Have you ever stroked a fox, heard a polecat chatter, smelt otter dung or seen a stoat in ermine? Now you can experience the natural world like never before in an exciting new interactive exhibition at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum. Delve into the Herbert’s collections and uncover the brilliance of the natural world through the changing seasons in a creative and imaginative new look at local wildlife.
Nature Notes was created by the Herbert’s team using local natural history and art collections. The exhibition includes a range of accessibility options to bring nature to life for the widest possible audience.
Central to the exhibition are four interactive tables – one for each season. Each table has a specially commissioned piece of taxidermy for visitors to touch, push buttons with animal sounds and smelly jars. Visitors are guided round the tables with high contrast text, Makaton and Braille.
Explore local wildlife through real specimens of animals, insects, plants and fungi. Marvel at fox cubs playing together, get nose-to-nose with a badger and discover what a robin’s pincushion is. Stunning artworks showcase the inspiration that the natural world can offer us and the variety of ways we can record our discoveries.
A vinyl stem guides visitors around the exhibition and there are ear defenders, torches, magnifying glasses and sheets to use in the space. An audio description tour and other features will be added soon. We would love to have feedback of any kind from visitors, particularly those who have used the additional features so we can improve in future.
Nature Notes is open 1 July to 20 November 2016 at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, Coventry.
Supported by
Bill Petit Memorial Fund, NatSCA
Mander Hadley
Additional loans from
Heritage and Culture Warwickshire
Adie Blundell
Stewart Francis Easton
Michala Gyetvai
Douglas Hatfield
Gillian Irving
Chelsea Meadow
Margaret Taylor