Princess Diana’s wedding dress is, for all intents and purposes, invaluable – it’s a piece of history.
So when it’s transported to a new location for the exhibition celebrating Diana’s life – as it was Monday, to Foxwoods Resort Casino – it’s handled oh-so-delicately by the only two people in the world allowed to touch it. and they must wear gloves.
Nick Grossmark and Graeme Murton not only deal with the wedding dress, they’re also in charge of putting every item into the cases for “Diana, A Celebration.”
The show, produced by Arts & Exhibitions International, opens to the public Friday at Foxwoods for its only northeastern stop. It’s on loan from Althorp estate, the Spencer family ancestral home; the objects in the exhibition were curated by Diana’s family.
While the exhibition gathers mementoes from throughout Diana’s life, the wedding dress is, clearly, the showstopper.
It’s still in immaculate condition 30 years later because of the care taken with it, particularly with traveling.
“That dress and all of the other designer dresses are on mannequins that were specifically made by the estate for this purpose,” AEI President John Norman said. “The dresses stay on the mannequins when they travel. so it’s – at least I was told from the beginning from the conservators and curators – that there’s less wear and tear on a piece if you don’t have to put it on and take it off the mannequin every time and fold it up and pack it away.”
The mannequins are secured to the bottom of a big crate when they are moved from locale to locale.
Once the wedding gown gets to its new site, it’s put into a case that AEI built specifically for it, to provide visitors an unobstructed view. It’s glass all the way around, with no support beams, Norman said. Instead, the glass supports the top.
The case also provides room for the train to be extended to its full 25 feet – it’s the longest train in royal-wedding history. when the gown is on view at Althorp, there simply isn’t enough space to unfurl the whole train.
The wedding dress looks elaborate, but, Murton said, “The actual train and the actual dress are incredibly light. everybody looks at it, and they think, ‘Hey, it must be so heavy.’ But it’s not. when we change the dress, etc., I can hold the dress with my little finger, it’s that light.”
While the wedding gown is the exhibition’s big draw, the second most popular of the show’s nine galleries is the childhood gallery, Norman said. It spotlights Diana’s handwritten letters, photo albums, toys and more. on a large screen in the gallery rolls 8 mm footage her father shot of Diana and her siblings playing. Sometimes, items in the exhibition appear in the film.
“Diana, A Celebration” has been open to the public at Althorp for two months each year since 1998 and then travels around the world. more than 1 million people have seen it.
As for why there’s such a continuing fascination with Diana, Murton said, “She was a woman that actually changed. She was in the public eye, and she was, if you like, riding on a crest of the wave. The whole world was changing at that time, including the royal family. She brought the royal family to the people, and I think people understood it a lot more.”
The exhibition details that change through its nine galleries. It follows her as she became a member of the royal family and as she became focused on charity work.
For Murton, one other tiny item in particular makes a big impact – the small prayer book that Mother Teresa inscribed and gave to Diana.
“Those two women were so charitable-minded and became kindred spirits,” he said. “It’s the size of a key case. … It looks like a very small Bible. we try and keep the page open so you can see the wording in it. It’s so, so sweet.”
Diana’s life covered it all, everything from humble charity to grand riches. indeed, “Diana, A Celebration” boasts its share of tiaras and Spencer family jewelry.
“It is mind-blowing because the diamonds have obviously been handed down for many generations,” Murton said. “They’re enormous diamonds, but they’re cut differently to how they’re cut nowadays. so, to coin a phrase, they’re very, very bling, bling. But they’re very real. Sometimes, when we’re handling them, you look at them and think, ‘My God, that’s an actual diamond.’ we have to be incredibly careful of all the different jewels that belong to the Spencer family.”
Murton and Grossmark must wear gloves to handle all the exhibition pieces so they don’t leave fingerprints and oils.
“I’m forever pulling little bits of cotton out of the jewels,” Murton said.
Murton actually met Diana once, about a year before she died in 1997. He was walking his Shih Tzu down a London street when he saw a tall, elegant woman coming toward him – with no security or anyone else around.
“She stopped and asked me all about my dog. … I couldn’t believe it when, less than a year later, I’m in Althorp, going through clothes and personal possessions of Princess Diana’s,” he said. “I was very lucky to have been able to meet her.”
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