You know, I feel the biggest problem is that interpretation in museums is done by people who have not mastered the subject matter. These people may have memorized all of the facts but they do not understand why the facts are meaningful and they do not know how to relate the facts to a bigger picture. Therefore they are unable to provide evocative and meaningful interpretation. It seems a good deal of interpreters shy away from doing the work it takes to truly learn the debates in their field and instead, as in the case of history, focus on ideas of "heritage" instead of "history." Heritage is not history, however. Heritage is not open to criticism and it only borrows from history to create feel-good myths. But heritage doesn't allow for people to understand the world they live in; it only misconstrues a clear understanding of that world.
As an interpreter, my biggest problem has been fighting for the right to interpret real history. Many people who work in museums do not understand why history is important. They do not understand that history helps us understand our society and to influence change within that society. So, when I attempt to include slavery within my interpretation and I am told not to focus on that topic so much because it misconstrues the heritage of the white people at my historic site; I am basically being told to ignore the current issue of race within our society.
I hope my opinion was helpful,
Naomi Winkelman
From: louise hayward <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: Museum discussion list <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Museum Interpretation
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 13:38:17 +0000
>Dear List,
>
>My name is Louise Hayward and I am currently undertaking a masters
>in Archaeological Heritage Management at York University.
>
>I am writing a dissertation on Museum Interpretation, the
>constraints placed upon it and the affect that such constraints have
>on interpretation. As well as reading a number of texts on the
>subject, I am also consulting a number of people involved with
>interpretation within museums, by interviewing interpreters and
>contacted mailing lists like this one. I have a few key questions in
>mind:
>
>1.What do you feel are the constraints placed upon/considerations
>that need to be made regarding interpretation/creation of new
>displays?
>2.Are there any constraints/considerations that are relevant only to
>your museum?
>3.How do such constraints/considerations affect your
>interpretation?Is there a large gap between what you want to and
>what is physically possible due to such constraints/considerations?
>
>Basically, I'm trying to identify the key problems faced by the
>interpretator and to what extent these prevent an interpretator from
>carrying out their job to the best of their abilities.
>
>I wondered if any of you had any comments to make/any helpful
>suggestions etc. Also, if anyone makes any comments/statements,
>would you be happy for me to use your comments in my dissertation
>and would you prefer them to be anonymous.
>
>Thank you for you help, and apologies for the length of my email.
>Regards,
>
>Louise Hayward
>
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