Principles of Exhibition Making

Discover how the V&A’s multi-skilled teams have imagined, built and delivered some of the most extraordinary exhibitions and museum experiences of recent times – and how you can carry their common principles into your own work.

In this six-week online course, explore the process and driving ideas behind V&A exhibition-making, while working with our expert staff and industry professionals. From concept to build, project management to design, you will get a 360-degree insight into the key considerations at all stages of an exhibition’s life cycle. Focusing on six key themes – Mission, Audience, Research, Experience Design, Project Management and Collaboration – this course will give you the required skills and knowledge to put on an exhibition of your own, for any institution, audience or budget.

Using current blockbuster exhibitions as point of departure, the V&A’s experts will examine how museum exhibitions have evolved over time and outline key considerations at every stage of an exhibition project. The course will introduce the ways in which a curatorial voice is developed by drawing multiple narratives and perspectives to reveal the histories and contexts of makers, users and collectors. You will learn how to scale your exhibition idea to your relevant institution, budget and communities, and how working with artists and designers can offer new ways to enrich an exhibition’s narrative.

This course is perfect for people at early to mid-career stages, working in the museum and heritage sector, or for anyone interested in working in exhibitions.

V&A Academy gives you online access to a range of courses helping you develop the professional skills you need to work in today’s museum sector. Led by expert staff, the professional development programme offers courses and training that use V&A case studies to provide unique insights into our world-class collections, work and best practice.