NLIS 9
March 21, 2005
(Tourism, Culture and Recreation)
 

Education and outreach to be hallmarks of The Rooms

Government is strongly committed to The Rooms as a state-of-the-art facility to preserve and promote the province�s arts and heritage. The official opening of The Rooms on June 29, 2005 will mark the beginning of a new era for one of the most unique and exciting cultural facilities in Canada. Government recognizes the importance of The Rooms to the entire province and will provide $6 million in Budget 2005 for the annual operation of the facility.

Paul Shelley, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, said The Rooms will be a provincial institution. �The Rooms will offer a combination of excellent programs and services, together with effective educational and public outreach programs, to make the institution relevant and meaningful for every school-aged child and adult in our province� said Minister Shelley. �It will also become a beacon for thousands of tourists to visit the province each year.�

The $6 million budget will allow for the maintenance or enhancement of operations of the art gallery, archives and museum in the preservation and presentation of our cultural resources. The Rooms will have an expanded education and public outreach program which will offer innovative programming for students, seniors, interest groups and the general public. By working with the Department of Education, The Rooms will also develop learning tools to be used in schools and curriculum. The Rooms� rich collections and exhibits will also be available through the Internet and through the development of a virtual tour.

The Budget will provide funding to effectively highlight and showcase the unique cultural institution through a comprehensive marketing strategy. The branding and promotion of the facility will work to attract the maximum number of visitors to The Rooms.

�The Rooms will enable our rich cultural resources to be easily accessible,� said Minister Shelley. �People will be able to research their family histories, view the wonderful work of our finest visual artists, and see exciting presentations of our rich and diverse history in museum exhibits. Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, especially our younger people, will grow in their understanding and appreciation of our unique culture.�

Media contact: Tansy Mundon, Communications, (709) 729-0928, 685-1741

BACKGROUNDER
The Rooms - A place for people

When families visit The Rooms for the first time during the opening season of 2005 they will find not just an innovative and inviting piece of architecture housing three familiar institutions � Provincial Museum, Provincial Archives and the Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador � but an impressive new resource designed to meet visitors� needs. Their experience of The Rooms will start when they approach the building and discover the historical significance of the site.
On the four public floors of The Rooms there will be a rich mix of the cultural resources of the province. On level three, for example, visitors can view a permanent exhibit from the museum, consult archival materials in the reference room of the archives, or take in a temporary exhibit from the art gallery. Visitors will also enjoy amenities shared by the institutions: a gift shop on level one with a selection of art, craft and gift items; the 140-seat multimedia auditorium on level two; and a restaurant on the roof top. The Rooms is wheelchair accessible, a fact that will be appreciated by visitors with mobility challenges � especially since the museum and archives have been previously housed in historic properties that were not accessible.

Visitors will be excited to learn that in addition to being able to access all three institutions in one facility, each of the three has expanded exhibition and program capacity that suit their own mandates and collections. Both the art gallery and the museum will have dedicated space for traveling exhibitions, which offer returning visitors a changing menu of sights and stimulation. Moveable walls, flexible lighting arrangements and state-of-the-art humidity and temperature controls within the exhibition halls mean that The Rooms will be able to attract exhibitions from major institutions with the most stringent requirements.

The museum will greet visitors with permanent exhibit galleries telling the story of Newfoundland and Labrador�s people and environment. It is a tale of convergence of natural elements and of how generations of resourceful people are connected to this environment and each other � a story of people shaped by life in this place. Behind the scenes, expanded office and meeting rooms, conservation, laboratory, storage and collections areas will create an inviting work environment for staff and visiting researchers, be they interested members of the public � who have made an appointment to examine an artifact from the museum's permanent collection � or international scholars. Education areas will provide specially equipped classroom space for large and small group programs.

In its new reference room, the archives will be able to host more than twice the number of researchers it currently does in the Colonial Building. On-site storage and processing areas, housing easily accessible materials, will have tripled. A separate audio-visual and microfilm reference room will provide quieter and more effective use of research space for archives clients. Advanced climate, fire and security controls will accommodate fragile collections. And in a specially-designed exhibit area, visitors can look forward to more archival displays drawn from the resources of the archives.

Visitors to The Rooms will be able to discover a new aspect of the art gallery on every level of the building. In addition to the art-related items for sale in the gift shop there will be an art rental facility on level one as well as a studio classroom for hands-on activities for school groups, family day fun, child and adult art workshops. Using the collections centre on level two, schools and visiting researchers can make appointments to see artworks that aren't on display. And on the same level, there will be an artist-in-residence studio that will give the public a first-hand opportunity to see art being created by a visiting artist. On level three, the art gallery will display its temporary exhibitions both contemporary and historic, national and international art. And on level four, it will showcase art drawn from its permanent collection. Each floor has flexible gallery spaces well-equipped for both traditional and new art forms such as digital projections and installation art. There are also natural light galleries, on levels three and four, well suited for sculpture � not to mention the stunning views of downtown and the harbour.

Tourists from across the province or across the globe, visiting scholars and researchers, or local residents � The Rooms will offer all its visitors a satisfying experience and many reasons to return.

2005 03 21                        2:35 p.m.


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