User Testing vs Research
When I think of the term ivory tower, I have a very clear mental image. A glistening white tower, rectilinear in its aspect, is poised atop a rocky outcropping, on a lonely island. The beach, an access point to the tower, has a pier on it. Museums are like that beach. There are in the …
JOINT STATEMENT FROM MUSEUM BLOGGERS & COLLEAGUES ON FERGUSON
JOINT STATEMENT FROM MUSEUM BLOGGERS & COLLEAGUES ON FERGUSON The recent series of events, from Ferguson to Cleveland and New York, have created a watershed moment. Things must change. New laws and policies may help, but any movement toward greater cultural and racial understanding and communication must be supported by our country’s cultural and educational …
Continue reading “JOINT STATEMENT FROM MUSEUM BLOGGERS & COLLEAGUES ON FERGUSON”
MCN 2014: Performative Participation and Diversity
This the last of my wrap-up posts on MCN. I also storified my notes, so they don’t complete disappear into the ether of my Twitter feed. Race, culture, and socio-economic class also loomed large for me at #MCN2014. Certainly, the wonderful Ignite helped move me towards that conversation. But, given my own professional labors in …
Continue reading “MCN 2014: Performative Participation and Diversity”
MCN Recap 2014: Open Authority/ Shared Access
Open-authority, shared-authority, open-access, shared-access was another theme that seeped through many of the conversations at #MCN2014. People all over are now finding/ demanding transparency of organizations and even governments. If ISIS has annual reports about their reports, then shouldn’t museums? But, in what ways can museums open up access while at the same time maintaining …
Continue reading “MCN Recap 2014: Open Authority/ Shared Access”
MCN 2014 Recap: Nomenclature/ Content
There were a number of fruitful conversations about nomenclature this year at MCN. I thought I would write down some thoughts should I hope to remember them in the future. As a practitioner, I understand the desire to just get the work done rather than focus on the details of naming the work you are …
Remembering My Student
On the eve of Thanksgiving, I think of a boy I once knew. He was 17 years old. He was tall. He still had a baby face. He stopped smiling if you noticed. He was trying as hard as he could to look tough, to be tough. He was like lots of other kids in …
Visitor Flow through the Museum
I recently came to the revelation that while I might consider myself an Information professional, the concept of information is not something that I have considering fully. What is information? How do my clients, museum-goers, use the information that museums offer? Upon entering the museum, visitors are faced with numerous choices. Selection Evaluate the choices …
Vine Interface–An Orientation
Vine offers a clean interface, but that might mean you need a little extra orientation to get started. _____________ My vines can be found here. I have written a series of short posts about Vine. Enjoy: Vine Video for Museums: Post 1 How can Museum Educators use Vine? The Right Audience for Vine Fostering Participation …
When museums are run like Downtown Abbey…
After spending hours of research watching and rewatching Downton Abbey (and over a decade of research working in museum), I can’t help but see uncanny similarities between museum organization structures and the hit PBS show. The Abbey The museum, like the manor, is more than a structure, and frankly is more than the collections it …
Continue reading “When museums are run like Downtown Abbey…”
Coloring in the Lines?
Professional racial disparity exists; museums are no different. As with many members of racial minorities, being different is not particularly uncommon for me. But as a minority, I can’t help but weigh in on the issue of race and museums. Race and most often socio-economic challenges have a certain type of currency in museums. Museum …