It will definitely be a rotating area and we, of course, will have
artifacts, but I don't think we can limit it to only people we have
artifacts for (ideally yes, realistically no). For instance, we don't
have any artifacts relating to Morgan Freeman, but we surely can't leave
him out if we are talking about actors from MS.
I agree that we are going to be called into question regardless of what
we do. That's why we are hoping a museum that has faced this in the past
has some criteria written that we can review.
I appreciate everyone's responses.
--
Cindy Gardner, Field Services Curator
Museum of Mississippi History
Mississippi Department of Archives and History
P.O. Box 571
Jackson, MS 39205-0571
Telephone: 601/576-6901
Facsimile: 601/576-6981
Email: [log in to unmask]
Candace Perry wrote:
> Maybe we should get a weigh-in from some staff members from Halls of
> Fame that are on this list...
> I think Halls of Fame certainly have their place; they are a different
> animal and often suffer from a dismissive attitude. I've seen good,
> fun Halls of Fame -- the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in Macon, I do
> believe, comes to mind (anywhere the B52s are honored has to be
> good) -- and some that were struggling to find their niche and their
> momentum. They straddle the line between attraction and museum. They
> are sometimes run by volunteers and folks who are more skilled in the
> tourism industry than other areas.
> I would love to have the numbers the Baseball or Football Halls of
> Fame generate...they are meccas for those who love the sports,
> and essential to the preservation of heritage of the sports. And they
> are, as far as I know, fine institutions also.
> Candace Perry
> (a former proud employee of the Kentucky Derby Museum)
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* Museum discussion list
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]]*On Behalf Of *Claudia J.
> Nicholson
> *Sent:* Wednesday, March 14, 2007 2:50 PM
> *To:* [log in to unmask]
> *Subject:* Hall of Fame, or not?
>
> I've been waiting for a response that struck a chord with me, so
> I'm writing it myself.
>
> It would be impossible to include in an exhibit all the
> Mississippians who achieved anything in their artistic field--just
> impossible. And if you happened to leave anyone out, you'd be in
> trouble. There a couple of things you have to bear in mind when
> considering who to include: as David H. rightly pointed out, you
> have to feature people from whom you have cool
> collections---showing an author by showing her books would be dull
> stuff indeed. But, if you have a marked-up manuscript of a
> well-known work, or a garment that they were famous for wearing
> all the time, their typewriter, or something else iconic, you
> would have a portion of a museum exhibit. Our exhibits are
> supposed to be collections-driven---now this doesn't mean that you
> can only exhibit what you have, but you could do some targeted
> collecting, or borrow from other institutions.
>
> Second, consider who had the greatest impact, both in-state, and
> outside of your state---who did something that made significant
> change? Who was valued by well-known and well-understood
> measures? (Pulitzer, Tony, National Book Award, Oscar, Grammy)
> Who succeeded against all odds? Who represents the
> quintessential citizen of your state? These are some of the
> criteria you can use for making your decisions. Just make sure
> that you can adequately explain your reasoning for everyone that
> you select, because you will surely be called to account for your
> choices.
>
> If you ignore every famous person who ever called Mississippi
> home, you will be criticized, and if you include some and not
> others, you'll be criticized. But in the end, visitors also love
> to see stuff from "famous" people---something about our cult of
> celebrity here in the U.S. I guess.
>
> I think that another responder is correct: this cries out for a
> book, rather than an exhibit. Have you ever visited an actual
> Hall of Fame? They are dreadful, except for the members of the
> congregation. They rarely tell you anything much about the
> individuals honored, because the bulk of their accomplishments are
> already /understood/ by the insiders who selected them. I'd
> rather read a meaty essay on someone's accomplishments, with a few
> great illustrations, than enter an exhibit space crammed full of
> famous (and not so famous) faces, all of whom have accomplished
> /something/.
>
> If you are able to do rotating exhibits, you might find a way to
> feature a few individuals for, say, six months at a time, so you
> can always keep it fresh, and respond to criticisms. That might
> work much better than selecting an immutable subset of famous
> Mississipians.
>
> You're in a tough spot, no matter what you do, so just make sure
> you can explain yourself in a good, 15-second sound bite!
>
> Best wishes and good luck,
> Claudia
>
> --
> Claudia J. Nicholson
> Executive Director
> North Star Museum of Boy Scouting and Girl Scouting
> 2640 E. Seventh Avenue
> North St. Paul, MN 55109
> 651-748-2880
> [log in to unmask]
>
> /Visit us on the web at www.NorthStarMuseum.org!
> / =========================================================
> Important Subscriber Information:
>
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
> http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain
> detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one
> line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of
> the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail
> message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message
> should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>
> ========================================================= Important
> Subscriber Information:
>
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
> http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed
> information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail
> message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message
> should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message
> to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read
> "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>
=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
|
