PAXTON HOUSE is shortlisted for the Museums Change Lives Award: ‘Reimagining the Museum’

The Museums Change Lives Awards celebrate the achievements of museums that are making a difference to the lives of their audiences and communities across the UK. This year’s awards will take place in Edinburgh on Thursday 3 November as part of the Museums Association’s annual conference.

The awards have four categories, including a new Reimagining the Museum award which recognises the best example of a museum using decolonising practice to recognise the impact of the legacy of empire and slavery in any area of its activities.

Paxton House has been short-listed for the project ‘Parallel Lives, Worlds Apart’ which has aimed to bring Paxton’s outstanding archives, costume, Recognised furniture collections, and the strong historical links with slavery in Grenada, to Paxton’s existing and new audiences. The Home family, the former owners of Paxton House, owned and part-owned plantations in Grenada and Mustique in the Caribbean, where enslaved African people grew crops producing sugar, coffee, cocoa, and cotton.

This project is part of long-term planning to decolonise Paxton House, embedding the histories deeper within our interpretation and to strengthen our community partnerships, both local and further afield. The project has been generously supported by The Esmée Fairbairn Collections Fund, Museums Galleries Scotland, and The Textile Society.

Working with in partnership with the African-Caribbean group, Descendants, we have interpreted British, African, and Caribbean History onsite and online at Paxton House in four new exhibitions. Grant funding has enabled more collections to be conserved and displayed. The programme of creative engagement (workshops and celebration weekend) enabled children from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds in Scotland, London, and beyond, to learn about shared histories and respond creatively.

 ‘We are delighted to have been shortlisted for the Reimagining the Museum award. It has been an amazing experience to develop this project with the support of our partners, Descendants, funders, and advisors. The Paxton Trust is delighted to be able to re-think its unique historic collections revealing multi-layered histories and engaging our communities.’ said Dr Fiona Salvesen Murrell, Curator of Paxton House.

The exhibitions created are:

1. a) ‘Parallel Lives, Worlds Apart’ – showcasing Paxton’s unique 18^th century costume with specially commissioned replica costumes to represent those people whose clothing does not survive within the context of enslavement history using Paxton’s archives based on careful research in the Home family archives and elsewhere;
2. b) ‘Caribbean Connections, Paxton, and Slavery’ a new permanent exhibition on the history of Paxton’s Caribbean Connections and Slavery features a variety of Paxton’s collections, digital interpretation, a plantation model, African textiles and jewellery.
3. c) a new ‘Sugar and Slavery Trail’ which incorporates over 70 objects in 17 rooms throughout Paxton House and online with pictures and Recognised Chippendale furniture specially conserved for the trail, and
4. d) An exhibition of Descendants and local children’s creative responses to slavery history which are insightful and moving.

Workshops and Celebration Day
Also, as part of the project, workshops on slavery history using the archives were delivered to children at Eyemouth High School and via Descendants. This culminated in Paxton’s Caribbean Connections Celebration, where Descendants members and local children and families enjoyed a programme of African and Scottish dancing, African drumming, carnival costume making, and a mini tour of the House; they were addressed by Sir Geoff Palmer.

Access to slavery archives

Over 850 slavery-related archives have been made accessible online with searchable tags and summaries (ongoing), with related Blogs and a detailed timeline compiled; further digital interpretation is being developed. View our online Sugar and Slavery Trail.

Further information

The Best Museums Change Lives Project award recognises the best project in the past year that reflects one or more of the themes of the Museums Association’s Museums Change Lives campaign: Promoting Health and Wellbeing; Creating Better Places; and Inspiring Engagement, Reflection and Debate.

The Best Small Museum Project recognises the best project at museums with an annual turnover of less than £320,000. The Radical Changemaker award recognises the achievements of an individual in promoting one or more of the themes of the Museums Change Lives campaign in their museum.

To view the shortlist for the MCL awards 2022 please see the Museums Association website.

All media enquiries to Paxton House 01289 386291 info@paxtonhouse.com