Dr Pete McCann, retired president of the American Philatelic Society gave a talk at Stampex on the judging criteria for postal history exhibits, focussing on Treatment and mistakes to avoid. 

First of all Dr McCann highlighted the importance of defining Treatment. Treatment is how you tell the story of your exhibit by showcasing your material, what you know about it and explaining what the subject is all about. Crucially Treatment is the aspect of your exhibit that you have the most control over.
The title page was highlighted as being of vital importance in setting out a storyline for your exhibition, featuring headings and subheadings. On the title page the purpose and scope (start and end dates/geographic area/ jurisdiction/social or historical context) should be set out clearly. Vitally the development of the rest of the exhibition should not stray from the boundaries of the scope. 
He also showed how there should be a primary focus for the exhibition whether that be routes, rates or markings and it is essential to be consistent with that focus throughout. If you want to create a hybrid exhibition, there should still be one main focus e.g. routes and the other e.g. rates should be secondary.
Some major mistakes to avoid with exhibitions:

• Using too much/too little material – too much and you have spent a lot of money without adding to the storyline of your exhibition, too little and you fail to demonstrate the point you are trying to get across!
• Don’t make the assumption that everyone is familiar with the material. The background and context need to be explained
• There needs to be a clearly defined sequence 
• Avoid monotonous layouts on covers
• Use rarities as part of your storyline, don’t take for granted their usefulness.

During the presentation he used examples of successful techniques used by other exhibitions such as the use of maps, scans of markings and also explained how clearly introducing and giving a quick outline of each section meant less to cram on the title page.
 
Watch the full live talk HERE

Image from Mark Bloxham

Volunteering to support London 2020 is a great way to meet more people & participate in the hobby 

Bill Hedley, Chairman, ABPS exhibitions joined us at Stampex and gave us his insight into how to exhibit competitively 

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On an even more encouraging note, a school stamp club organiser came along with the Head Teacher from the school and was so impressed that they are looking to organise a school visit next year to the show.
Stamp Active again raised some funds by the sale of stamps, £930, to help finance their various projects including the free postal club for children, KIDSTAMPS.
In an attempt to attract greater numbers, it is intended to offer a voucher to each youngster under 18, a voucher for £20 to spend at the show (limited to the first 100 children). This will be possible through our Dealer Patrons and additional support from the Philatelic Traders’ Society.

Youngsters visiting the Kids Zone at Stampex complete various activities in order to win points to take part in the free children’s auction on Saturday afternoon. Every youngster who takes part in the auction, is given a free draw ticket with the opportunity to win a Penny Black, donated by Robin Cassell of Mulready Phialtelics
The winner of the Penny Black at Autumn Stampex was Amal Usman from Southend-on-Sea, aged 12.

Leopold Marie received a Trophy as the “Young Collector of the Year 2019” from Susan Henderson, Chairman of Stamp Active. He was also presented with a smaller cup as a memento and a framed set of Harry Potter stamps, sponsored by Royal Mail.
He is pictured with Sophie Moyon, his stamp club leader who runs his successful school stamp club. and Susan Henderson, Chairman of Stamps Active. 

Steve Pye was presented with the Bill Hart Award for outstanding service to youth philately. He signed the Roll of Honour and received a framed certificate and gifts including a limited edition prestige stamp case, cufflinks and a tie, sponsored by Royal Mail.
Steve has run a very successful stamp club in Liverpool and has a huge passion for the hobby and helping young people.

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Spink showcased Inverted Jenny which went on to sell for nearly $1.8million dollars 

Simon Carson of Philangles tells us a little more about himself and his role in Stampex. ​