A TASTE of the Orient has been injected into the Museum of Lakeland Life with a new, vibrant and colourful display that is set to mark the start of exciting developments at the popular Kendal attraction, writes Luke Dicicco.

The Gifts from the Orient exhibition showcases a small portion of a fascinating collection of colourful ceremonial costumes, elegant fans, beautifully carved screens and ornate daggers bequeathed to the Abbot Hall Art Gallery in the 1970s.

Now part of this collection of clothing and artefacts gathered by Duncan Main, who was a missionary in China during the second half of the 19th century, is going on show at the museum to give visitors of all ages a look at how other cultures have been embraced by local people.

New assistant keeper at the museum Lydia Bartlett said the collection was a far cry from the earthy colours of the rest of the displays celebrating the rural history and industrial lives of South Lakeland residents.

But the 22-year-old who joined the team in October after completing an MA in Heritage Education and Interpretation at the University of Lancaster said it would bring a burst of colour to the museum and fascinate visitors with a taste of the east.

"To be able to show this collection is very important," she said.

"It brings a flash of colour to the museum but is also enchanting."

The exhibition, which runs until April 23, is accompanied by activities for school children including an Oriental Week', which encourage the exploration of Chinese culture and design.

It also sits neatly with the museum's theme for 2005, Objects of Desire: The Art of Collecting, which celebrates the significance of private collectors and the roles they play in preserving culture and history.

For Lydia, the exhibition marks her first as assistant keeper at the museum, where her grandparents were once volunteer guides. With strong family links to Cumbria, helping take the museum reins is significant in so many ways for her and has helped shape her vision for the future of the attraction, often overlooked by its more well-known neighbour Abbot Hall, which is run together with the Museum of Lakeland Life by the Lakeland Arts Trust.

One of Lydia's pivotal aims is to involve visitors of all ages, with a particular focus to encourage more local people to go along and see part of their cultural history.

"There is a sense that the museums here are just for tourists but this museum is about the past lives of local people and it is for them too," she said.

"The museum is a very eclectic mix of Lakeland life and a rich history that has so much to offer.

"I want it to be buzzing and alive by getting young and old interested."

Changes to some of the displays, many of which have remained the same since the museum opened in the 1970s, are planned.

Lydia is also hoping to forge stronger links with other museums in South Lakeland and tap into the national curriculum to appeal to schools.

She also plans to introduce demonstrations of local crafts, such as dry stone walling, to help visitors find out about past skills that are being kept alive today by a dedicated few, and introduce local crafts to the museum's shop.

"I came here when I was a child and now I'm running it," she beamed.

"With my grandparents having worked here as well it feels like I'm carrying on a legacy!"