The Museum Life: Recent Episodes
Carol Bossert
Museums attract millions of visitors and employ thousands. The Museum Life, hosted by Carol Bossert, charts the growth and development of this cultural business. Museum Life showcases leaders in the field who provide perspective on current issue as well as creative thinkers who are impacting the future of museums.
This week I talk with Orna Cohen, an exhibit designer, about the factors that have contributed to the success of her groundbreaking exhibition “Dialogue in the Dark.”
Monica Montgomery and I will talk about her current projects and her consulting practice that helps museums address their diversity issues.
Dean and I will be talking about the Small Museum Association in anticipation of their upcoming annual conference and get a preview of Dean’s session about interpreting slavery.
Richard Conniff will be my guest this week to discuss his recent book “House of Lost Worlds.” Along with telling the fascinating history of the Peabody Museum of Natural History, Richard shed light on the role natural history museums have played in science education and environmental awareness.
There is no argument that many museums were founded by privileged elites who were driven by a variety of motives. Does this mean that museums are bound by their origins? Join the conversation this week as Paula Santos and I wrestle with this question.
Join me this week for a fun and fact-filled discussion with Matthew Tarr, Director of Digital Architecture at the American Museum of Natural History. Matthew will share his thoughts about digital trends and the strategies he is using to the keep the American Museum nimble in an ever-changing digital landscape.
I am pleased to be talking with Devon Akmon, director of the Arab American National Museum about the importance of building community and the challenges of addressing the needs of both a national and local audience.
As the Senior Director of Integrated Content at the American Alliance of Museums and former president of MCN, Liz Neely has a lot to say about how digital technologies are changing the way museums create and maintain their communities. Listen to this great discussion.
Are museums embarking on a never-ending technology arms race? Must museums implement cutting-edge technologies to remain relevant to our audiences? How can museums sustain a digital presence with ever-dwindling resources? Are these even the right questions to be asking? Join the conversation as Nik Honeysett puts these and other digital issues into the context of innovation, risk and leadership.
As part of our technical series, this week I will be talking with Steve Haas acoustical designer and president of SH Acoustics. Steve will explain why acoustical design is vital to a quality museum experience and share a few examples from his current work. While not every museum professional can be an acoustical expert, Steve will provide helpful vocabulary so that we can all talk with one!
Sometimes I worry that mobile apps are just the next “shiny thing” in the museum tech landscape: Here today and gone tomorrow. But Paul Burke, CEO and co-founder of Guru, has convinced me that a good business model can keep the focus on content, not technology, and still improve a museum’s digital delivery.
Nik Honeysett returns to this show this week to give us an update on the Balboa Park Online Collaborative and his perspectives on technology-inspired transformations that are occurring across the museum sector.
Are we there yet? Join me this week for a fabulous conversation with Carolyn Royston, Director of Digital at the Isabella Steward Gardner Museum, Boston. Carolyn will describe her approach to building a forward- thinking digital strategy and, as the President of the Museum Computer Network (MCN) will share the ways that MCN is supporting the museum of the future.
Carol will share her observations from the Museum Computer Network and MuseumNext conferences.
Imagining America is an organization of publicly engaged artists, designers, scholars and community activists dedicated to the democratic transformation of higher education and civic life. They address issues of social justice, inclusion and community engagement in higher education, issues similar to those faced by the museum community. In fact, Imagining America partners with museums and cultural leadership to create stronger communities. Join me this week as I talk with the faculty co-directors Timothy Eatman and Scott Peters about this inspiring and insightful organization.
Lighting is often the first item to be cut from an exhibition budget, if it was even considered in the first place. But lighting is an essential part of the exhibition experience. Steven Rosen, President and Creative Director of Available Light, will share his expertise on this topic and provide tips on how museums of any size can improve their lighting design.
What can the business community teach the cultural sector about diversity? Stephanie Cunningham, Curator of Education at the African American Museum in Philadelphia will share her thoughts on this topic and discuss her upcoming projects.
Much has been written lately about how museums can become more involved in social justice issues. In fact, the 2015 annual meeting of the American Alliance of Museums will focus on museums as places to present and discuss social and political problems. But how do we engage our audiences in tough subject matter? How do we create experiences that seek to transform, not preach? Join the conversation this week with Ben Garcia as he provides insights into these questions.
From the founding of the Happy Museum Project to the redevelopment of the Silk Mill as Derby’s Museum of Making, Tony Butler will fill us in on his past and present projects.
What do cemeteries and museums have in common? Join the discussion this week as Robin Simonton Executive Director of the Oakwood Cemetery explains the history of cemeteries, their role in community building and the variety of innovative programming that they offer. Robin is just one of the authors featured in Cemetery Tours and Programs by Rachel Wolgemeth available through Routledge Publishers.
Historic sites provide a sense of place, especially for students. But how can we make their experience truly immersive. Andrea Jones, recent recipient of AAM's Innovation in Museum Education award will share her knowledge and thoughts.
In her book “Mounting Frustration: The Art Museum in the Age of Black Power,” Susan Cahan brings to light the stories behind some of the “ground breaking” exhibitions of African American artists in the 1960s and ‘70s. We will talk about the role these exhibitions played in reinforcing prejudice, how they spawned a movement toward culturally specific museums and how museums continue to act in ways that support privilege.
Ronna Tulgan Ostheimer, education director at the Clark, will share her philosophy about art education and how a seemingly simple shift in emphasis has inspired the development of timely programs that engage audiences in meaningful dialogue about difficult subjects.
What makes a good leader? For all our talk about leadership in the museum field, its definition remains elusive. This week we’ll build our leadership vocabulary by talking with Geri Thomas, President of Thomas and Associates, Inc., about leadership, staff development and career strategies.
In her book “Mounting Frustration: The Art Museum in the Age of Black Power,” Susan Cahan brings to light the stories behind some of the “ground breaking” exhibitions of African American artists in the 1960s and ‘70s. We will talk about the role these exhibitions played in reinforcing prejudice, how they spawned a movement toward culturally specific museums and how museums continue to act in ways that support privilege.
Every object tells a story. In 'Keeping Their Marbles' Tiffany Jenkins has written a fabulous account of how western museums came to own some of the world’s most iconic objects. Ms. Jenkins and I will discuss several examples as well as her thoughts on who owns culture.
The works that an artist creates is only part of their story. Their diaries, letters and even their emails provide insights into how the artist works, overcomes challenges and maintains creativity. Join me this week as I talk with Josh Franco the Latino Collections Specialist at the Archives of American Art who is responsible for developing the collection related to Latino artists.
We talk a lot about how museums can support social agendas, but seem to be short on examples. This week Peter Armstrong shares powerful examples from his own projects at the Royal Armories in England and how he is applying this experience to illuminate stories about immigration and liberty at the Jamestown and Yorktown Museum.
Why is it so difficult to measure success in museums? This week I talk with John Jacobsen about his new book that presents a new approach to measuring and evaluating museum value and impact.
Museums have a long and sometimes sordid history of collecting and exhibiting human remains. This week I am talking with David Hurst Thomas, curator at the American Museum of Natural History and author of “Skull Wars” about the evolving relationship between museums and Native American communities. We will also discuss whether museums are living up to the public’s trust.
With so much troubling news coming from Baton Rouge, Dallas, and Baltimore, I wanted to take some time to reflect upon the role that museums can be playing to strengthen and serve their communities. Join me this week as I talk with Omar Eaton-Martínez and Brenda Tindal who will share their thoughts and discuss resources available through Museums and Race.
Food is a universal language and my guest, Michelle Moon, believes museum goers are ready to be engaged through refined interpretation of food. In her new book, “Interpreting Food at Museums and Historic Sites,” she explores food as a serious topic for museum exhibits.
Children’s museums have come a long way over the years, and the Bay Area Discovery Museum is a leader in this regard. The museum’s CEO, Karyn Flynn, talks with me about the unique approaches to childhood learning and creativity the museum takes, as well as the research initiatives behind their hands-on exhibits and programs. We’ll also track Karyn’s fascinating career from business to non-profits and hear her ideas for revitalizing the museum.
It seems as if there is an app for everything. Mobile devices have changed the way we live and their ubiquity is influencing how we think about museum experiences. Join Peter Vega from izi.TRAVEL, David Markowitz from ListenUp Audio, and Sandy Goldberg who formed sgscripts, as we talk about exciting new approaches to marrying age-old storytelling with new-age technology.
Silvia Singer is one of the most influential professionals on the international museum scene today. As founding director of the award-winning Interactive Museum of Economics (MIDE) in Mexico City, Silvia inspired a new level of audience engagement. She has served on the boards of both the American Alliance of Museums and Association of Science and Technology Centers and president of ICOM Mexico. Join the conversation this week as Silvia shares her passion and perspective about the museum community.
How do you take an idea and make it reality? This week I’ll talk with the designer and fabricator of Museiko, Bulgaria’s first children’s and science museum. Lee Skolnick of Lee H. Skolnick Architecture + Design Partnership and George Mayer of Maltbie will provide a behind-the-scenes look at the development of this project and discuss the role that independent partners play in the museum world.
Recently, a group of thirty multi-racial and multi-generational museum professionals met in Chicago for a three-day conversation about museums and race, specifically to intensify the focus on entrenched racism in American museums, examine practices, and launch an action group to initiate change in racist values and policies across the museum field. The convening was sponsored by The Museum Group, a consortium of independent museum consultants that believe in the power of deep listening and dialogue to spur change. Several participants will share their thoughts.
Greg Stevens, assistant director for professional development at the American Alliance of Museums, and Sheri Levinsky-Raskin, assistant vice president for education and evaluation for the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, will talk about AAM’s multi-year initiative to shine a spotlight on accessibility and universal design, and share their experiences developing and moderating a three-part webinar series titled “Stories of Inclusion: Inclusive Practices at Cultural Institutions.”
Gary Vikan, former director of the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, will share stories and perspectives from his upcoming memoir, Sacred and Stolen: Confessions of a Museum Director, as well as his thoughts about the cultural community’s responsibility for antiquities now in the smuggling trade from Iraq and Syria.
Why do museums continue to struggle with implementing universal design? The Americans with Disability Act is twenty-five years old, yet we still find exhibitions that are inaccessible for one reason (or many reasons). Join Janice Majewski, Director of Inclusive Cultural and Educational Projects at the Institute for Human Centered Design and Clare Brown, Professor of Exhibition Design at George Washington University for a discussion about the importance of incorporating universal design in all exhibitions intended for people and how we are training a new generation of designers to understand that addressing ADA issues is a central part of their design process.
Bill Hosley is a passionate champion of small museums, especially those that preserve local history and public memory that would otherwise be lost to us. Bill has embarked on a campaign to document the role that historic houses, community collections and historical societies play in helping their communities by fostering a sense of place, civic pride and community. This week Bill will share some of his examples as well as provide context for what has led to the diversity of presentation that we witness today.
Mar Dixon describes herself as passionate about culture, a defender of libraries, a digital technology enthusiast and a trouble maker and/or advocate. She also runs #AskACurator on Twitter among many other initiatives that help us move beyond our assumptions and models. Join me this week for a rollicking discussion.
Starting a museum from scratch is not for the faint of heart, and Nene Spivy has what it takes to get the job done. As the Executive Director for the Children’s Science Center in Fairfax, Virginia, Nene is using her knowledge, experience and passion to chart a path that will ultimately lead to a permanent home that will serve Northern Virginia, one of the fastest growing areas in the country. This week Nene will share how she has navigated this path that has led from a museum without walls to the opening of their first permanent site this past July in a local shopping mall.
Imagining America is an organization of publicly engaged artists, designers, scholars and community activists dedicated to the democratic transformation of higher education and civic life. They address issues of social justice, inclusion and community engagement in higher education, issues similar to those faced by the museum community. In fact, Imagining America partners with museums and cultural leadership to create stronger communities. Join me this week as I talk with the faculty co-directors Timothy Eatman and Scott Peters about this inspiring and insightful organization.
Massive multimillion dollar projects garner attention and press, but does more money mean better exhibitions? This week I will be talking with Cory Rodeheaver and Pete Salmon from Taylor Studios about storytelling on a budget and how small organizations can make big impacts in their communities.
We all believe that museums are valuable and play a positive role in society. But how do we measure that value? Attendance, revenues, and collection size are quantifiable, but do they measure value? Carol Scott has been speaking and writing about this topic for several years and will share her insights on this week’s show.
It is so exciting to have a conversation with Laura Lott, the new president and chief executive officer of the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). While previously serving as chief operating officer for AAM, Lott was behind a large scale rebuilding effort that boosted membership dramatically. Now as president, she’ll tell us about her ideas for the future of AAM.
Deborah L. Mack who is the associate director for community and constituent services at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture will share her thoughts on what this phrase means in the 21st century. We will also talk about the challenges of connecting public history and museum practice as well as how the newest museum on the Mall may change our national narrative.
Aleia Brown describes herself as a museum maven and scholar-activist. She has written extensively about museums, race and gender issues and is co-founder of two Twitter chats: #BlkTwitterstorians and #MuseumsRespondtoFerguson. This week, Aleia and I will talk about museums and race.
Rebecca Shulman Herz is the Director of the Peoria Playhouse Children’s Museum and a prolific blogger at Museum Questions. Join us as we discuss a variety of issues from storytelling in museums to the practical and philosophical issues surrounding gifts.
Many museums seem to have put their membership programs on autopilot, using a transactional model that focuses on affluent families with children. This week’s guest will share her approach to fundraising models that move beyond traditional models. Angela Venuti is the Membership Officer at the Museum of Photographic Arts in Balboa Park and recent MuseumNext speaker.
In honor of Museum Life’s two-year anniversary, host Carol Bossert will reflect on key themes that have emerged and share plans for the coming year.
Carol Bossert is a museum professional with twenty-five years of experience working in and for educational and cultural organizations. Since forming Carol Bossert Services in 1988, she has worked with more than 40 organizations to plan and develop exhibitions, create science education programs and consult on best museum practices. Ms. Bossert holds a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Texas-Dallas and began her museum career at The Newark Museum as department head and curator of the natural history collection. She is a speaker at museum conferences and writes about museum issues www.carolbossertservices.com. She is the host of a weekly radio program, The Museum Life, about trends and issues in the museum community.
The Natural History Museum, a popup museum based in New York City, has been instrumental in putting pressure on natural history museums and science centers to divest from the fossil fuel industry. Most museums have maintained a position of neutrality when it comes to highly charged and controversial topics, and many believe that they can maintain their neutrality regardless of their funders. This week I will discuss this issue with Beka Economopoulos, co-founder of The Natural History Museum, as well as the role that mobile and popup museums can play in civil engagement.
Sarah Sutton continues to lead museums and other non-profits in their quest to become more sustainable and resilient in the face of global climate change. This week Sarah and I will discuss the role museums are playing in becoming role models for their communities.
Historic houses have been at the center of discussions this summer about the meaning and interpretation of sensitive issues from the Confederate flag to slavery. So what better time than to talk with the authors of “The Anarchist Guide to Historic Houses” Frank Vagnone and Deborah Ryan?
Leslie Bedford will share her thoughts and experiences after attending the Reimagining the Museum - Conference of the Americas held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, September 2-4, 2015. The conference, co-sponsored by Teoría y Práctica de las Artes in Argentina and the American Alliance of Museums, brought together more than 400 museum professionals to explore the issues surrounding museum transformations and ways in which museums are enhancing audience engagement and community accessibility in the Americas.
MuseumNext has developed a reputation as a place where museum leaders throughout the world come together to discuss the future of museums. The first U.S.-based MuseumNext conference will be held in Indiana at the Indianapolis Museum of Art on September 25-26. Organizer Jim Richardson will provide a sneak peek of what delegates can expect from this intimate venue.
There are no adequate superlatives to describe the scope of Shanghai Science and Technology Center. The science center features exhibits on all aspects of science, including design and innovation, as well as a children’s museum. With the recently opened Shanghai Museum of Natural History, a planetarium in the planning stage and collaborations with science centers worldwide, the organization is a major influencer of public science education. Get an insider’s look into this major endeavor with Delphi Fang (FANG De Jai), Deputy Director of Administration Office and Secretary to Museum Board Chair.
As the director of the Children’s Museum of Jordon, Sawsan Dalaq is addressing critical needs in her community to provide safe spaces for children who are living daily with the realities of war. Sawsan is also the President of the newly formed North Africa and Middle East Science Centers Network and will share plans for an upcoming summit on science communication that will benefit the ever-growing science center community.
Science literacy has never been more important and science centers are playing an important role in breaking down barriers between science and the public. Join this week’s conversation with Walter Staveloz, Director of International Relations at the Association of Science Technology Centers (ASTC) as he shares his insights into the work of science centers around the world.
How well do Western museum practices translate to other parts of the world? How are museums perceived and used in non-Western cultures? Dr. Shaila Bhatti provides perspective on these questions and many more through her in-depth study of the Lahore Museum in Pakistan.
Museum exhibits are like no other storytelling medium. But what does that mean? What assumptions are implicit when we define exhibits as storytellers? How can we push the boundaries of this medium? How can we make the most of its assets? Exhibition designer and professor Clare Brown will share her views and thoughts on this subject.
The Bhopal Museum opened on December 2, 2014, on the thirty year anniversary of the world’s largest chemical disaster. The museum recounts the events that took place the day more than 500,000 residents were exposed to toxic gas and other chemicals leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide plant. But as Rama Lakshmi explains, this museum is not meant as a static memorial, but as an essential contribution to dialogue in a democratic society.
Author of the book by the same name (Left Coast Press 2013), Teresa Bergman explores why we erect monuments to national events and figures—or why we think we do. During this week’s discussion, Teresa will share research that examined the patriotic narratives of some of our most beloved memorials and how this narrative is changing and what this means to our sense of national identity.
David Mandel has had an exemplary career as an exhibit designer working in both museums and design houses. Having just opened the Center for Civil and Human Rights where he serves as director of exhibits and design, David reflects upon the experiences that have shaped his design philosophy and how having the right people around the table can make all the difference.
It is so exciting to have a conversation with Laura Lott, the new president and chief executive officer of the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). While previously serving as chief operating officer for AAM, Lott was behind a large scale rebuilding effort that boosted membership dramatically. Now as president, she’ll tell us about her ideas for the future of AAM.
The Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto may have an unconventional focus, but visitors quickly come to appreciate the artful shoe exhibits and how these material objects have been put into social context. Curator Elizabeth Semmelhack will share some of the ways the museum has approached its subject matter and connected with the community through partnerships.
What can museums learn from social movements? How can museum studies programs address the inequities in the museum field and equip museum workers to think critically about the role of museums in creating a just society? Therese Quinn, Director of Museum and Exhibition Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago, will share her perspective on these questions and describe a new vision for what it means to be a museum professional.
This week’s show continues to examine internal social justice issues with my guest Brenda Salguero. Director of Education for the Hayward Area Historical Society, Brenda recently received her Master of Arts and Master of Business Administration in Museum Studies from John F. Kennedy University. Her thesis entitled Hanging Mirrors: Reflections on Women of Color, Leadership and Representation within Museums will also be the subject of a panel discussion at the 2015 Western Museums Association Conference. During our conversation, Brenda will share her perspectives on leadership and the promotion of people of color in the museum field.
What do you do when your baby bird of an idea gets squashed? You pursue it. Museum Workers Speak was the fledgling idea of Alyssa Greenberg, Monica Montgomery, Jillian Reese, and Nina Pelaez who saw an opportunity to support the theme of social justice at the 2015 American Alliance of Museums conference. When their conference proposal was not selected by the conference organizers, these dedicated museum professionals used their astuteness in social media marketing and their superb organizational skills to hold the discussion offsite from the conference. The results are reverberating throughout the museum community. Listen this week as the Museum Workers Speak organizers discuss their next steps.
Small historic house museums have to work hard to be noticed, particularly in large urban markets. This week I will talk with Heather Meltzer, principal of Bow Bridge Communications, Jennifer Walden of Louis Armstrong House Museum, and Carol Ward of Morris-Jumel Mansion Museum about how they have applied their marketing savvy and civic spirit to raise the profile of their organizations and collaborate with their communities.
The slow art movement is a growing phenomenon. Museums around the world are hosting Slow Art Day, an event that invites people to slow down, look at art and discuss their experiences with each other. This week’s guest, Phil Terry, will share the personal experience that led him to found Slow Art Day and how this simple idea is transforming the lives of individuals and highlighting the essential role of museums in society. Mr. Terry is the Founder and CEO of Collaborative Gain, Inc. and co-author of Customers Included, a book widely praised for its practical and passionate focus on building better businesses.
Find out more about Slow Art Day at http://www.slowartday.com/
If you work in the museum field, you are probably familiar with the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). Its membership is one of the biggest in the field, and its annual conference attracts thousands of people each year. The conference’s 2015 theme was The Social Value of Museums, Inspiring Change. I’ll be talking with Matt Kirchman, Cecilia Garibay, Porchia Moore, and Michael Madeja about their experience at the AAM conference. Each will share something learned or exciting and tell us what they are taking back to their practice.
If you want to learn about cutting edge digital practices and find applications for the museum field, the Museums and the Web conference is the place to be. From webmasters to educators, from designers to curators, the conference attracts people from around the world. Neal Stimler, Digital Asset Specialist at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, attended this year’s MW conference and will share the high points and tell us about new trends and hot topics in the digital world.
MuseumNext is Europe’s major conference on the future of museums. It attracts the most advance thinkers from around the world and challenges attendees to tackle the big issues of today to help “future proof” their organizations. Alin Tocmacov of C&G Partners will report on conference activities, emerging trends and surprises. We’ll discuss his favorite session and lessons he’s going to incorporate into his design practice.
What's the difference between a children's museum and a museum for children? This week's guest Sharon Shaffer will explain why this is more than a semantic difference and how all museums can use their resources to support early childhood learning. Dr. Sharon Shaffer is the author of Engaging Young Children in Museums, recently published by Left Coast Press.
What's the difference between a children's museum and a museum for children? This week's guest Sharon Shaffer will explain why this is more than a semantic difference and how all museums can use their resources to support early childhood learning. Dr. Sharon Shaffer is the author of Engaging Young Children in Museums, recently published by Left Coast Press.
The Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum has reopened to great acclaim and much of its success is due to technology that encourages visitors to engage thoughtfully and completely with the objects they encounter. Seb Chan, director of digital and emerging media at the Cooper-Hewitt will share some of his thoughts about the museum’s reopening: what the team got right, and what they are tweaking. We’ll talk about his advice for other institutions—large and small—that are grappling with the issues surrounding digital media, discuss his most influential experiences, and get his thoughts about the future of museums.
If you have gone through a building renovation, used an outside consultant to help with a project or been that outside consultant, you are probably familiar with the formal process of soliciting proposals and qualifications. This week I’ll be talking with Barbara Punt, founder of Punt Consulting Group, about this process as well as other aspects of project management that make the difference between a project that one simply lives through and one that honors the humanity of all participants.
March 16th marks the tenth anniversary of Left Coast Press. This week I’ll be talking with Left Coast Press founder Mitch Allen about trends and changes he has witnessed, as well as what the future holds for this organization. Left Coast Press has made a significant contribution to the museum profession by providing academic and professional publications in the fields of museum studies and practice, archaeology, cultural studies, and history, among others.
Franklin Vagnone loves history and historic houses. He is the Executive Director of the Historic House Trust of New York City. He is also an anarchist. At least when it comes to historic house museums. Franklin is lecturing nationally on the concepts embodied in The Anarchist Guide to Historic House Museums, the book he is authoring with Deborah Ryan. This week we will talk about his work and his mission to save historic house museums.
At the turn of the 20th century, librarian and museum maverick John Cotton Dana wrote, “A good museum attracts, entertains, arouses curiosity, leads to questioning –and thus promotes learning.” But what exactly is learning in a museum context? And how do—or can—museums promote it? What is the responsibility of the museum to fulfill its promise to be an institution that promotes learning? This week’s program of The Museum Life examines these question with educator, writer and critical thinker, David Carr. The discussion will follow David’s “Ten Lessons and One Rule,” published in The Promise of Cultural Institutions. We will discuss what we mean by learners, what kinds of learning takes place in museums and how museums and other cultural institutions can inadvertently stifle learning.
Susie Wilkening doesn’t take anything for granted. Always questioning the assumptions we make in our museum practice, Susie challenges us to dig deeper and think clearer. This week Susie and I will talk about what she’s been questioning lately, including the assumption that the general public has a negative association with the word museum. She will also share information about Museums R+D, an exciting new initiative that helps museum understand the impact they are making—and are capable of making—in the lives of their visitors and their communities.
Intergenerational communication in the workforce has gotten a lot of attention. How does it play out in museums? Join the discussion this week as Gen Xer Adrianne Russell, Millennial Lourdes Santamaría-Wheeler and I chat about perceptions, experiences and aspirations.
Museum Hack provides non-traditional tours at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the American Museum of Natural History. The tour guides are professional, well-educated and outrageously funny. They also have a lot to teach the museum community about digging deep to get the best stories, respecting audiences and having fun. Join me as I talk with Founder & CEO Nick Gray and VIP Tour Guide Ethan Angelica.
Join me for an inspiring conversation with Nina Simon as we discuss her career trajectory, Museum 2.0 and how she is putting her ideas about the participatory museum into practice as Director of the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History.
What do we mean by inclusion? Why do museums continue to have difficulty building trust with people of color? How does the language we use trap us in unworkable models? Portia Moore will shed light on these questions based on her experience and research. Portia uses Critical Race Theory as a framework for exploring issues of inclusion in museums and what lies at the crossroads of culture, technology, information and race.
In December a number of museum bloggers issued a joint statement calling for museums to address cultural and racial issues that were brought into sharp focus after tragic events in Ferguson, Missouri, and other cities around the country. A mediated Twitter conversation #museumsrespondtoferguson followed and offered a snapshot of how museums were—and were not—responding. This week a group of us will reflect on what these responses reveal about the museum community and the ability of cultural institutions to respond to social justice issues. My guests this week include Melanie Adams, Samuel W. Black, Gretchen Jennings, and Adrianne Russell.
Anyone who works with students knows that museum field trips have lasting value. Many adults retain vivid memories of their first trip to a museum and credit those experiences with their continued fondness for cultural institutions. But what are students actually learning? This week I’ll be talking with Anne Kraybill Distance Learning Project Manager at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Arts about a research study that answers this question.
Objects are at the heart of museums, and their power can be harnessed to connect people to themselves, to others and to the world. This is the core thesis of The Objects of Experience: Transforming Visitor-Object Encounters in Museums (2014, Left Coast Press). This week, authors Elee Wood and Kiersten Latham describe their theoretical and practical framework for identifying the variety of ways museum visitors encounter objects and how these connections can be used to enhance the museum experience.
It has been a fantastic year of guests and ideas. Please join me as I review some of my favorite shows and identify merging trends.
We know that museums matter, but how do we prove it? Join me for a fascinating conversation with Jeffrey Smith, author of The Museum Effect. How Museums, Libraries, and Cultural Institutions Educate and Civilize Society (2014, Rowman & Littlefield) as he discusses his research about the effect of art museums on individuals and society. Jeffrey is Professor of Education and Associate Dean for Research in the College of Education at the University of Otago in New Zealand.
Terrie Rouse is back in Washington after successfully opening the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, Georgia and continuing her consulting practice to help cultural organizations through times of change. This week, Terrie and I will be talking about a variety of issues including museum accreditation, the importance of professional development, the feminization of the museum field and the museums issues that just keep coming around. Terrie has presided over the opening and operation of many of our most important cultural institutions. Among her many accomplishments, Terrie has served on the Board of the American Alliance of Museums and was appointed the United States Cultural Envoy to the U.S. Embassy in Columbia. Terrie’s perspectives and observations about our field are always razor sharp and filled with wit.
It’s all fun and games at the museum conference until someone mentions that museums have a responsibility to take a stand on social issues. Do we really believe we are impartial observers? Why do we persist in defining relevancy in our terms? What prevents us from changing.? Join this week’s conversation with museum thought leader and provocateur Robert Janes, author of Museums in a Troubled World and Museums and the Paradox of Change, now in its third addition. It promises to be a lively discussion.
Museum exhibits have become very sophisticated, designed to delight, surprise and inspire. Lights wink, interactives clank and images flash. As one science center director said, “The most popular exhibit is the noisiest.” But what is stimulating for some, is hell for others, especially individuals on the autism spectrum and those with sensory processing issues. As we strive to change the perception of museum as contemplative temples, we have perhaps unwittingly made our museums inhospitable to many adults, children and their families. This week Beth Redmond-Jones will share her professional and personal journey, exploring ways that museum can effectively serve the autistic community.
This week’s program recaps a fabulous presentation I heard at the recent Association of Science-Technology conference in Raleigh, North Carolina. Entitled Knowing Your Community: To Be More Interesting, Be More Interested, a panel of science center professionals led by Bill Booth described the transformations that are occurring in their institutions when they listened to what their communities had to say rather than what the institution wanted to hear. Bill and his colleague Kristin Leigh from Explora will share concrete tools and examples of how science centers—and all cultural institutions—can shift their focus from working for their communities to working with them.
Some museums seem to be magnetic, having an ability to attract donors, visitors and goodwill. These museums not only survive but thrive in tough economic times. What’s the secret? Luck? Leadership? Endowment? Anne Bergeron and Beth Tuttle studied six magnetic museums to identify the organizational philosophies and practices that make them successful. The findings shift discussions about non-profit management from strategies for finding the sweet spot between mission and market to practices that serve, engage and empower people
Julie Decker is the Director and CEO of the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center, Alaska’s premier art, history, science and cultural institution. The museum recently completed a significant expansion that included the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, Imaginarium Discover Center, Thomas Planetarium and ConocoPhillips Gallery. Through innovative initiatives such as the Polar Lab, Julie is leading the museum beyond its expansion to become a model for community engagement, addressing contemporary issues that build identity and reflect what it means to be human in the North.
Many museum professionals feel that they are on a never-ending hamster wheel: being asked to do more with less, serving both onsite and virtual audiences and working with rapidly changing technologies. Nancy Proctor injects a calm voice into this frenzy. This week’s conversation will touch upon a number of Nancy’s insights about mobile technologies, crowdsourcing and personalization.
It is increasingly common for museums to rely on contractors for special projects from evaluation to media development and design. This slow but steady trend has had a significant impact on exhibitions, both in terms of process and product. Does the current commercial exhibition design system stifle our most visionary and creative minds? Are we homogenizing exhibit experiences? Can we move beyond a process that separates museum staff from “designers” often leaving everyone dissatisfied at the end of the project? Join this week’s discussion with Tim McNeil, Director of the UC Davis Design Museum and Professor of Design at University of California Davis for an insightful conversation.
It seems that every museum is using social media to reach their audiences. But does using social media make a museum social? Is social media just the next new “shiny thing” that museum directors hope will make their institutions relevant, especially to younger audiences? Can museums afford to chase digital media trends? Can they afford not to? This week, Jasper Visser and I will discuss these questions as well as ways that museums can chart their own course through the digital sea.
Whether developing a product, web site or exhibit, good design begins with understanding the intended audience. Yet too often the audience discussion remains at a superficial level, identifying audiences by age, children, adults, relationship, families or geography, local, tourist. Design thinking—a phrase currently used to describe an approach to foster creativity and problem-solving—emphasizes the importance of empathy to “walk in someone else’s shoes,” brainstorming to spur creativity and rapid prototyping to test ideas. Dana Mitroff Silvers uses design thinking to help cultural institutions develop strategies to engage audiences, especially through digital technologies. Join our conversation this week as Dana and I discuss the traps that many institutions fall into in terms of using digital technologies and how they can avoid them.
The issue of empathy has become a reoccurring theme on Museum Life. Whether we’re talking about digital strategies or responding to communities in crisis, the ability not only to understand our audiences, but empathize with them is at the core of the most creative and important museum projects. Given the importance of this concept, I thought it would be good to rebroadcast my conversation with Gretchen Jennings, the museum thought leader that first coined the term empathetic museum. This show will be broadcast with an updated introduction that describes what Gretchen and others have been doing to advance this notion since last November.
How can museums survive in today’s disruptive technology revolution? Can museums become agile and adaptive enough to keep up with technological change? How can museums look at their mission in new ways? This week’s guest Koven Smith will offer his thoughts on these questions as well as his vision for museums in the future.
What distinguishes leadership of cultural and heritage institutions from for-profit and even other types of non-profit organizations? How does a cultural institution earn all of its income without losing its mission? How has the interpretation of historic sites kept up with the times? Michael Day, Chief Executive of Historic Royal Palaces in the United Kingdom will discuss these and other issues related to cultural leadership, governance and historic site management. Historic Royal Palaces welcomes more than 4 million visitors each year to its sites that include the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Kensington Palace, Kew Palace, and the Banqueting House in Whitehall. Hillsborough Castle, the Queen’s official residence in Northern Ireland, has recently been added to this list.
Begun as the National D-Day Museum, the National World War II Museum located in New Orleans has achieved excellence in many areas due in great part to the leadership of Executive Vice President Stephen Watson. With 500,000 visitors a year and 130,000 active members, the Museum provides a valuable case study for the field, especially in the effective use of digital technologies and civic engagement. This week’s conversation with Stephen Watson offers insights into the decisions that have allowed the Museum to capitalize upon its assets and opportunities.
This week we’re back on the theme of museums in the digital age. How does a museum define its community when it has the potential to reach everyone, everywhere through the internet? Do even small museums have an opportunity to make a big impact beyond their local community? This week’s guest Mike Edson will help us sort through these questions.
Photo Credit Geert van den Boogard, 2010
Much has been written lately about how museums can become more involved in social justice issues. In fact, the 2015 annual meeting of the American Alliance of Museums will focus on museums as places to present and discuss social and political problems. But how do we engage our audiences in tough subject matter? How do we create experiences that seek to transform, not preach? Join the conversation this week with Ben Garcia as he provides insights into these questions.
Through his blog ExhibiTricks, Paul Orselli creates a bridge between disparate segments of the museum community. His willingness to share his ideas openly and his enthusiasm for his work exemplifies the best of who we are as a field. Paul joins me in conversation this week as we discuss a wide range of topics from his experiences developing the first children’s museum in Bulgaria to the challenge of exporting museum ideologies across cultures and the changes he has witnessed in the ways in which we communicate since he started ExhibiTricks seven years ago.
Since opening to the public on May 11, 2014, The National September 11 Memorial Museum at the World Trade Center has generated news, controversy and a breadth of human reaction. Join me this week for a thoughtful conversation with Tom Hennes, the designer of this project as we discuss his role, his approach and his perspective on this incredible project.
The museum field is witness to a blossoming of research that is providing much-needed data about the attributes and factors that contribute to effective visitor experiences and exhibitions. But how are these studies being applied by interpretive planners and designers? And while much of the research is now available electronically, who has time to read it all and understand what it means? This week I will be talking with Regan Forrest who is both a researcher and practitioner about her doctoral research that identified specific factors that affect how visitors perceive the exhibit environment and how these perceptions affect their experience.
It’s hot here in Washington and I’ve been spending my time in the air-conditioning re-listening to some of my favorite interviews. Conversations have run the gamut from education and exhibition to entrepreneurship and empathy, yet almost every discussion has come around to a key set of big ideas that frame our practice and likely our future. On this week’s show, I’ll share some of these meta-ideas and the questions they continue to raise for me.
This week’s program will feature consultant and museum strategist, Mary Case. For three decades, Mary has worked to improve nonprofit organizations and the boards, businesses, associations and foundations that support them. Mary co-founded Quality Management to a Higher Power (Qm2), a community of consultants that help museums and cultural organizations build successful futures through leadership, management, interpretation and organizational design. Mary will discuss her career trajectory, the changing nature of consulting and the issues facing museum leaders today.
Why are museums successful in addressing the needs of some audiences more than others? What should a museum consider when developing a program or outreach initiative directed toward a nontraditional audience or ethnic community? And what happens when a community’s values or cultural norms are at odds with the museum’s? This week, Cecilia Garibay will provide insight into these questions as she shares her research and what it suggests about long-held assumptions about cultivating new audiences.
Many of us have fond memories of our first visit to a natural history museum with its imposing dinosaur skeletons, neatly arranged rows of butterflies, and those musty smells. For centuries, scientists explored and understood nature by collecting and cataloguing its stuff. But what role do natural history collections—and the museums that preserve, study, and exhibit them—play in a world where science has moved beyond collecting and naming? In their book, Dinosaurs and Dioramas. Creating Natural History Exhibitions (Left Coast Press, 2014) Sarah Chicone and Richard Kissel assert that natural history museums sit at the corner of science and art and as such have a vital role to play in today’s world.
Museums can be havens in troubling times. After 9/11 museums throughout the New York region experienced increased visitation as people sought places to process the tragedy. Recently, 26 Boston-area cultural institutions came together to provide programming for the first anniversary of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. This week’s guest Rainey Tisdale will discuss her experience as the curator for #BostonBetter and how museums can respond nimbly, creatively and compassionately to the needs of their communities. Read more about #Boston Better at bostonbetter.org.
A light dims, but a star shines. Alan J. Friedman, the soft spoken physicist who reinvigorated the New York Hall of Science and helped usher in a new way to think about museums died on May 4, 2014. He was my friend and colleague. He was also one of the greatest thinkers in our field. I was fortunate to have interviewed him for Museum Life in December about trends both positive and negative that he was noticing in the science centers. So to honor his memory and to remind us that great thoughts never die, I am re-airing that wonderful conversation.
This week's show features fresh faces and new perspectives chosen from the many wonderful people I met while attending the annual meeting of the American Alliance of Museums. These wonderful folks will be sharing what it was like to be first-timers at the annual meeting and their thoughts on a range of topics that were discussed at the conference.
Continuing the month- long focus on the American Alliance of Museums, this week’s interview features Ford Bell, AAM’s president. Ford will share his thoughts about the state of museums and what we can expect as we head into the annual meeting.
We all know that the digital revolution forever changed the way museums do business, craft their programs and reach out to their communities. What trends and innovations should we be watching now that will shape museums in the future? How can museums use information about emerging technology and social trends to chart their future course? In the second in a series focusing on the American Alliance of Museums, Elizabeth Merritt, founding director of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums, will address these questions and describe the futurist opportunities at the upcoming AAM annual meeting.
May is AAM month on Museum Life in honor of the upcoming annual meeting of the American Alliance of Museums May 18 – 21 in Seattle, Washington. Today’s guest, Greg Stevens, has directed the AAM professional development program since 2007, addressing career, management and leadership development for the field. He is the creator of AAM’s successful online programs, the AAM Career Café and Museum Career Labs. Greg is the co-editor with Wendy Luke of the best-selling book, A Life in Museums: Managing Your Museum Career now in its fourth printing, and most recently wrote the afterword in the new AAM publication, Teaching the Museum: Careers in Museum Education. On today’s show, Greg will talk about his own career path, the changing nature of museum careers and how professionals can stay nimble and engaged—in their institutions, in their communities and in the field.
There’s more to creativity than problem solving, says Harvey Seifter, director of the Art of Science Learning Project, a National Science Foundation-funded initiative that uses the arts to spark creativity in science education and the development of an innovative 21st century STEM workforce. So what does this have to do with museums? This initiative highlights the importance of creativity, collaboration and communication—subjects that are at the heart of best museum practice—and provides a new way of describing the essential role that museums play in society. Listen this week as Harvey Seifter describes this project as well as his innovative arts-based approach to innovation and leadership that has many applications to the museum world.
Maxwell Anderson is the Eugene McDermott Director at the Dallas Museum of Art and one of the most influential art museum directors in the country. A prescient leader, Max understands the power of digital technologies to improve museum practice across the board. In this interview, Max describes the new digital membership program at the Dallas Museum of Art and encourages us all to question commonly held assumptions about museum business and museum audiences.
A new museum project might be a great idea, but is it feasible? What is the right mix of mission and market? What are the trends in museum planning today and how should a feasibility study be approached? Bill Owens, principal of Owens Economics, LLC will help us answer these and other questions related to the economic side of our business.
Museums do creative work, but is creativity relegated to the exhibit designer and art curator? Can the registrar and operations manager be creative in their work? We know what a creative culture looks like at Google and Apple, Inc., but what would a creative culture look like in a museum? How will we know it when we see it? This week’s guest Linda Norris will bring together the threads of recent shows related to creativity, leadership and governance.
For good or bad, museums often fly under the radar in terms of media coverage. But once in awhile a museum’s plight becomes front page news and sparks broad debate. Such has been the case for the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Detroit Institute of Art where issues and opinions seem to center on governance and the responsibilities of the volunteers who sit on museum boards. This week’s show will use these recent newsmakers as a jumping off point to talk about the issues of governance and boards with Maureen Robinson and Laura Roberts, two distinguished thought leaders in the field.
We talk a lot about the importance of museum leadership, especially as we strive to create relevant and sustainable organizations in tough economic times. What are the key characteristics of a good leader? Can leadership be taught? Where will the next generation of museums leaders from? Join the discussion with John Durel, a thought leader in museum leadership. John Durel is active in developing future museum leaders. He directs the Seminar for Historical Administration, the premier leadership development program for emerging leaders in history organizations. He also teaches an online course on leadership of museums in the Johns Hopkins University Masters in Museum Studies program.
Like plants and children, careers need tending and nurturing. Yet many of us in the museum field do not give this aspect of our lives the attention it deserves. How can we bring more intention to our career development? This week we will discuss some interesting and innovative ways to answer this question with Anne Ackerson and Marianne Bez, members of The Gang of Five and developers of the STRATEGIZE ME! workshop. STRATEGIZE ME! was created by five talented nonprofit professionals who lead organizations, run successful businesses, write, teach, mentor, and believe in positive career change Working together to advance one another’s personal career development, they conceived of STRATEGIZE ME!, an engaging interactive process to help others explore their career choices and clarify their career paths
Are museums embarking on a never-ending technology arms race? Must museums implement cutting-edge technologies to remain relevant to our audiences? How can museums sustain a digital presence with ever-dwindling resources? Are these even the right questions to be asking? Join the conversation as Nik Honeysett puts these and other digital issues into the context of innovation, risk and leadership.
There is certainly an art to developing museum exhibits, but are exhibitions art themselves? Get a group of five exhibition developers in a room and you’ll get six answers. Leslie Bedford has been thinking about this issue ever since she was called an artist for her exhibition work at Boston Children’s Museum. Join this week’s conversation at Leslie discusses her research that has led her to propose a new model for thinking about exhibitions. I can promise that you will never approach exhibitions in the same way again.
Exhibitions remain a defining feature of the museum experience and their creation is a key element of museum work. Yet talking about the process of exhibit making can leave the impression that there isn’t much relationship between theory and practice. If there aren’t hard and fast rules about creating exhibits, are there at least guidelines? Can we teach others to create exhibits, learn from others’ mistakes and advance the field or is exhibit making one of those things you only learn by doing? Polly McKenna-Cress will address these and other questions surrounding this important and fascinating part of museum work.
Museums and other cultural institutions are always talking about audience: how to characterize it, how to cultivate it, and how to sustain it. In tough economic times, many museums hunker down and focus their attention on maintaining their existing audience. But tough times call for new approaches to understanding audience, even realizing that an existing audience is full of new potential for involvement. Join this week’s conversation with arts marketer and nonprofit strategist Matt Lehrman. Matt brings entrepreneurial insight to the most profound audience-building challenges of arts organizations and cultural destinations. Matt is the Principal of Audience Avenue, LLC and is nationally recognized for his popular Audiences EverywhereTM workshop that helps organizations “Get Smarter, Grow Stronger & Gain Audiences.”
Will the green revolution leave museums behind? Is making an institutional commitment to operate sustainably a nice thing to do or is it essential? Is sustainability education just for science centers? What responsibility do art museums bear for their carbon footprint? Join the conversation this week with Sarah Sutton Brophy, author, consultant and advocate for the green museum. Sarah will share her personal and professional green journey and explain why greening is not only critical to an institution’s financial sustainability, but speaks to the heart of its mission.
Museums operate within the social and economic fabric of their communities. All museums have felt the effects of the recent economic downturns and many continue to operate in survival mode. But economic vagaries are not new and all organizations must learn to anticipate and capitalize upon economic trends. In fact, tough economic times can provide the impetus for creativity. This week’s guest, Stephen Brand, will discuss ways in which museums can tap into their inner entrepreneur, while remaining true to their mission and authentic voice.
At the turn of the 20th century, librarian and museum maverick John Cotton Dana wrote, “A good museum attracts, entertains, arouses curiosity, leads to questioning –and thus promotes learning.” But what exactly is learning in a museum context? And how do—or can—museums promote it? What is the responsibility of the museum to fulfill its promise to be an institution that promotes learning? This week’s program of The Museum Life examines these question with educator, writer and critical thinker, David Carr. The discussion will follow David’s “Ten Lessons and One Rule,” published in The Promise of Cultural Institutions. We will discuss what we mean by learners, what kinds of learning takes place in museums and how museums and other cultural institutions can inadvertently stifle learning.
We are living in a time of great social change: how we gather information, learn, work and play have changed in radical ways. Where do museums fit in? Is it enough for museums to reflect these social changes or can museums lead society to a new way of valuing cultural institutions? Can museums continue to offer the same recipe for engagement of exhibitions, programs and social media or is there a new paradigm we might embrace? And aren’t these the same questions we’ve been asking ourselves over the past ten years? How does real change happen? Where does leadership come from? Randy Roberts has been examining these questions and others that are at the heart of our museum practice and will share her thoughts.
This week’s program will be a free-flowing discussion with one of the museum world’s greatest thought leaders. Elaine Heumann Gurian has dedicated her career working in and for museums. Her perspective, teaching and writing continues to shape a generation of museum professionals. An hour with her is not nearly enough time to discuss all of the issues facing museums today, so we will focus on some of her latest musings including the concept of the “good news” museum, how museum professionals segment and describe their audiences, and the issue of free admission.
Museums are dynamic and constantly changing to remain vital and relevant to their community – responding to a rapidly changing world in a myriad of fascinating ways. What trends are we seeing in museums around the world? How are museums changing yet remaining centers for lifelong learning, creativity, and enjoyment? The week’s program of The Museum Life examines these questions with Myriam Springuel, international museum consultant who develops professional training programs for museums, and specializes in governance and interpretive planning – the core work of board and staff as they shape a museum’s place in its community and the quality of the visitors’ experience. She has just returned from Rio and the International Council of Museums conference. She will discuss trends in the museum field that emerged among some of the most inventive museum thinkers from around the world.
At the turn of the 20th century, librarian and museum maverick John Cotton Dana wrote, “A good museum attracts, entertains, arouses curiosity, leads to questioning –and thus promotes learning.” But what exactly is learning in a museum context? And how do—or can—museums promote it? What is the responsibility of the museum to fulfill its promise to be an institution that promotes learning? This week’s program of The Museum Life examines these question with educator, writer and critical thinker, David Carr. The discussion will follow David’s “Ten Lessons and One Rule,” published in The Promise of Cultural Institutions. We will discuss what we mean by learners, what kinds of learning takes place in museums and how museums and other cultural institutions can inadvertently stifle learning.
For the past twelve weeks, this show has been featuring guests that have discussed ways in which museums are or can be of value to their communities. We’ve talked about museums as places of powerful learning and cultivators of curiosity. We’ve identified ways that museum can address the needs of their audiences by becoming more empathetic and we’ve identified barriers—both physical and psychological—that keep audiences away. We’ve also examined how museums can be agents of social change. But how do we measure museum value? What are the metrics? Is there benefit in creating a consistent report card like we do for hospitals and other social services? This week’s guest Mary Ellen Munley will help us sort through these issues.
In recent shows we’ve talked about museums in terms of human emotions and personalities. So is it possible for a museum to have a mid-life crisis? Science centers with their emphasis on hands-on experimentation emerged on the museum scene in the 1970s. These institutions grew rapidly, many anchoring city revitalization efforts. Science centers espoused an almost anti-museum sentiment, creating visitor experiences based on phenomena rather than collections. Science centers distinguished themselves by their approach to visitor engagement and their use of technology. But today, many museums employ these same techniques. So what distinguishes science centers today? Where do they fit into the cultural landscape and how are they remaining relevant? This week’s guest Alan J. Friedman, Ph.D. will address these questions and more.
We are living in a time of great social change: how we gather information, learn, work and play have changed in radical ways. Where do museums fit in? Is it enough for museums to reflect these social changes or can museums lead society to a new way of valuing cultural institutions? Can museums continue to offer the same recipe for engagement of exhibitions, programs and social media or is there a new paradigm we might embrace? And aren’t these the same questions we’ve been asking ourselves over the past ten years? How does real change happen? Where does leadership come from? Randy Roberts has been examining these questions and others that are at the heart of our museum practice and will share her thoughts.
It’s been said that museums are stages and visitors are the performers. Museum theater provides opportunities for visitors to become part of the story, exploring history, science and art in new and relevant ways. Museum theater techniques can transport visitors back in time and help them grapple with sensitive and sometimes painful subjects. Museum theater can also cross traditional content areas, bringing history to life in science museums and creating context for science in history museums. Listen as Catherine Hughes, a pioneer in this field, shares her experiences using museum theater to engage visitors, especially how various theatrical techniques have been used at Conner Prairie History Museum.
Museums should be places of learning for all people and many museums have designed, redesigned or rebuilt their facilities to be physically accessible to people with disabilities. Museums develop exhibits with certain disabilities in mind and also offer programs for blind, deaf and physically challenged individuals. But how far have museums come in terms of understanding the needs of emotionally or intellectually challenged populations? And what happens when the needs of one population are in conflict with another? How does a museum find balance? And is balance even the right goal? Paul Gabriel has been a pioneer in examining how museum exhibits support the needs of people with common learning disabilities and bringing this issue to the attention of the field.
What sets museums apart from other cultural institutions? Collections. Museums collect, manage and maintain objects, artifacts and works of art—the stuff of our lives. For generations, museums were the places you went to see this stuff. But today, you can visit a museum’s collection on your smart phone. Has this wired access changed the way we value museums? How has this access changed the ways museums value themselves? Join Marsha Semmel as we discuss this provocative topic.
It has only been a few months since Gretchen Jennings coined this term on her blog Museum Commons, but the term has begun to resonate throughout the museum community. What is an empathetic museum? How does being empathetic change the way a museum relates to its visitors and its community? Join this fascinating conversation with Gretchen as she explains how she developed this concept and examples of empathetic museums that she is tracking.
People are motivated to visit museums for many different reasons, but there seems to be the one thing they have in common: curiosity. What makes someone curious? Why is curiosity important? Can you measure curiosity? This week’s program will take up this topic with guest Susie Wilkening, a senior consultant and curator of museum audiences. Susie will share her research and insights about the topic of curiosity and why museums should embrace their role as places that can nurture curiosity.
Museums are dynamic and constantly changing to remain vital and relevant to their community – responding to a rapidly changing world in a myriad of fascinating ways. What trends are we seeing in museums around the world? How are museums changing yet remaining centers for lifelong learning, creativity, and enjoyment? The week’s program of The Museum Life examines these questions with Myriam Springuel, international museum consultant who develops professional training programs for museums, and specializes in governance and interpretive planning – the core work of board and staff as they shape a museum’s place in its community and the quality of the visitors’ experience. She has just returned from Rio and the International Council of Museums conference. She will discuss trends in the museum field that emerged among some of the most inventive museum thinkers from around the world.
This week’s program will be a free-flowing discussion with one of the museum world’s greatest thought leaders. Elaine Heumann Gurian has dedicated her career working in and for museums. Her perspective, teaching and writing continues to shape a generation of museum professionals. An hour with her is not nearly enough time to discuss all of the issues facing museums today, so we will focus on some of her latest musings including the concept of the “good news” museum, how museum professionals segment and describe their audiences, and the issue of free admission.
At the turn of the 20th century, librarian and museum maverick John Cotton Dana wrote, “A good museum attracts, entertains, arouses curiosity, leads to questioning –and thus promotes learning.” But what exactly is learning in a museum context? And how do—or can—museums promote it? What is the responsibility of the museum to fulfill its promise to be an institution that promotes learning? This week’s program of The Museum Life examines these question with educator, writer and critical thinker, David Carr. The discussion will follow David’s “Ten Lessons and One Rule,” published in The Promise of Cultural Institutions. We will discuss what we mean by learners, what kinds of learning takes place in museums and how museums and other cultural institutions can inadvertently stifle learning.
There is science to the museum experience: psychology, anthropology, design, human behavior, sociology and brain chemistry all play a role in creating successful museum experiences. Caren Oberg, principal and owner of Oberg Research, will discuss ways that museums use scientific research to develop their offerings and evaluate their products. Like all scientific research, the key is asking the right questions. Good research also helps museums understand their audiences and become more responsive to the needs of their communities.