Laura Kinnear
Orchestrating a living history
Laura Kinnear is the curator of the Holst Birthplace Museum in Cheltenham, which has been refurbished after flood damage in a freak storm last summer.
What happened during the deluge?
The Regency drainage system couldn’t cope with four days of heavy rain. Three rooms were affected – the sitting room, the Victorian bedroom where composer Gustav Holst was born, and the nursery. Only one ceiling had to be replaced and three items were sent for conservation, but these were not badly damaged. We worked with wallpaper maker Cole and Son on new hand-blocked papers based on its archives to match period settings in the house. We are now looking at what can be done with the pipework and guttering to fit in with listed building consent.
What’s on display?
We’ve got Holst’s phrenology report as the Victorians placed great store on skull measurements defining personal characteristics. We’ve just unveiled a portrait of his wife, Isobel, by Millicent Woodforde. She was overshadowed by him so we don’t know much about her. She was an interior designer and looks rather bohemian.
How did you come to be working in the museum?
I’ve been here nine years. I’ve always loved house museums, the living history, the experience of period rooms and creating a sense of someone being in the building. You derive a stronger feeling for someone from the places they lived in as opposed to items in a gallery.
Were you a Holst expert before you arrived?
I’m from Cheltenham so I grew up with visits here. He was ahead of his time in believing in women’s rights and being interested in other cultures. There are Indian influences in his music, for example, and he taught himself Sanskrit.
What’s the secret to a successful small museum?
Using whatever, and whoever, you can. My two children came in recently when we were short of volunteers and I dressed my daughter up as Holst as a small child.
What happened during the deluge?
The Regency drainage system couldn’t cope with four days of heavy rain. Three rooms were affected – the sitting room, the Victorian bedroom where composer Gustav Holst was born, and the nursery. Only one ceiling had to be replaced and three items were sent for conservation, but these were not badly damaged. We worked with wallpaper maker Cole and Son on new hand-blocked papers based on its archives to match period settings in the house. We are now looking at what can be done with the pipework and guttering to fit in with listed building consent.
What’s on display?
We’ve got Holst’s phrenology report as the Victorians placed great store on skull measurements defining personal characteristics. We’ve just unveiled a portrait of his wife, Isobel, by Millicent Woodforde. She was overshadowed by him so we don’t know much about her. She was an interior designer and looks rather bohemian.
How did you come to be working in the museum?
I’ve been here nine years. I’ve always loved house museums, the living history, the experience of period rooms and creating a sense of someone being in the building. You derive a stronger feeling for someone from the places they lived in as opposed to items in a gallery.
Were you a Holst expert before you arrived?
I’m from Cheltenham so I grew up with visits here. He was ahead of his time in believing in women’s rights and being interested in other cultures. There are Indian influences in his music, for example, and he taught himself Sanskrit.
What’s the secret to a successful small museum?
Using whatever, and whoever, you can. My two children came in recently when we were short of volunteers and I dressed my daughter up as Holst as a small child.