Knights of the Sky: WWI Collection DISPLAYS

Project: Knights of the Sky WWI artefact display refit
Exhibition: Knights of the Sky
Location: Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, Blenheim, Aotearoa New Zealand
Approx. date: 2011
Role: Historical research, caption writing, collection handling, object photography, installation support, printer/designer coordination
Collection: Sir Peter Jackson’s First World War aviation collection
Collaborators: Peter Jackson, small installation team, film industry set builders and decorators, Joe Bleakley, Amy Brennan
Media: WWI aircraft-related artefacts, uniforms, insignia, aircraft fabric, models, relics, aircraft parts, display captions, installation photography
Tools / Methods: Object handling, collections research, exhibition installation, caption writing, object photography, display coordination
Scope note: WWI Knights of the Sky exhibition only; not the later WWII Dangerous Skies gallery.

Research, caption writing, object photography, collection handling, and installation support for a refit of Sir Peter Jackson’s WWI aviation artefact displays at Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre. Working under a compressed deadline ahead of the Easter airshow, I helped translate fragile collection material into public displays while coordinating with designers, printers, and a small film-industry installation team.

Knights of the Sky is the First World War exhibition at Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre in Blenheim, built around Sir Peter Jackson’s personal collection of WWI aircraft, memorabilia, and aviation-related artefacts. The exhibition opened in 2006 and combines rare aircraft, dioramas created by WingNut Films, and lifelike mannequins by Weta Workshop to create a highly theatrical aviation museum experience. Omaka describes the exhibition as including rare memorabilia, original and replica aircraft, and personal items connected to figures such as Eddie Rickenbacker, René Fonck, Manfred von Richthofen, and Hermann Goering. (Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre⁠)

Around 2012, I worked as part of a small project team supporting a refit and installation of First World War artefact displays ahead of Omaka’s Easter airshow deadline. The project focused on Sir Peter Jackson’s WWI collection material and did not include the later World War II gallery.

My role sat across research, collection handling, photography, caption writing, and installation support. I worked with Peter Jackson’s collection material, including Allied and German aviation-related artefacts, uniforms, insignia, aircraft fabric, models, relics, and aircraft parts. These objects were fragile, historically significant, and often highly specialised, requiring careful handling, documentation, and attention to detail throughout the installation process.

I also contributed historical research and wrote captions for the displays, working through approvals with Peter and coordinating with designers, printers, and the wider installation team. The work required translating specialist historical material into concise public interpretation while also supporting the practical demands of exhibition delivery.

The project was completed under significant time pressure, with a two-month window leading into the Easter airshow and the museum remaining open during parts of the installation. I worked alongside a small team that included film industry set builders, decorators, and exhibition specialists, including art decorator Joe Bleakley and Amy Brennan. The environment was fast-moving and hands-on, requiring flexibility, discretion, object-care awareness, and the ability to help solve practical problems while the installation took shape around visitors and existing displays.

This project reflects an important part of my early collections and exhibition experience: working with historically significant objects in high-pressure creative environments, supporting the translation of private collections into public museum displays, and contributing to exhibition outcomes through research, photography, interpretation, and careful object handling.