In October 2020, I was invited to collaborate with the historian Sir Martin Holdgate and create a museum in the 950 year old Norman keep at Appleby Castle in Cumbria. The museum has been branded as The Norman Centre and aims to inform visitors about the Keep’s Norman heritage and Appleby Castle’s history that dates back to Roman times. The museum features timelines, historical display boards and tables to display and protect the limited edition reproductions of the Domesday Books.
The project was undertaken during UK coronavirus lockdown restrictions and limited the time I could visit to take measurements and made sourcing display units from Europe more challenging. Despite everything the museum opened on time in July 2021.
The signage and exhibition displays were printed and manufactured by Andrew Bruce’s team at Multiprint Solutions Ltd.
The Norman Centre also features an immersive audio trail and life size hologram which was entirely created by Mike Prestwood Smith’s creative team. Costumes and props were sourced by Branwen Prestwood Smith and Kate Gibson.