Throughout the course of the semester, I have become acutely aware of my
own tastes. Particularly with the past few readings, notably Stanton and Tyson,
I have discovered that I have minimal tolerance for academic writing that
values criticism over construction. This may be why this weeks readings felt so
refreshing. Not only are they realistic and practical, but also they do not shy
away from compromise and the occasional concession. Perhaps multiple authors force
multiple perspectives. Perhaps the administrative quality of reports and
assessments causes them to be more aware of the logistics of their own advice. Whatever
the reason, this week’s readings encouraged putting problem-solving skills to
work.
"Coming soon: The Future: The Shape of Museums to Come" by
James Chung, Susie Wilkening and Sally Johnstone, presented a speculative
vision of what museums may be in the year 2034. Using comparisons of how
museums have changed in the past two decades and projections about demographics
and economics, the authors concluded that museums will both face great
challenges and have opportunities to engage wider audiences in new ways. The
points about baby boomers and travel were the most grounded of the predictions,
and the ones that are the most immediate to museums today.
Imperiled Promise documented the
concerns among history workers in the National Park Service and suggests
actions, policies and programs that could help the field of history within NPS.
While I appreciated the suggestions and the case studies, parts of the report seemed
vague. The report would benefit from a few case studies that dealt specifically
with things like funding, scheduling and programming.
The
Philadelphia Cultural Alliance portfolio does not offer much in terms of
policy, instead, it plays a crucial political role: proving the importance of
the cultural sector to the economy. While the numbers deserve some scrutiny
(all I remember from Statistics is that I learned how to lie with numbers), the
message is clear. Valuable to the economy according to the numbers, it would be
beneficial to get data about the impact of the cultural sector on other city
institutions like education and development. Regardless, it is a good starting
point to lobby for financial support of the types of initiatives that Imperiled Promise would like to implement.
Readings:
Chung, James
et al., "Coming soon: The Future: The Shape of Museums to Come," Museum
88 (May/June 2009): 38-43.
Greater
Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, “Arts, Culture, and Economic Prosperity in
Greater Philadelphia.” 2011 Portfolio.
Whisnant, et
al., Imperiled Promise: The State of History in the National Park Service (Part
I).