As cultural institutions that collect, preserve, conserve and interpret the tangible and intangible evidence of our human past, museums have a rich and varied history. They have evolved from what may be an innate human desire to collect and curate objects, and can be traced back to large collections built up by individuals and groups before the modern era.
Museums are a worldwide phenomenon, from the tiny museum in a shed in a remote village to the huge complex in the heart of a bustling city. They vary enormously in terms of size, budget and mission, yet all share some core functions:
In a time when the public has high expectations for what a museum should be, the International Council of Museums (ICOM) is working on an update to its definition of a museum. This revision challenges museums to cede some of their institutional authority to their communities and shifts the focus of museum work from transmitting expert knowledge to fostering dialogue and connection.
The update will be put to a vote at the 91st Session of ICOM’s Advisory Council in Prague in 2022. To prepare for that vote, ICOM’s bi-national committee on the Museum Definition, Prospects and Potentials, known as ICOM Define, carried out 4 rounds of consultation with museum professionals across the world. Each round included a questionnaire, data analysis, discussions and workshops that yielded many important considerations.
As a result of the first round, ICOM Define produced five museum definition proposals that were widely shared and discussed on social media. During Consultation 4, ICOM committees were asked to rank the proposals, and ICOM Define worked intensively on processing those rankings and elaborating the final two proposals that will be put to a vote during the Advisory Council session in Prague.
There are some museums that don’t use any artifacts but rely on the physical location or buildings themselves to tell compelling stories and create memorable experiences, such as the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles or the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. There are also those that rely heavily on the artifacts for their success, such as the Natural History Museum in London, which is defined by its massive Hintze Hall. Past residents of the hall include Dippy the dinosaur and Hope the 82-foot blue whale, both plaster-cast replicas that now live in other museums.
Whether museums use artifacts or not, they all have one common goal: to serve their local communities by being places where people can come together to learn about the past and discuss the future. I believe that this is a goal worthy of all our efforts. In the spirit of this, I encourage you to visit and support your local museums. It is thanks to the support of the public that museums continue to exist and thrive. – Seema Rao is the editor of The Museum 2.0 blog. She is a freelance writer and museum professional. She lives in New York City.