The following is a list of tasks that will need to be completed while you are planning your exhibition. The necessary timelines may vary depending on the nature of your exhibition. We will provide a customized timeline sheet to guide your project planning.

Once your proposal has been admitted to the Exhibitions calendar, the Exhibitions Manager will schedule a Launch Meeting with you and relevant Club staff, including the Publications Manager, Chair of Public Exhibitions, and Chair of Publications. This meeting will serve as our introduction to your vision for your exhibition and related publication(s), as well as establish first timelines for preparation. 

The exhibition catalogue is the first task to undertake, with the longest required lead time. Upon acceptance of your proposal, be in contact with Publications Manager (Ann Donahue, adonahue@grolierclub.org) and the Chair of the Publications Committee to initiate the process of writing and designing the catalogue.

A sample timeline follows:  

Twenty-Four months in advance of the installation:

Loans & Material Selection

• Determine all sources for the material to be included in the exhibition: your own collection, institutions private or public, the Club's, as well as private collectors. If needed, you may request that the Grolier Club request loans on your behalf. 

• A preliminary checklist should be submitted to the Grolier Club Director and Exhibitions Manager at this time. 

Twelve months in advance of the installation:

Loans & Material Selection

• Final list of loan requests, with all information required by lending institutions, to initiate loan requests. We cannot accommodate new loan requests later than one year prior to the exhibition. As you assemble your exhibition checklist, confer with the Exhibitions Manager on your plans.

Six months in advance of installation

**Six months prior to your installation, we will host a check-in call to confirm that the following elements are underway: a final selections list with insurance values; label composition; shipping logistics; and a plan for photography. We will also confirm that you have identified a graphic designer.** 

Publications and Collateral

• Advance finalized information detailing any planned publication, such as a catalogue, to be issued in conjunction with the exhibition.

• Identify a graphic designer with whom we will work to develop the design suite and exhibition collateral, if you have not already done so. 

Programming

• Generally, curators should plan to give a lecture to Club members during the run of their exhibition. Arrange any logistics concerning gallery talks, lectures and other events (to be made through the Club) with our Events Manager, April Rose (arose@grolierclub.org) at least six months in advance.

Four months in advance of installation

Designed Collateral 

• Select a signature image to be used on the promotional material for the exhibition.  

• Schedule Collateral meeting with graphic designer. 

• Develop Exhibition Collateral with your graphic designer. This includes the Promotional Posters, Invitations, Collector's Statement, and Section Panels (if opting for external production).

Three months in advance of installation

Exhibition Content 

• Label copy for the exhibition, e-mailed as a Word-compatible attachment to the Exhibitions Manager if labels are to be produced in-house. The label copy should consist of basic bibliographic information (or similar reference information for non-book items) plus descriptive text. See Object Labels for a template. 

• Introductory Panel copy, emailed as a Word-compatible attachment. We will review the copy before putting it into design production with your graphic designer. The Introduction panel orients non-specialists to the raison d’être and highlights of your selection, generally consists of no more than 270 words, which will be enlarged and serve as the opening panel of your selection.

• Section Panels (if opting to include), emailed as a Word-compatible attachment 

• JPEG images (the named or numbered to indicate their corresponding text) for the online exhibition on Omeka.  

Programming

• If you have not already done so, consult with the Grolier Club Interim Director Bruce Crawford (id@grolierclub.org) regarding events, tours, etc. that will be offered in conjunction with the exhibition. These will be included on the invitation for the exhibition opening reception. 

Publications

• Gallery Guide: Text for a "Gallery Guide": a 6" x 9" handout that will be provided gratis to visitors. The content and complexity of the gallery guide may vary, and should be coordinated with the Grolier Club Publications Manager, Ann Donahue (adonahue@grolierclub.org).

• In order to be on-hand for the opening, the catalogue must be at press by this time.

Ten weeks in advance of the installation

Designed Collateral 

• First drafts of all collateral due for review.

Publicity 

• Our PR Consultant, Amanda Domizio (amanda@domiziopr.com), will be in touch with you to develop a Press Release and approved PR image sheet of exhibition highlights to circulate to contacts in fine arts media.  

• Be in touch with Amanda if you have additional a list of special interest publications, reviewers, websites or other media outlets to which you would like press materials sent. Whenever possible, a list of contact names and addresses for such publications will streamline the PR process. 

• NB: Deadlines for inclusion in journals are often at least six months prior to opening. 

Installation 

• Layouts: We require a schematic indicating which items will be in which cases, and ideally an approximate placement within those cases. We will advise with recommendations based on our experience with our cases. These schematics are crucial to ensure we have sufficient and appropriate resources on hand for the technical installation of the exhibition.  

• Arrange for your stay in New York to supervise the installation of your materials. Plan to be present in the gallery for direct supervision of the placement of your items and the installation of exhibition architecture (cradles, stands, mats and frames, etc.) and labels; ideally, curators are on hand throughout the installation period. 

• Any requests for special lighting, additional cases or stands, unusual hanging arrangements, special tools, electronic devices such as video loops or slide monitors, should be made well in advance of your arrival. 

Six weeks in advance of installation

Loans  

• A completed Loan Agreement, to be provided by the Exhibitions Manager 

• A complete inventory of items to be loaned in an Excel spreadsheet, to be attached to the loan agreement. We cannot accommodate items that are not included on the item manifest and loan agreement. Please communicate all changes to your item manifest to the Exhibitions Department as soon as possible. 

Shipping 

• Finalize shipping arrangements. We will work with your chosen shipper to coordinate arrival, if need be.

• As you prepare your exhibition items for shipment, please label each item and create an itemized packing list to facilitate the loan intake at the Club. Plan to have the exhibition items wrapped and ready for shipping at least two weeks in advance of installation. 

Four weeks in advance of the installation

• Finalize any special arrangements for the opening event, working with Grolier Club administrative staff and the Club’s Executive Director.