Case Study Frederick Historical Society

Museums have long served a purpose as cultural staples. For every museum, big and small, careful consideration is used in selecting its contents. When securing new items for a museum, it is most important to consider public appeal, educational value, and cost-effectiveness.

To highlight the relationship between each of the exhibitions, the staff could provide daily visitors with a cohesive guide map of the entire museum. The current location of the museum is massive to accommodate for the displays as well as three research laboratories, but due to large size, each exhibit feels isolated and

I hope to see museums make more concerted efforts to educate the public. Too many exhibits are of the “passive, didactic looking” than like the engaging Object Stories program (Dartt, Murawski). Exhibits should seek to tell untold narratives, and programs should be places of communication and cross-cultural encounters. For too long, difficult confrontations have been avoided, both inside the museum, and by dominant communities

Positioned alongside Central Park in the heart of New York City, The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the largest and most influential art museums in the world. The Met houses an extensive collection of curated works that spans throughout various time periods and different cultures. The context of museum, especially one as influential as the Met, inherently predisposes its visitors to a certain set of understandings that subtly influence how they interpret and ultimately construct meanings about each individual object within the museum. Brent Plate in Religion, Art, and Visual Culture argues that “objects obtain different meanings in different locations and historical settings.”An object placed on display behind a glass case inside a museum would hold a vastly different meaning if it was put on sale by a street vendor, like the ones who set up their tables in close proximity to the Met. The different meanings that objects are able to obtain is attributed to the relationships that are established between the object itself and the environment that surrounds it. These relationships often involve the kind of audience that a museum attracts, where the work is exhibited, and how the exhibits within a museum is planned out. Museums subsequently have the ability to control how these relationships are established which influences the way a viewer is able to construct meaning. When a visitor observes an object on display at the Met, they instinctively construct a certain set of

It was impossible for Frederick to tell when he had been born or who his father was because he was born to a slave mother. According to Frederick’s former master, “such inquiries on the part of a slave improper and impertinent” (Douglass 236). This means that slaves were not to know because it showed that they had a “restless spirit,” or a troublesome mindset that could potentially grow to wanting freedom or more knowledge (Douglass 236). In doing so, it becomes harder to control slaves. Those considered slaves, or are slaves, are not told of any personal details other than what time they were to be used, this includes birthday, age, and in most cases, parents. Infants, as in the case of Frederick, are taken away from their maternal parents,

It was all the animosity towards Frederick that motivated him to ignore what people thought and persevere with what he felt was right. With that thought in mind, Frederick spent the winter of 1844 to 1845 writing and publishing his life story (6). Despite the risk, he took the chances of using actual names of people and places connected with his years in slavery (8, 8). Wendell Philips, his friend and fellow abolitionist leader, suggested that Frederick dispose of the manuscript and warned him that people from the past would attempt to return him to a life of bondage (8, 8). However, Frederick was determined to have his stories printed, despite the possibility of slave catchers pursuing; the world needed to hear his story (8, 8). By May 1845,

Overall, subjectivity is very important to this non-fiction article, it allows the reader to get a taste of what the museum may feel like, what emotions they may feel,

When visiting an exhibit space one of the first things a viewer sees is the area that the works are exhibited in. There is more to exhibiting a work in a space than just putting in the room and expecting that to be satisfactory. Lighting, walls, art placement, viewer interaction and many more are an important park of how successful an exhibit can be.

In the Robyn Autry article, it mainly focuses on the national conflict of museums mainly focusing towards African American. The author travel to 15 museums around the United States that focuses towards African American. She mainly talks about how the African American were facing numerous hardships in the U.S and how the museum represents those issues to the general public. She believes the way to tell the hardship of African Americans is by exhibiting through a museum. When traveling through these museums she focused towards “centered on three traumatic episodes: capture and displacement from Africa, enslavement, and racial segregation” (Autry 64). The author of the articles wants to show that over time that museums meanings has changed over

When a museum has prestige on a national level, they can be under high scrutiny of exhibits or objects displayed by the public. Controversial topics, for example, the Enola Gay exhibit, has left historians hesitant and confused on how to create exhibits with correct history, but also not upsetting any individual who were involved with said history. Historians have a trying task of addressing both sides of a historical event, even though it might depict individuals in an unflattering way. A historian is not allowed to have a bias for events, this could have an impact on the way an exhibit is created. Another point that was brought to light in Bunch’s article was museums have the ability to educate the public, so difficult topics should not be

The Victoria and Albert Museum created many different ways to interact with the visitors. First, they created their website to be easily navigated and created interactive exercises such as “Design a Wig” to promote their exhibitions. By visitors having fun with creating a wig, it builds anticipation on their visit and creates more reason to visit the museum. At the museum itself, visitors will be met with the Hands-On Exhibitions. The exhibitions allows the visitors to try on Victorian costumes, make a brass rubbing or a giant slider puzzle, try on armour gauntlet, design their own tea post, and more (). Through out the whole experience, the visitors are met with fun interactive activities that are not only geared toward children, but adults as well. At Science Museum London, they take pride in their own section of interactive exhibits. Launchpad, packed with over 50 interactive exhibits geared to ward 8-14 years old, is now closed as the museum prepares to open new Interactive Gallery. The new Interactive Gallery, 60% larger than Launchpad will engage all visitors in the drama and spectacle of math and science (). This change was done to better engage the adults, especially experience seeking millennials. One of Gen Y panel member from Millennial Marketing recalled that: “My best museum experiences were London Science Museum and Victoria & Albert. One common thing these both museums have is that they mange to interact with their visitors. Once you walked into the exhibition hall, you find yourself in some place like Wonderland. The interior design, interactive tools and toys are simply designed to create a magical experience. It is never boring. A magical land would never be boring.”

There are opportunities though, and they are good opportunities. I was able to identify three that they should pay attention to and really hit hard on. In today’s economy, people aren’t wanting to spend a lot of money. The recession is making people be a lot more conscious about money. Good news, the museum is free. If marketed properly, this could be a huge way to gain new visitors. Plus, art museums have sophisticated connotations that make people feel smart when they go to them. What better way to spend the day than to go somewhere that is free and feel sophisticated? Another opportunity is that new exhibits could attract younger demographics, pending on the exhibit. This could be tricky though because they want to attract everyone, but older crowds are interested in things that younger generations aren’t. They have to be able to balance the attractions so everyone can relate to it and want to view it.

1. What have the museum curators identified as the central theme of this exhibit? Explain how curators understand this topic, its causes, and its consequences. How is this particular interpretation reflected in the exhibit? (Give specific examples).

Collections play a crucial role in fulfilling a museum’s mission and purpose. A museum’s collection is defined by its collection policy past and present which in turn helps to shape the museum’s goals and direction. As stewards of collections, museums are expected to maintain the highest professional standards legally and ethically.

In addition, the information given in an exhibition is not as memorable as it seems at first. After a week or more people are tend to forget the main message of the presentation. Thus, it means that zoos, aquariums and museums have to find a way how to increase an impact during people’s visits.