By Camille Myers Breeze
On the morning of April 7, 2014, Museum Textile Services staff met on the steps of the Boston Public Library before joining the crowds of visitors and press in attendance for the opening of the exhibit, "Dear Boston: Messages from the Marathon Memorial." During the previous month, we conserved 19 textiles left at the temporary memorial site in Copley Square following the Boston Marathon bombing on April 15th, 2013.
On the morning of April 7, 2014, Museum Textile Services staff met on the steps of the Boston Public Library before joining the crowds of visitors and press in attendance for the opening of the exhibit, "Dear Boston: Messages from the Marathon Memorial." During the previous month, we conserved 19 textiles left at the temporary memorial site in Copley Square following the Boston Marathon bombing on April 15th, 2013.
From left to right: Intern Johanna Myers, Technician Josephine Johnson, Visiting Conservation Assistant Lisa Yeats, and Conservator Cara Jordan.
The press conference began with a speech by Boston Mayor Martin Walsh, who was followed by Massachusetts State Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey. All three spoke about what it was like in Boston immediately following the Marathon bombings, and the great job the first responders did in the ensuing days. New England Museum Association Executive Director Dan Yeager, then came on stage and aptly concluded the press conference by thanking those who had contributed funds and services to the exhibit, including our colleagues Will Twombley of Spokeshave Design, Adam Osgood of Historic New England, Independent Curator Rainey Tisdale, and Independent exhibition curator Anne Starr.
New England Museum Association Executive Director Dan Yeager speaking to MTS Director Camille Myers Breeze in the exhibit, "Dear Boston: Messages from the Marathon Memorial."
As we strolled through the exhibit, it was important to remember that this was not your average art opening. Eye witnesses and people who had been injured by the two terrorist bombs strained to see inside the display cases where notes and signs were displayed along side many textile items, such as shirts, baseball caps, and teddy bears. At the center of the room was the exhibit's main feature, a square platform with hundreds of pairs of running shoes stacked in rows, signifying how the running community and the general public had come together following the bombing in support of a city, a community, and our historic Marathon.
Josephine Johnson and Lisa Yeats did most of the work that Museum Textile Services contributed to this volunteer effort.
In the spirit of the impromptu memorial at which these display items were originally displayed, visitors were invited to leave messages on paper tags and tie them to one of the three trees along one wall of the exhibit hall. This was a powerful way to evoke the outdoor feel of the marathon memorial and allow those of us who didn't make it to Boston in the weeks following the bombings to finally take a moment to say what we were feeling.
"Dear Boston" is joint effort of the Boston City Archives, Boston Art Commission,New England Museum Association, and Boston Public Library. Generous funding was provided by Iron Mountain. For more events marking the first anniversary of the Boston marathon bombings, visit #BostonBetter.
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