Excellent article about blockbuster/pop culture exhibitions and their relationship to museum missions, attendance, and philosophy.

For the full story, visit: http://www.aternet.org/story/22249/

Pop Goes the Museum
By Kris Axtman, Christian Science Monitor
Posted on June 20, 2005, Printed on June 20, 2005
http://www.alternet.org/story/22249/
When "The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy" exhibit opened in the beginning of June, it shattered opening-weekend attendance records at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Visitors from as far away as Los Angeles came dressed in full Rings regalia and stood in line for hours before the museum doors opened, playing medieval instruments and swapping chain-mail tips.

And while no one talks of a wholesale shift from highbrow to pop culture, more museums are using the kitsch and cachet of contemporary phenomena to help balance the books and bring in younger crowds. While these shows can be interesting and well done, they are often peripheral to a museum's mission, say experts...


George Garner
Director of Exhibitions
Center for History
808 West Washington, South Bend, IN 46601
www.centerforhistory.org // (574) 235-9664


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Celebrate Historic Gardens Month in June at the Center for History by visiting the exhibition, Gardens, and strolling the beautiful grounds surrounding the Oliver mansion.

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