Feather Exhibition at Etnografiska

This past weekend I visited the Museum of Ethnography (Etnografiska museet) to see their exhibition Feathers. Ethnography is "the study and systematic recording of human cultures", so this is a museum dedicated to different cultures from around the world. The museum is part of the Swedish state run Museums for Wolrd Culture which is a group of four museums, including the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities (Östasiatiska museet) and Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet) in Stockholm and Museum of World Culture (Världskulturmuseet) in Gothenburg. All four museums have free admission!

This was, I am embarrassed to say, my first visit to Etnografiska. But it won't be my last! The museum has several exhibitions looking at interesting cultures from around the world, with around 200,000 objects from places like the Amazon, Pacific Islands, Africa and the Far East. I took time to see the exhibit on Swedish explorer Sven Hedin, and his contact with different cultures on his travels, which was very interesting.

But on to the reason for my visit... Feathers! I found the exhibition to be very interesting and well done. It is a look at how cultures around the world have used feathers through history, from costumes to art to religion, showing how feathers were often used to denote wealth or power. On the first floor of the exhibition, you have the historical aspect of the exhibit with pieces from Hawaii, the Amazons, Papua New Guinea, Native Americans and much more. The exhibition contains some great pieces!

On the second floor, the exhibition focuses on modern usage of feathers, mainly in fashion and theatre. Of special note is the work of Tim Mårtensson, the only plume maker in Scandinavia today. Several of his works are on display as well as an interesting video where you follow Tim as he explains how he makes one of his creations from which feathers to choose, to dyeing & shaping them and finally the application.

The museum is located in the "museum park" in Gärdet. This park contains a group of family-friendly museums like the Museum of Technology (Tekniska museet), the Police Museum (Polismuseet), Museum of Naval History (Sjöhistoriskamuseet) and Museum of Sports (Riksidrottsmuseet). A great place to visit if you are traveling with children. The easiest way to get to the museum is to take bus 69 (direction of Kaknästornet) from Nybroplan. get off the bus at the stop "Museiparken". Admission is free and the exhibition runs until March 3rd, 2019.

Nearby, you have the Museum of Sports...

...Museum of Technology...

...and Police Museum