2015 MPMA/KMA Museum Conference

Get in-depth training on these issues.

Hurry: Some will fill up soon

Artifact Numbering – this is a timely topic!

There are more….

Enduring Exhibit Design  - one more space left

Putting on Special Events

Out and About with Outreach (Onsite School Programs)

Business of Marketing    

Design on a Dime

Not a School Tour Anymore

Conference Registration Deadline at cheap rate:  September 1^st

Drill down on single-issue topics by taking workshops where you'll learn so much.  That's why there are many workshops this year at the MPMA/KMA conference in Wichita, KS. 

All held Monday, September 28th.  Check here for schedule, location and details.

 

Object Numbering Workshop 

Artifact Numbering:   Make it Your Business

How were numbers applied to the artifacts in your collection?     

Clear fingernail polish? Typewriter correction fluid? Ink applied directly to an artifact? We've seen it all.

Would you like to learn safe and appropriate methods for applying numbers to artifacts?  

Properly numbering items is an important part of a museum's collections management strategy.

Join us for this hands-on workshop where participants will learn methods for numbering several different types of materials including stone, metal, plastic, ceramic, glass, textiles, and others. Instructors will describe and discuss numbering supply items, how and where to place numbers, the trinomial numbering system, why a numbering system is important, and what to do in special situations such as numbering fragile items or items with multiple pieces, among other topics. 

Participants will learn the what, when, why, where, and how of applying numbers to artifacts.

Presenters:   Heidi Vaughn, Director, Laboratory of History Museum/University of Central Oklahoma, OK;  Erin Brown, Curator of Collections, Oklahoma Territorial Museum Guthrie, OK

 

Exhibit Design Workshop By Award Winners

Enduring Exhibit Design  

Learn from seasoned pros during this all-day workshop.

Don't miss an opportunity to interact with the design team that has won six KMA awards for excellence in exhibit design, two AASLH design awards, a Design Excellence Award from the Colorado AIA, two AAM publication design awards, and a Smithsonian "Save America's Treasures" designation. 

 On-site at Kauffman Museum and Flint Hills Design, this workshop will examine exhibit design principles and techniques that maintain relevance over time. It will explore the benefits of investing in quality design and construction to create exhibits that are visually and physically enduring to save the costs of regular renovation and updating.

This workshop will be unique in its focus on assessing and applying design principles to a variety of contexts as opposed to creating a specific type of exhibit structure or construction.

Attendees will participate in exhibit design assessment activities followed by a small group project where they will apply exhibit design principles within a given case study. 

Attendees will get REALLY GOOD and practical tips for exhibits. 

Presenters:  Chair: Annette LeZotte, Director, Kauffman Museum at Bethel College, North Newton, KS; Chuck Regier, Curator of Exhibitions, Kauffman Museum at Bethel College, North Newton, KS; Nathan Bartel, Creative Director, Flint Hills Design, North Newton, KS; Bob Regier, Emeritus Professor of Art, Bethel College, Design Consultant to Kauffman Museum, North Newton, KS  

 

Onsite Outreach to Schools:  Generate revenue and good will for your museum

Out and About with Outreach

Outreach is a growing program for museums and can be a strong revenue resource as well as a community building opportunity. Workshop participants will attend outreach programs in a Wichita school. 

Pack it up and hit the road! See museum educators doing outreach to local students!

LIVE! Outreach is a growing program for museums and can be a strong revenue

resource as well as a community building opportunity. Workshop participants will

attend outreach programs in a Wichita school. They will have an opportunity to

experience an outreach presentation and discuss tips and techniques.

 

 

Presenters:  Traci Kallhoff, Exploration Place, Wichita, KS

Anthony Horsch, Director of Education and Interpretation, Old Cowtown Museum, Wichita, KS 

 

Bonus Piece: Present YOUR school program during this program.

 Contact Traci at [log in to unmask]

 

Make the Most of Special Events:  Raise money, awareness, recruit volunteers 

 

Putting on Special Events

Special events are a mainstay of every museum. Whether to raise money, raise awareness, recruit volunteers, or offer a program to visitors, staff and volunteers spend time and money organizing and implementing events.

 

In this way, special events are a business.

 

Museum staff must understand the purpose of their events, know intended outcomes, expenses of materials and talent, and how the museum is represented to the public.  

 

This interactive workshop will provide tips to gain maximum return on dollars and to increase participation.

 Presenters:  Jeff Sheets, Dickinson County Historical Society, Abilene, KS; Betty Johnson, President, Betty Johnson & Associates, Lawrence, KS

 

*Marketing: What, How, Why, When           

The Business of Marketing: If You Build It, Will They Come?

Participants will leave with enough knowledge to build their own campaign.

Attendees will learn from the strategies and materials of the three presenting museums and will come away knowing how to develop marketing messages for their own institutions.

*Learn the tips, tricks, and tools to build effective marketing campaigns

*Learn how to approach and solve problems with your own organization

*Take part in team activities and work together to build a campaign you can use

 Chair: Kate Vandel, Curator of Exhibits,South Dakota State Historical Society, Pierre, SD

Presenters: Mara Christian Harris, Marketing Manager, Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, NM; Shelley Thompson, Director, Marketing & Outreach, Publisher El Palacio Magazine, New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, Santa Fe, NM;  Shannon K. Stone, Advertising Manager, Marketing and Communications Department, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, KS

 

*Affordable Exhibit Designs  

Design on a Dime: Affordable Solutions for Display

Learn effective low-cost solutions for displaying objects that respect small budgets and bring an object's history to life.

Live demonstrations will feature how small museums can improve display methods and how best to display a museum's collection.

"Come see and do! You will take home a sample-size body form that you will have shaped from blocks of ethafoam.  You will create a custom object mount using monofilament, crimps, and a drill.  You will learn how to adapt everyday materials to support an object on display as well as other tips to enhance your exhibit.

Chair: Marla Day, Senior Curator, Kansas State University Historic Costume and Textile Museum, Manhattan, KS

Allana Saenger-Parker, Curator of Design, Riley County Historical Museum, Manhattan, KSPresenters: Corina Salas de Hugo, Curator of Collections/Registrar, Riley County Historical Museum, Manhattan, KS

 

A Different School Tour

Not a School Tour Anymore: Activity-based Learning  

You'll brainstorm activities and learn strategies to adapt to your setting. 

 

What is activity-based learning and how is it relevant to object educators of all kinds?  

 

Using the newly launched school program at Denver's innovative Clyfford Still Museum as a case study, you'll learn the difference between hands-on projects and activity-based learning.  

Learn how the field has expanded and in what direction it is headed. 

 

In step with trends in the formal education milieu, activity-based learning is gaining steam in art museum programs across the country. Activity-based learning moves beyond inquiry, incorporating discovery and hands-on methods right in the gallery setting. 

You'll learn how activity-based learning is a solution for increasing engagement and meets the changing demands of contemporary education in the 21st century.  

 

Presenter: Victoria (Tori) Eastburn, Director, Education and Programs, Clyfford Still Museum, Denver, CO