Damme, David, you take all the fun out of an argument!

Harry

"It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly
unless one has plenty of work to do."

              - Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927)

Harry Needham, M.A., CFE, etc.
President
Harry Needham Consulting Services Inc.
Training & consulting services for heritage institutions - and others!
74 Abbeyhill Drive
Kanata, Ontario K2L 1H1
Canada
email: [log in to unmask]
(Voice) +1.613.831-1068
(Fax) +1.613.831-9412
----- Original Message -----
From: David E. Haberstich <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2000 2:48 AM
Subject: Re: Definition of a MUSEUM


> In a message dated 00-12-05 13:51:35 EST, John Martinson wrote:
>
> << To me a museum is:
>
>  A gathering place for the community
>  A community/historical/national treasure
>  A place of learning
>  A place of knowledge
>  A place where people discover who they are; of self
>  A place of personal and community understanding >>
> [etc.]
>
> ...to which one might add:
>
> A place to go to the bathroom
> A place to read a book
> A place to meet people
> A place to commit murder (see Margaret Truman's "Murder at the
Smithsonian")
> ...etc.
>
> The point, of course, is that many of the items on Mr. Martinson's list
are
> not unique to museums and hardly define a museum.  Most of them don't
concern
> the essence of a museum, which in my opinion, revolves around collections.
> It's pleasant for museums to have such amenities as restaurants, for
example,
> but hardly essential. Mr. Hunter would be well advised to begin his quest
> with a dictionary.
>
> Those on the list who recall my previous posts on this topic will think,
> "There he goes again," citing the dictionary definition, but I honestly
think
> it's sufficient.  We are so caught up in the excitement of evolving museum
> traditions that we're likely to forget the fundamental issues.  The
> "collectionless" museum, for example, is a contradiction in terms, however
> worthy such an institution might be and however much it might depend upon
> museum traditions, standards, and ideals.  We are confused about how to
> define a museum precisely because we have overworked the word, massaged it
> and stretched it across multiple points of reference and multiple agendas,
> thereby making it a very slippery and amorphous concept.  The primary
> function of language is communication, and overworked, hyperextended words
> communicate less.  I think the mania for deliberately redefining words
> subverts communication, and that the most satisfactory way to cope with a
> rapidly evolving society, new ideas, new concepts, and new ideals is to
> invent new names for them, not to stretch the old words out of shape until
> you have to explain your usage just to facilitate an intelligent
conversation.
>
> The dictionaries I've consulted define a museum as an instituton which
> collects and preserves historic and/or aesthetic artifacts and makes them
> available for study--nothing more, nothing less.  Note that this does not
> even include public display.  While public display is a logical,
efficient,
> and convenient way to make artifacts available for study, it does not
> necessarily mean that exhibition is the essence of a museum; indeed, a
> museum, by dictionary definition, is not required to do exhibitions,
however
> logical, beneficial, and advisable they might be.  When we mistakenly
equate
> museums with exhibitions, we run the risk of muddying the waters by
thinking
> of every exhibition as a museum.  "Exhibit" and "exhibition" are very
broad
> words which encompass a wide variety of installations and events; baseball
> games and airshows are exhibitions, but that doesn't make them museums,
> except in a metaphorical sense.  Indeed, in our zeal to produce ever more
> "compelling" exhibitions, I see a trend toward making undisplayed
artifacts
> progressively less accessible for study, ironically undermining the
essence
> of a museum.
>
> The attributes by which many would seek to define their ideal
> museums--superior exhibitions, relevant outreach programs, exciting shops,
> etc., etc., are like frosting on a cake.  For many the frosting may even
be
> the best part, and a cake without frosting may be a lousy cake, but
frosting
> doesn't define a cake.
>
> Since the issue of the non-profit status of museums in the AAM and ICOM
> "definitions" has been mentioned, I'll close by saying that I think this
> concept further complicates matters unnecessarily and weighs down the
basic
> definition with extra baggage.  ICOM and AAM are stipulating terms of
> membership and outlining their area of concern, which they have every
right
> to do, but I don't think they have a right to refine and limit the
dictionary
> definition, which is meant to be a description of common usage.  Perhaps
> that's overstating the case: the opinons of professional groups can and
> should have an impact on language usage in their field, and terminology
may
> evolve in time as a result of that impact, but I believe in a critical
> approach to language.  These organizations would do well to divorce their
> preferences from their definitions.  It seems to me that the attempt to
> "define" museums as non-profit entities produces awkward results.  There
are
> profit-making institutions which in all other respects function as
> museums--what do we call them if they're not museums?  It would be simpler
to
> subdivide museums into profit vs. non-profit.
>
> Just my opinions, of course, but I hope well reasoned.  I await the deluge
of
> disagreement.
>
> David Haberstich
>
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