Liverpool`s new museum

**gregs dad** · 03-02-2012

Thanks Ged,took a few night shots while waiting for our chauffeur to turn up.

liverpool reflection by exacta2a, on Flickr

**scouse smurf** · 03-02-2012

Went to the Museum for the first time today. Not totally sure what to make of it. Top floor seemed to be the best part of it, got to see Ged's Gerard Garden's Model which was pretty impressive and Lutyens cathedral model which was even more impressive.

Other than that, I wasn't sure where to go... there just didn't seem to be much of a directional structure to the place. I managed to miss out half of the ground floor, until I'd been to the top and back again.

I was also surprised at the amount software fault notices there were on the exhibits, considering it's not even been open about a year

**Doris Mousdale** · 03-03-2012

People want to see and touch the real stuff, having screens and computers is fine for back up or extra information but when they are out of action it all feels a bit dead. A screen image is a poor substitute to the real thing.

**Big where it matters** · 03-03-2012

There are maps that you can pick up from the info desk that give you an overview about what is covered in each section. The temptation is to cover the entire museum in one go and I think this is a mistake (although probably inevitable if you have come a long way) because it can end up feeling a bit disjointed and frustrating if you have to queue to use a touchscreen or audio, and if they're not working well then you're left high and dry. Overall, it feels a bit touristy rather than an in-depth look at Liverpool's history: too many slogans for my taste. Having been a few times, I mostly go now to look out the windows or to use the lavatory. I still haven't tired of the views.

**scouse smurf** · 03-03-2012

I guessed there was probably some sort of guide I could have picked up but I was just having a wander since I had the time.

Considering the stairway is the central point, I'd have assumed you could just spiral round in a loops to view everything on each floor. The views are good, but may as we have built a massive viewing tower as that's not what a museum should be about.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll visit again this year at some point

**Big where it matters** · 03-03-2012

I'd be interested to find out what people who don't know the city or its history think about Liverpool after they have visited the museum.

One of the most popular exhibits (and one of my favourites, too) is Lutyens' model for the RC cathedral that (crypt apart) was never built. It's like we can't quite get it out of our imagination - a Liverpool that almost was and should have been. The mock-up on the wall of what the city would have looked like with both cathedrals is a bit of a heartbreaker.

Another building that did exist but wasn't put back together again after it was bombed in the war was the Custom House. I'd like to see a model of that building and even more so a film of what it was like inside, and if a film can't be found a collection of photographs would do.

**az_gila** · 03-03-2012

Originally Posted by scouse smurf

I guessed there was probably some sort of guide I could have picked up but I was just having a wander since I had the time.

Considering the stairway is the central point, I'd have assumed you could just spiral round in a loops to view everything on each floor. The views are good, but may as we have built a massive viewing tower as that's not what a museum should be about.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll visit again this year at some point

Yes... the signage around the place was not good - and the grand staircase is, well, too grand...

It's a pity you didn't turn right on the ground floor and see the Lion and the Overhead railway exhibit from the Dock Rd level...I thought that was one of the best exhibit areas in the place.

I too saw many machines with software porblems, but thought is was a short term central computer problem...

**Samsette** · 03-03-2012

Ah, the Custom House! If only.....

Albert Dock, the Custom House and the Sailors Home - all in a row.

**Doris Mousdale** · 03-03-2012

LCD Syndrome (Lowest common Denominator) a museum as entertainment rather than information. A building that actually detracts from the exhibits.
When will the powers that be realise people want to see and be close to lots of real things.People absorb huge amounts of information and if they have special interests whether its ships, engines or butterflies they want good detailed archival backup not a once over lightly almost fairground approach.The mistake of the grand staircase is a bit like building an art gallery with too many windows and too few display walls.