I believe that museums have gone a long way in planning their exhibitions in
sharing authority with their visitors.  I am not so sure that we have gone
that distance in sharing authority with our community (communities) in the
area of collecting.

I will be speaking at a conference in October on 21st century collecting,
and I've been asked to speak specifically about the work of considering, or
working with, the audience to develop collecting plans, and ensure that the
collecting that gets done is truly reflective of that community.

I would love to e-mail with anyone who has had this experience already, and
I'd sure love to hear people's thoughts on this.  I do not envision curators
giving up their authority in collection building, but I do see the day when
communities will have more of a voice in the collections building process.

Thanks.

Claudia Nicholson
Curator
Museum Collections Department
Minnesota Historical Society
345 Kellogg Blvd. W.
St. Paul, MN  55102-1906
  e-mail:  [log in to unmask]
  Phone:  651-297-7442
  FAX:  651-297-2967

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