I got a good chuckle from David Haberstichs' bit of sarcasm about the
use of originals versus reproductions, and especially felt it put a
finger on one of the difficult issues of museums today. As a mountmaker
working mostly with art and natural history museums, I get to indulge my
childhood love of seeing the "real thing" to it's greatest degree by
getting to handle the objects while creating a gently holding bracket
for it. I see the fingerprints of the maker in the clay of a Tang
Dynasty horse, and the adze strokes on a Northwest coast mask. In
building the mount I must try to present the object so that the viewer
may see some of those details too.
        The issue that I feel needs to be discussed is the trend toward over
use of "interactive technologies" and whiz bang effects to the exclusion
of the "real things". We must not forget that although collections need
protection and preservation, the virtual museum of technology and
reproductions will never give the thrill of seeing the actual items.
Proper mounting and preventive conservation measures can ensure the
safety of all but the most sensitive collections. If you've got great
stuff in the collections, use it! Use the electronics to lend some
support, but let the artifacts do most of the talking.

        Just a thought.

Jamie Hascall
Mount Specialist
Hascall Museum Services
Seattle, WA
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