The More You Do, the More You Discover: A Collection Management Workshop at the British Museum

Written by Pattayarach Thamwongsa, Assistant Director of the Museum Knowledge Development Department, National Discovery Museum Institute (Thailand, ITP 2026)

Hello everyone! My name is Pattayarach Thamwongsa. I am the Assistant Director of the Museum Knowledge Development Department at the National Discovery Museum Institute in Thailand, where I also work as a Collection Manager overseeing collection storage and laboratory operations.

I am delighted to be part of the ITP 2026 programme and especially excited to explore the British Museum’s collections behind the scenes. One question I have often asked myself is: how does a museum of this scale care for, manage and provide access to such a vast and diverse collection?

On Friday, 17 July 2026, ITP 2026 Fellows took part in a Collection Management Workshop led by Evan York, Collection Manager: Care and Access, and his team. The session began with an introduction to collection management at the British Museum. Evan explained the museum’s approaches to caring for its collections, managing access and ensuring that objects can be used safely for research, display and learning.

We were then divided into small groups and rotated through a series of hands-on workshop stations. The activities covered condition checking, object packing, the safe movement of heavy objects, mounting objects for display and documentation photography. We also had the opportunity to practise pinning objects and to explore how different tools, materials and techniques are selected according to the condition, material and intended use of each object.

What made the workshop particularly valuable was the combination of practical demonstrations and active participation. Some of the activities were already familiar to me through my professional work, but I still discovered useful techniques, small adjustments and alternative methods that I had not encountered before. These practical details may appear simple, but they can make collection care safer, more efficient and more consistent.

The workshop also reminded me that collection management is about much more than storage. It is an ongoing process that connects documentation, handling, conservation, access, display and teamwork. Every decision, from how an object is packed and moved to how it is photographed or mounted can affect both its long-term preservation and the ways in which people can study, interpret and enjoy it.

Through presentations, practical exercises, close observation and discussion, this workshop helped me begin to answer my original question. More importantly, it gave me new knowledge and practical skills that I can adapt to my work in Thailand and share with my colleagues.