'Labelled' by Dail Behennah

This contemporary art commission, supported by The Arts Council and Museums, Libraries and Archives (MLA) South West's New Expressions, was the first in a programme of work which is enabling us to work with leading artists.

'Labelled' by Dail Behennah was displayed in our mezzanine window from 28 February 2009 to 1 May 2010. The work comprised of 490 suspended labels, each made of enamel printed with a label from natural history specimens belonging to the museum. The labels hung in three layers forming a circle over 2m wide. The circle was punctuated by red enamel labels indicating endangered or extinct species.

Behennah's work aimed to draw attention to our collections and their associated information, asking questions about why we collect and what we can learn from museums. It also made a statement about ecology and diversity, looking at the fragility of the natural world as highlighted by the red labels.

Dail Behennah is currently based in Bristol but was born and grew up in Plymouth. 'Labelled' is her first large scale piece in enamel. Her work has been exhibited throughout the UK as well as in the USA and Japan including major commissions for Castle Park and Harbourside in Bristol and Taunton and Somerset Hospital

Find out more about how she made the enamel labels and about her inspiration by reading our project leaflet and artist's statement from the documents table below.

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