Nesmin Series
3 IN-GALLERY VIDEOS | RISD Museum
Back in the day, Egyptian mummies and sarcophagi were institutional prestige items and gallery charismatic megafauna for museums. The RISD Museum’s own mummy, a Ptolemaic priest named Nesmin, has resided in the ancient art gallery since he was purchased in 1938. Mummies remain popular collection items today——they are indeed charismatic——but their presence in museums is fraught.
This project came about when the RISD Museum ancient art curator, Gina Borromeo, wanted to reassess how Nesmin was displayed and interpreted. While his coffin remains on view, Nesmin’s mummy has now been placed back inside out of respect. Nearby, an iPad acts as an interactive digital label, featuring three videos.
These videos unpack several big questions that a 100-word museum label couldn’t begin to address:
What are we looking at?
How did Nesmin get here?
Is a mummy a work of art?
In editing, I hoped to move away from the typical talking head and object pan’n’scan, opting for constantly shifting stacks of image and video. The fast pace, and archival and abstract imagery served to both illustrate and complicate the multi-faceted stories and issues that Nesmin embodies.
Back in the day, Egyptian mummies and sarcophagi were institutional prestige items and gallery charismatic megafauna for museums. The RISD Museum’s own mummy, a Ptolemaic priest named Nesmin, has resided in the ancient art gallery since he was purchased in 1938. Mummies remain popular collection items today——they are indeed charismatic——but their presence in museums is fraught.
This project came about when the RISD Museum ancient art curator, Gina Borromeo, wanted to reassess how Nesmin was displayed and interpreted. While his coffin remains on view, Nesmin’s mummy has now been placed back inside out of respect. Nearby, an iPad acts as an interactive digital label, featuring three videos.
These videos unpack several big questions that a 100-word museum label couldn’t begin to address:
What are we looking at?
How did Nesmin get here?
Is a mummy a work of art?
In editing, I hoped to move away from the typical talking head and object pan’n’scan, opting for constantly shifting stacks of image and video. The fast pace, and archival and abstract imagery served to both illustrate and complicate the multi-faceted stories and issues that Nesmin embodies.
︎︎︎ Is a Mummy a Work of Art?
︎︎︎ What are We Looking At?
︎︎︎ How did Nesmin Get Here?