The Future of Museums

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).