Travelling Exhibitions

Travelling exhibition of WLMMX 2013's winning photographs at UNAM's School of Philosophy and Literature (Mexico City)

A travelling exhibition, also referred to as a "travelling exhibit" or a "touring exhibition", is a type of exhibition that is available for circulation to one or more venues in addition to the premises of the organiser.

Temporary exhibitions can bring together objects that might be dispersed amongst several collections, to reconstruct an original context such as an artist’s career or a patron's collection, or to propose connections - perhaps the result of recent research - which give new insights or a different way of understanding items in museum collections. The whole exhibition, usually with associated services - insurance, shipping, storage, conservation, mounting, set up, etc. - can then be loaned to one or more venues, to lengthen the life of the exhibition and to allow the widest possible audiences - regionally, nationally or internationally - to experience these objects and the stories they contain. Such collaborations can add interest to museums where displays of permanent collections might change only slowly, helping to provide fresh interpretations or more complete stories and attract new audiences. They also provide fresh ideas and breathing space for organisations which have exhibition spaces but lack permanent collections.