Online Exhibits for Every Interest
As Arctic researchers, we are very aware of how privileged we are being able to spend extended periods in the north as we conduct fieldwork, visit colleagues, and attend conferences and workshops. We have loved welcoming visitors to our galleries, be they researchers, under graduates, Arctic visitors, school children on a tour, or summer visitors taking advantage of a rainy day to explore the museum.
We are always eager to share the many wonderful things in our collections, and now that our galleries are dark, we are turning to our online exhibits as a partial substitute for in-person visits. photographs are one of the strengths of our collection, and we have an extensive archive of photo exhibits that have been displayed in Hubbard Hall’s foyer since 1998. That is over 20 years’ worth of exhibits, and you are sure to find something of interest among them!
Naturally, given the nature of our collection, exploration features heavily. Robert E. Peary’s North Pole expedition of 1908-09 was the subject of quite a few exhibits, Including a look at Peary’s ship, the SS Roosevelt, and her chief engineer George Wardwell. In a lighter vein, you can find a trove of cartoons lampooning the controversy over who was first to the Pole, which raged in the media in 1909 and 1910.
Donald B. MacMillan’s long career in the north has been the inspiration for many exhibits as well. His gorgeous hand-tinted glass lantern slides are featured in exhibits documenting his 1913-1917 Crocker Land expedition, including the difficult start, the sledge journey that proved Crocker Land was a mirage, and MacMillan’s popular lecture on the subject. Most recently, we exhibited a selection of our favorite lantern slides, to mark the end of a project to digitize the whole collection. (You can explore this trove of over 2000 images yourself in our online catalogue.)
There are many other topics to explore too, from Bowdoin students in the Arctic to a look at northern cinema, curated by a Bowdoin student, Aimée Douglas ‘05. “I will only tell what I know: Them Days, Stories of Early Labrador” combines some of MacMillan’s photographs with excerpts from stories contributed to the award winning magazine of Labrador history, Them Days, while The Cold Front and Cold War in a Cold Climate look at Greenland in the Second World War and the Cold War.
So, grab a mug of tea and dive in!
We’ve recently begun moving our exhibits to a new, easy-to-browse format to — check out Blossoming Tundra for a colorful glimpse of Arctic summer. There will be more to come, so check back often.
The full list of our past exhibits can be found here.