Dirty money.Is that what museum professionals should think about income generated through the deaccessioning of objects from their collections? No, says Mark Gold, an attorney and graduate of Harvard's museum studies program, who argues in his recent AAM Museum article, "Nothing Ethical About It," that the American Association of Museums (AAM) should reconsider its ethical rule that proceeds from deaccessioned objects be used only for acquisitions and collections care. The rule, he argues, limits museums...
The HRC thanks Anne Farrow for serving as guest author for the following entry. Anne is the senior content editor for the Encyclopedia of Connecticut History Online, a project of the Connecticut Humanities Council. Formerly a career journalist, Anne co-authored Complicity: How the North Promoted, Prolonged and Profited from Slavery. Marcia Trotta, co-editor for Museums, Libraries and Urban Vitality, is a reading specialist with the Connecticut Humanities Council. When Hartford's leaders pinned - very...
In a recent article in The Art Newspaper ("Will US Museums Succeed in Reinventing Themselves?" 1.11.10), author András Szántó writes that the recession is forcing museums to reconsider every aspect of what they do. And that this is not necessarily a bad thing. Szántó begins by acknowledging what we all already know--that the Great Recession has been tough on American museums. According to a 2009 survey of North American museums by the Association of Art...
Museums should serve a social purpose as they are products of the society that support them.Robert R. Janes and Gerald T. Conaty used this premise to create Looking Reality in the Eye, a collection of case studies that explores how museums can move beyond education and entertainment to embrace new socially relevant missions.The idea for this book emerged from a panel presentation on museums and social responsibility at the annual meeting of the Canadian Museums...
The HRC thanks Elizabeth Merritt for serving as guest author for the following entry. Elizabeth is the founding director of the Center for the Future of Museums--a think-tank and research & development lab for the museum field. The American Association of Museums (AAM) created the Center to help museums explore cultural, political and economic trends shaping the future and to ensure that museums play a profound role in society. She has 15 years experience...
