Director's Message

Winter 2003-4

The past three months have been exciting here at the Higgins!

We are thrilled to announce that the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded the Higgins a three-year $314,000 grant to establish the first metals conservation summer institutes in collaboration with the Metals Processing Institute (MPI) at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) which is headed by Museum trustee Prof. Diran Apelian. Our Paul S. Morgan partnership with WPI is developing into an exceedingly stronger relationship. The summer institutes (the first scheduled to take place June 7-18, 2004) is intended to provide in-depth information and hands-on experience in metals for objects conservators. The Development Department has been a bee-hive of activity all year: the Museum has never seen so many grants go out and so many successes!

This December we will be at the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Daytona Beach FL, the first stop on The Age of Armor exhibition’s 16-site, 5-year national tour, to attend the first opening reception and festivities. The Education Department has several outreach programs organized making it possible for the Museum’s knight in armor to be present! Our strategic plan called for enhancing our national visibility and this exhibition will certainly achieve that goal.

Our relationship with Clark University and professors Gertz and Vaughan has resulted in an expanded Medieval and Early Modern Forum, with plans to sponsor the upcoming 2005 New England Medieval conference here at the Higgins.

Jeffrey L. Forgeng, the Paul S. Morgan Curator, has recently published two new books (available at the Museum Gift Shop) and numerous articles in the academic and popular press. He is making enormous contributions to the visibility of the Museum internationally. The curatorial department successfully bid to acquire a late medieval anvil from the recent Fisher sale in Switzerland adding to our history of technology collections.

As another successful year comes to a close, I would like to say a special thank you to all the staff, volunteers, interns and other friends of the Higgins that keep the Museum at the top of its game.

Best wishes for a most successful 2004!