While I'm not familiar with the program at the Brooklyn Museum of Art,
it is my understanding that the community curator program at the NMAI is
specifically aimed at using Native Americans as curators -- not just the
average layman.  The objective is to give Native Americans a voice in
the display of their cultural materials.  I know this format was used in
the "Out Universe" exhibit which focuses on how eight different
indigenous groups interpret the "order of the world."  And in this case,
the community curators worked with museum curators to develop a cohesive
exhibit that would show more than just objects in the collections.

Lauren

-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Chuck Watkins
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 7:57 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] "community curators"

Marieke Van Damme wrote:

>Hello-
>I was just reading my latest issue of the Curator
>Journal (p. 122) about the Brooklyn Museum of Art and
>the National Museum of the American Indian having
>"community curators", that is, "ordinary" museumgoers,
>write the object labels in exhibits. Has anyone done
>this with success/failure? Is there a place I can go
>to learn more about it? I think it is a great concept
>but I'd like to see who else has tried it.
>
>Thanks, 
>Marieke
>
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When we were building the Appalachian Cultural Museum, we thought it 
important to deal with the subject of mountain blacks, a subject that 
had not been discussed before by museums about Appalachia to my 
knowledge.  To that end, we identified a family, asked them to select 
objects and photographs and write interpretive text.  There was a 
tradeoff.  I am sure that some of what was written was family folklore 
rather than absolute fact.  And some of the text was longish by museum 
standards.  But the upside was that visitors got to hear the authentic 
voices of the people in the exhibit, people who had heretofore been 
ignored by museums.The public liked the exhibit and the family held a 
couple of annual reunions in the gallery.  As my university is about to 
close the Appalachian Cultural Museum, none of this matters terribly 
now.  But if you think about it, it wasn't too long ago that in museums,

especially in museums of history, everyone - the curators, the 
collectors and the visitors - spoke with the same voice.  So, letting a 
few more voices in doesn't seem like a bad thing, especially if they 
have something to say that is worth hearing.
Regards,
Chuck Watkins
The Appalachian Cultural Museum
Appalachian State University

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