I certainly wouldn't try and argue what was legal in
the "open to the public" terminology, but I would tend
to agree with the funders, that in a sense, we're
either open, or we're not.

I can appreciate the remote geographical location, but
from a public perception, if I went to a site that
said open by appointment, I likely wouldn't try and
charm my way in.  Some would I guess, but still others
wouldn't.

There's an age old notion that some sites aren't
serving the 'public', and are simply serving segments
of the population, whether it's schools or an elite
group of some kind.  By keeping our doors wide open,
we stop this kind of criticism from happening, or at
least hold it at bay for a while.

As an aside, once upon a time when I managed a
Museum....I always resisted the terminology "open to
the public", we were either "open" or "closed".  I
mean no offence to any of my colleagues, but "open to
the public" put me in the mind of a wholesale
warehouse, rather than a cultural institution.

I'm interested to read others comments on this
discussion.
Tracy Marsh
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