Funny, I had a totally different reaction to Jim Swanson's message than
Teresa Ebie had.  I found it refreshing that Jim was willing to risk some
heat in order to put things in perspective.
 
Back in the 1960's and 70's many museums became concerned that they were
failing to serve everybody, that they were perceived as the special
preserve of a cultured elite.  Marketing museums to underserved or
unserved populations became very popular.
 
At the same time museums sought ways to reach these potential audiences,
financial pressures were mounting. Local and state governments were
feeling the wrath of taxpayers, the federal deficit kept on increasing and
private individuals and philanthropic agencies were increasingly asked to
make up the difference.
 
In order to get the attention of a public bombarded by hype and sales
pitches and those funding sources surrounded by a million out-stretched
hands, museums began to pitch themselves with some self-inflating rhetoric
-- world-class being one of the favorite adjectives.  Their roles as
agencies holding collections got elevated into a sacred trust. Voila,
museums become the key, they possess solutions to just about every
problem facing the human species - multicultural education, science
literacy, DNA of extinct organisms.
 
There's nothing wrong with a little creative hyperbole, it's just when
we start believing it, there's a problem. Museums are a wonderful bequest
transmitted by 19th century European culture to the present. They just
need to focus on their own unique contribution - preserving, exhibiting
and interpreting cultural artifacts and natural and man-made objects and
stop trying to present themselves as part of every issue that surfaces
in the national consciousness.
 
 
*  Judy Turner                *  [log in to unmask]  *
*  Milwaukee Public Museum    *  414/278-2730          *
*  800 W. Wells Street        *  fax 414/278-6100      *
*  Milwaukee, WI  53233       *                        *