Portland Museum Model Blog Post 1

Starting off third year we have an external brief, for which we have to find our own client outside of the university to make a model for.

My client is Portland Museum.

Portland Museum is an independent charitable trust, located on the island of Portland, near Weymouth. The museum is housed in two historic 17th century cottages, and is run by local volunteers. It was founded by palaeobotanist, author and women's rights activist Marie Stopes in 1930. They have exhibits on the history of Portland and the people there, Portland's maritime history including shipwrecks and smuggling, Portland stone, and the exhibit my model will be for, Jurassic fossils.

Portland’s fossil exhibit includes fossilised dinosaur bones, fossilised trees and plants, Cycad fossils and a collection of numerous ammonites. Museum manager Lucy explained to me that the fossil exhibit is the most popular according to museum surveys. The museum's logo also includes an ammonite fossil. It is for these reasons we agreed that I would make a model of an ammonite for the museum.

With COVID19 transmission risks, all of Portland museums interactive exhibits had to be removed, most of which were aimed at children. The model I am making will be a tactile, two part model of an ammonite, with a smooth hard shell and a softer rubbery body. The model will be made to look realistic to palaeontologists' current understanding of ammonites, as its purpose is to educate museum visitors on how ammonites would have looked when they were alive.

Because the model is going to be touched, it is important that not only is it made of materials that can be disinfected for COVID safety, but that it is very durable. For that reason the model will be made of fibreglass for the shell and polyurethane for the body. Both of these materials are sturdy enough to withstand frequent touch without breaking. They can have pigments and patterns injected directly into them, as opposed to painted on top, as paint will rub off with enough touching. I will also ensure that the design is not too delicate or fragile, paying special attention to ensure the rubbery tentacles will not be breakable or thin.

As a part of the design process for the model I am researching ammonites, and what is known of their appearance in life. I have studied different types of ammonite shells, as well as their lifestyle and what caused their eventual extinction while their cousins, the Nautilus survived to this day. I am currently looking for reliable and reputable sources which discuss their possible colourations in order to make my model as realistic as possible.

I will be making a subsequent two blog posts here detailing the designing and making process for this model, as well as any problem solving I have to do, all with images.