Laura Vodanovich: It's been a fantastic year

MUSEUM HIGHLIGHT: The exhibition of Lalique glass from earlier in the year.

AS IS natural at this time of year, I can't help but reflect on the year that was - 2016 has been filled with positive change, laying the groundwork for further steps in 2017.

So what've we been up to this year? We've had an unprecedented 15 installations during the course of the year, from small to large.

The Colours of Light, with hundreds of ribbons and bells hanging on the forecourt, was one of the smaller displays but was no less challenging for staff to install.
We discovered (as I'm sure any local could have told me) the challenge of the winds outside the building and needed to untangle the ribbons several times. Nevertheless, this display certainly achieved its objective: to extend the museum's presence outside, free to the public, and also bring the building to life.

I'm hoping that, like me, you enjoyed the splash of colour, movement and sound this provided.

Larger-scale displays included Out of the Box, our most recent exhibition, with the gallery hung floor to ceiling with artworks. Feedback to date is that our visitors are loving this exhibition and many have said they'll be coming back several times to take it all in.

Bringing China Home, which tells the story of Hawke's Bay's relationship with China, was another big undertaking to develop and install. It was also well worth it and widely appreciated.

One exhibition that seemed to really resonate with our audiences was Lalique, from the Jack C Richards collection. This provided wow factor and clearly communicated the museum's interest in being part of the Art Deco conversation - engaging with an important part of our region's identity.

Currently on display, Speedlines and Ziggurats tells a more local, domestic story and will remain up during the Art Deco Festival period.

As always we endeavoured to provide a range of local, national and international themes, object-rich experiences and a balance between art and social history. For those who came in to see some of the displays over the course of the year, we hope you left feeling informed, inspired or challenged - and ultimately found the experience valuable.

Exhibitions are not the full story of what museums do and, along with this work, we've had artefacts conserved (to ensure they are preserved for future generations), acquired new collection items, bid farewell to staff members and welcomed new staff to our team, provided work experience for museum studies students and participated in the Arts Festival.

We've had two successful free days, continued with the New Zealand International Film Festival, opened up a small new display space and renewed our contract with the Ministry of Education.

We were nominated for three Museum Aotearoa Awards, won a Print Award, assisted with the planning of the Museums Aotearoa Conference in Palmerston North next year and continued to work on the long term solution for collection storage.

Most importantly for me, and certainly most rewarding, is that our community satisfaction rating continues to rise.

So the challenge for us is to keep the upward trend throughout the new year.

MTG is open every day with the normal opening hours of 10am to 5pm.

A range of activities for children is available at the museum during the school holidays.

Laura Vodanovich is the director of the Museum Theatre Gallery (MTG) Hawke's Bay.