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Bit 1
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There's nothing new in the commodification of the mise-en-scène from
cinema and television programs -- memorabilia from science fiction films
have been available since at least the 1950s. But typically this
commodification has involved the mass reproduction and simplification of
original designs for a youth market. The Star Trek exhibit at the
Queensland Museum is of a much rarer lineage. Within it, the avid fan
will find actual props, costumes and sets used in the production of the
various Star Trek television programmes and films.
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Bit 2
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Viewing it is a strange experience. Little attempt is made to
contextualise the various props, save for a few information cards
describing their origins. This decontextualisation works to strip away
a good deal of the illusionism inherent in visual media -- on screen the
props and costumes work together as a tapestry -- here they stand apart.
If you look too closely, you can see the hurried stitchwork and cheap
fabric that makes up the Starfleet uniforms, and you can tell that the
display panels on the Tricorders are actually badly positioned stickers.
And it was quite disappointing to notice that the sophisticated inner
workings of a space probe were obviously constructed from the treads of
a model army tank. On the other hand, what was evident was a coherent
and intelligent design aesthetics at work.
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Bit 3
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My favourite prop was a phaser gun designed for Star Trek 5. Obviously,
the designers had grown tired of the wussy pistols favoured in previous
films and shows, and had constructed the gun over the core of a rather
brutal semi-automatic pistol. It even had a magazine sticking from the
bottom of the hand grip. Another detail unnoticeable on screen.
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Bit 4
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Ultimately, however, I found the exhibit to be rather superficial.
Possibly too much space was given over to the costuming, which was not
organised to any particular logic, chronological or otherwise. I would
have liked to have seen more modelwork, for which the show has been
rightly praised. No Enterprise models (surely the visual highlight and
focal point of the programme, although an Enterprise shuttle was
displayed) were evident, nor were the DS9 space station
or the Voyager
ship. All in all, the exhibit is quite small. If you're going to go,
take your time, because at $8 AU per entry, you won't want to be going
back for a second look.
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Bit 5
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Details
Star Trek: The Exhibit.
Queensland Museum, South Bank, Brisbane, 19 Sep. 1998 to 31 Jan. 1999.
Admission: Adults, $8; Students, $6; Others, $4.
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Bit 6
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Citation reference for this article
MLA style:
Nick Caldwell. "Beaming Up the Mise-en-Scène: 'Star Trek: The Exhibit'." M/C Reviews 17 Dec. 1998.
[your date of access] <http://www.uq.edu.au/mc/reviews/events/trek.html>.
Chicago style:
Nick Caldwell, "Beaming Up the Mise-en-Scène: 'Star Trek: The Exhibit'," M/C Reviews 17 Dec. 1998,
<http://www.uq.edu.au/mc/reviews/events/trek.html> ([your date of access]).
APA style:
Nick Caldwell. (1998) Beaming up the mise-en-scène: 'Star trek: the exhibit'. M/C Reviews 17 Dec. 1998.
<http://www.uq.edu.au/mc/reviews/events/trek.html> ([your date of access]).
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![[image]](http://www.Qmuseum.qld.gov.au/stepinside/whatson/star-trek-cover.jpg)