At 10:56 08.04.98 -0500, you wrote:
>   I was wondering what everyone thought was the single most important
>goal of museums: to educate, to preserve objects, or to have great
>displays? This is something I've been wondering about in regards to
>allocation of funds, education versus potential object damage, and the
>like. Everyone, please respond!
>Thanks,
>Kathy
>
>
Dear Kathy,
I think you raised a very important question. I try to answer in this
newsgroup: Concerning the most important goals of museums, there are two
different types of museums:
1) Museums with the major goal of preserving (objects, their authenticity)
2) Museums with the major goal of displaying and explaining (in the third
kind of communication via exhbitions)
These two types might intermingle, but that's what it is all about:
someone has to preserve the objects of the past, the pieces of art, of the
past, of ethnic populations, of technology, objects which are a testimony of
humanity etc.
But: there is a communication method via exhibitions to explain historic,
scientific, sociologic etc. findings or contextes to the public. Someone has
to show this cultural communication to the public, like theatres, opera
houses or schools.
I would consider my "OSCAR" museum that one which tries or can achieve both
goals and influence the public to accept both goals as important for their
culture in time and place.
Greetings - hope to get anwers
Peter, the Rebernik
former director of the Technical Museum of Vienna,  Austria, and of the
KunstHausWien, an art museum about modern art - now independent consultant
for diverse cultural projects


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