All across the world there are hundreds of museums filled with history, information, exhibits, and famous documents. A variety of museums display artifacts of a mix of several cultures, historical events, famous people, and art work in the entire museum. Rather than having several different attractions, some museums are dedicated to showcasing exhibits based on a specific topic of history or interest. Therefore, museums with the purpose of educating people of a certain topic should only display artifacts, pictures, documents, and other such attractions germane to the museum’s theme of interest. In order for a museum to achieve it’s purpose and maintain it’s protocol, the museum must take into consideration the many pros and cons of a new display throughout the decision process.
Museums have several people with different responsibilities, but there are two people with the most important jobs when it comes to adding new exhibits: the archivist and curator. “Archivists and curators plan and oversee the arrangement, cataloguing, and exhibition of collections” (“Archivists, Curators, and Museum Technicians”, 2). Although these jobs seem very similar, the archivist and curator have different responsibilities.
The most important role of an archivist is to over-look preserved records and documents of importance which can be displayed in museums. “Archivists collect, organize, and maintain control over a wide range of information deemed important enough for permanent safekeeping” (“Archivists, Curators, and Museum Technicians”, 5). It is also beneficial for an archivist to specialize in a certain era so new records can be more accurately selected based upon the archivist’s knowledge.
Like an archivist, the museum curator provi...
... middle of paper ...
...ost exclusive experience. This goal can only be met by having the most experienced and knowledgeable archivist and curator to choose the most substantial pieces of art, documents, and items for exhibits.
Works Cited
“Archivists, Curators, and Museum Technicians”. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 17 Dec. 2009. Web. 22 Mar. 2011. .
“Source C”. National Museum of the American Indian. 5 May 2006. Web. 21 Mar. 2011.
.
Handler, Richard and Eric Gable. “Source E”. The New History in an Old Museum: Creating the Past at Colonial Williamsburg. Durham: Duke UP, 1997. Web. 21 Mar. 2011.
De Montebello, Philippe. “Source F”. “Testimony”. Hearing at the Presidential Advisory Commision on Holocaust Assets in the United States. 12 Apr. 2000. Mar. 21 2011.
Roberts Jr., Frank H. H. Indians of the Americas. National Geographic C. 1958. Washington D.C.
Print. Waldman, Carl. " Sioux." Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes, Third Edition.
Lippert, Dorothy Thompson, and Stephen J. Spignesi. Native American History for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Pub., 2008. Print.
Zigmond, M. L. (1986). Kawaiisu. In W. C. Sturtevant, Handbook of North American Indians (Vol. 11, pp. 398-411). Washington: Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data.
Smith, Paul Chaat. 2009. Everything You Know about Indian Is Wrong. Minneapolis: Unviersity of Minnesota Press. Print.
"Choctaw" UXL Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes-Volume 1. Sharon Malinowski, Anna Sheets, Linda Schmitroth. Detroit:1994 edition
Baxandall, Michael. "Exhibiting intention: Some preconditions of the visual display of culturally purposeful objects." Exhibiting cultures: The poetics and politics of museum display (1991): 33-41.
Duncan’s (1991) analysis of western museums is defined through the theme of “durable objects” as a criterion to judge the heritage of American and European art as a ritual of the modern state. In this manner western art museums are built like “temples” as a symbolic and figurative representation of greatness of western culture throughout the world: “[They] are more like the traditional ceremonial monuments that museum buildings often emulate—classical temples” (Duncan 90). This interpretation of American/European museums defines a dominant source of cultural heritage that ritualizes
Josephy, Alvin M, The American Heritage Book of Indians, New York, American Heritage Publishing Co,1961
...an picking the artifacts. Although I did learn about William Morris and his designs in my history classes I learnt about the concept behind his design decisions and in depth analysis of Morris’s evolution as a designer only when I started working on this exhibit. It is imperative that you do research before arriving on any decision in regard to putting up any exhibit. Furthermore after analyzing the different options, it is imperative that you have facts to back up your decisions of the artifacts chosen. Every artifact that you pick for your case should have direct relation to your concept and it should be consistent among all artifacts. Overall a lot of thought should be put into the exhibit and the concept must reflect the ideas distinctly.
Doxtator, Deborah. Excerpts from Fluffs and Feathers: An Exhibit on the Symbols of Indianness, A Resource Guide. 1988. Revised edition. Brantford, Ontario: Woodland Cultural Centre, 1992. 12-14. Print.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art came about as an idea from Jon Jay in Paris, France in 1866 with the idea of “national institution gallery of art” within the United States. Once this idea was proposed, it was immediately moved forward with his return to the United States. With the help of the Union League Club in NY they began to acquire civic leaders, businessmen, artists, and collectors who aided in the creation of the museum. For over 140 years, the visitors who go here have received everything the mission of the institution states.
In Stephen Weil’s essay, he argues “the museum’s role has transformed from one of mastery to one of service” (Weil, 196). According to him, museums have changed their mission from one that cultures the public to one that serves
The “superstar” museum gained this status by considering every important detail during its establishment and initial phases of conversion from royal palace to museum (Gombault, 2002). As the purpose of the building changed, each room addressed new functions with new requirements. Although the function of the Louvre is different from the building’s original intention, the building is still appears dignified and important enough to display priceless artifacts and painting (Steffensen-Bruce, 1998). This consideration was applied in designing the Met. The Met looked towards the South Kensington Museum (Victoria and Albert) and the “ideal role model” due to its extensive collections and international reputation (Heckscher, 1995). The Met found itself in a similar situation to the South Kensington, because it did not have a building or a collection to start with (Heckscher, 1995). When designing museums, architects strived to create monuments that “prepare and educate the mind of the visitor (Steffensen-Bruce, 1998).” Education is an essential function of a museum. Acquiring, preserving, and properly displaying materials, permits a museum to fulfill this duty (Steffensen-Bruce, 1998). For instance, lighting is a factor that affects the manner in which artwork is viewed and can be properly appreciated. When determining the proper lighting for the Louvre, Comte d’Angiviller, strongly believed that natural, overhead lighting was the most effective solution (McClellan, 1994, p. 72). The same determination impacted the decision to add skylights at the Met. During the initial phase, architects Vaux and Mould, added skylights to the upper floor, and windows to the lower floor that provided a natural light solution (Heckscher, 1995). Additionally, glass-roofed courtyards provided “unimpeded light” for displaying
I enjoy teaching, but a vast majority of my day is spent handling issues outside my domain of education. Copies of unsigned behavior reports, the increasingly tedious student accommodation requirements, and the overwhelming emphasis on standardized testing has pushed me to rethink my career path. I knew I wanted to remain in a history-related field, but I needed to explore options outside of teaching in a school setting. It only took a trip to the ‘Special Collections’ department at the University of Louisiana at Monroe to discover I wanted to learn how to preserve and study archival