betide if the other sister was in it more).

I just want to play with my Takker some more.