Special Exhibitions

Community Collections: Rayside-Balfour

Image Attribution

June 2025 – January 2026

Are you a collector?

For thousands of years, people have been collecting all kinds of things! The upcoming exhibition at the Rayside-Balfour Museum will explore why people collect things, why museums collect things, and will put a spotlight on collections owned by residents of Rayside-Balfour.

We are looking for Rayside-Balfour residents who would like to participate by loaning a part of their collection to the museum to be put on public display!

The application period to participate in the exhibition opens on April 10, 2025, and closes May 4, 2025.

How does it work?

1. Individuals should complete and submit the application form between April 10 and May 4, 2025.
2. Museum staff will review all applications, and select individuals to participate based on the following criteria:
   • Whether the individual is a resident of Rayside-Balfour area;
   • Completeness of application form;
   • Whether objects from the individual’s collection can be displayed safely in the display space available at the Museum; and
   • Whether the objects will contribute to the overall variety of the final exhibition.
3. After reviewing and evaluating the applications, Museum staff will reach out to selected applicants by May 9.
4. Later in May, Museum staff will visit the homes of selected applicants to discuss with them and/or their guardians which objects from your collection will be going on display at the museum, and to pick up those objects for transport to the museum.
   • At that time, lenders (or their parent/guardian) will sign a loan agreement, outlining details such as if and how the collector’s name will be included in this display case, how long the museum will borrow the objects, who will pick them up and drop them off, etc.
   • Objects on loan will be displayed to museum standard in secure cases.
5. An opening event will be held for the exhibition in mid-June – date and time to come.
6. Objects will remain on display until January of 2026, at which time Museum staff will connect with lenders to schedule the return of their loaned objects.

For more information

Image Attribution

Keys (cropped): Friedrich Haag / Wikimedia Commons / “002 2019 06 23 Schluessel und Schluesselloecher” / CC BY-SA 4.0
Buttons (cropped): Dietmar Rabich / Wikimedia Commons / “Knöpfe — 2018 — 0502” / CC BY-SA 4.0
Stamps: Public Domain
Marbles (cropped): Joe Mable / Wikimedia Commons / “JM marbles 01” / CC BY-SA 3.0
Salt and Pepper Shakers: Public Domain
Sea Glass (cropped): Moximox / Wikimedia Commons / “Sea glass at Glass Beach in California (closeup)” / CC BY-SA 4.0
Coins (cropped): Morgan / Wikimedia Commons / “Canadian coins” / CC BY 2.0
Collectible Card Games (cropped): Jarek Tuszyński / Wikimedia Commons / “Pokemon collecting” / CC BY-SA 4.0