On Wed, 26 May 1999 09:09:28 -0500 Mike Willis <[log in to unmask]> writes:
>Hi Erica,
>
>Your question about collection-less museums is very interesting....
>
>What I would like to hear from other list members is, what are
advantages of not possessing a collection? What is the line between "art
centers" and "galleries"? And how, if at all, does the lack of a
collection affect the educational goals of an institution?
>>
>Mike Willis
>Curator of Education
>ExhibitsUSA
>
Short answer, if your goal is to educate, and you are fulfilling your
mission, then you truly don't need a collection; does that make you a
museum? Nope; but it makes you another mechanism used by museums (by
taking on your traveling exhibits) to support our mission, mainly, to
disseminate, interpret, educate and present to the public.
Advantages to not having a collection? A tricky one; if you are a
center/gallery that takes on museum owned collections, you'll have to
follow to the letter all the codes and restrictions imposed upon you by
that museum, proper HVAC systems to monitor the temperature and relative
humidity of the gallery; security cameras or guards (or a combination);
restricted access to storage and appropriate temp and RH in that area.
And insurance coverage!! However, if you and the lender can agree on
different levels of caring for the items borrowed, then all of that might
be more relaxed, therefore less expensive than handling a collection.
I'll let someone else pipe in now; aaarghh I saw the other stuff about
"collections-less" museums being an evil thing, and the "overall dismay"
out there over this trend. Come on!! I do believe there is more
competition out there for federal dollars, and many of these centers are
funded by state or federal grants that go after EDUCATION grants.
Perhaps museums aren't tapping enough into these grants to enable us to
put on particular programs which cities are capitalizing on. For
whatever reasons, there is an increased interest in people from all walks
of life in acquiring "culture" and we are seeing the birth of "new types
of centers" where this can be acquired. Don't you know people still
think of museums as "stuffy places?" A "center" is less intimidating
than going to the "Metropolitan" or the "Athenaeum." Think about it.
O
Olivia S. Anastasiadis, Curator
Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace
18001 Yorba Linda Boulevard
Yorba Linda, CA 92886
(714) 993-5075 ext. 224; fax (714) 528-0544; e-mail: [log in to unmask]
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