HOW TO SURVIVE A PANDEMIC: UNIQUE APPROACHES TO SUSTAINING

Museum Innovations | Sara Fontes

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The pandemic has been really difficult for all of us, but especially for the arts & culture and the tourism sectors. As emerging professionals in the museum field where these two sectors overlap, it is a scary phenomenon. How will the museum field weather this storm and survive until we get there? Luckily, museums large and small are finding ways to overcome the drop in visitors and funding. 

Cat and Mouse Badge by The British Museum on Sketchfab

Some large museums are promoting and increasing accessibility to their online digital collections. With places like the British Museum, the Uffizi Gallery and the Royal Ontario Museum having virtual reality versions of their permanent exhibits, doing “radio” shows on facebook, 3D recreations of objects and 2D digital photographs of some of their collections.

But what about small museums? How do small museums survive this crazy pandemic when people cannot come through their doors? Some smaller arts institutions are also digitizing and offering their collections for free online, similar to viewing objects and art works in the physical world. John B. Aird Gallery in Toronto is one such place. There are grants available for digitization from the Canada Council for the Arts, but there are limits to the amounts you can submit and receive. There is not always enough grant money for everyone, leading the museum sector to be creative problem solvers.

Traditional Brine Pickles at A Festival in Poland. Source.  

A small museum in Kitchener, instead of its annual picklefest this year, partnered with sponsors to create a pickle box and the box sold out. The Vincent Van Gogh exhibition by Lighthouse Immersive offers a drive-thru version of the Van Gogh show by Atelier des Lumières. A museum in Saskatchewan has started a 50/50 lottery, the type that you would find at a sports game. As with usual 50/50 lotteries, the museum gets to keep 50 of the pool and the winner gets the other half. 

Approximately five people at the Van Gogh Experience Show. They are looking at paintings by Van Gogh being projected on the walls. Source.

In the spirit of creative problem solving and virtual solutions, I will be reviving my predecessor’s "Museum’s on a Budget" series. I’ll be focusing on things useful during the pandemic such as digitization, libraries of things, virtual tours, and 3D object scanning. 

2020 UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SHELLEY PETERSON STUDENT ART EXHIBITION: A MEETING PLACE FOR STUDENT ARTISTS

Heritage Moments | Carly Wolowich and Muskoka Dittmar-McCallum

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The University of Toronto Shelley Peterson Student Art Exhibition (SPSAE) is a space for exchange. An annual exhibition which celebrates the artistic excellence of University of Toronto’s tri-campus undergraduate Visual Studies students, the 2020 SPSAE offers a meeting place for students to voice ideas through their diverse artistic practice.

Originally founded by the University of Toronto’s 32nd Chancellor, David Peterson, the exhibition was an opportunity to support and exhibit the works of student artists at the University of Toronto’s St. George Campus. The exhibition—named for Shelley Peterson, an artist, author, performer, businesswoman, and the spouse of David Peterson—has continued after Petersons’ retirement, evolving from an intimate event hosted in the Chancellor’s Office at Convocation Hall to a gallery-based exhibition at the Art Museum. As curators for this year’s exhibition, our aim is to not only honour Peterson’s legacy but also cultivate new approaches to exhibiting student art.

An inquiry into contemporary art forms, the exhibition brings together works by Jasaña Alleyne, Meech Boakye, Chantel Briana Campbell, Jasmine Canaviri, Regina Caeli Dela Cruz, Gian Lorenzo Giannone, Yara Matta, Sean Morello, Liam Mullen, Purvi Qadri, sameda, Beenish Shahab, Isabella Varrasso, Jessica Velasco, Zi Yan Bai, Lana Yuan, and Agnes Zeng. The 2020 SPSAE offers nuanced reflections on contemporary issues both locally and globally. Texts, images, and stories have been transformed by these artists into installations and interventions that address themes of identity, cultural belonging, and displacement. All the artists offer gestures of questioning, of exploration, and of disturbance, inviting viewers to question the space they occupy. The exhibition abandons the traditional role of the spectator, as visitors are greeted with a multi-sensory experience and encouraged to participate with the art.

Beenish Shahab, They All Look Alike, 2019. 18x24. One of Four Photo Paper Prints. Image Courtesy of the Artist. 

Artist Beenish Shahab, a Pakistani-Canadian multidisciplinary artist, currently studying at the University of Toronto Scarborough, innovatively challenges racial stereotypes in They All Look Alike. Working with the concept of identity, challenging Western ideologies with her perspectives and experiences of South Asian culture, Shahab draws inspiration from artists like Shirin Neshat and Maria Qamar. In her sculptural photography-based project, the artist physically weaves together images of two people from the same race. Shahab’s work “examines cross-race effect, where members of one race might metaphorically perceive that members of another race all look alike” by photographing eight students from the University of Toronto who have experienced the effects of the cross-race phenomenon. 

Jessica Velasco, Statements, 2019-Ongoing. 180x120. Ink on Paper. Image Courtesy of the Artist. 

Statements, is an ongoing series by Jessica Velasco, a student from the University of Toronto Mississauga campus. Velasco notes, “being mixed race or interethnic often invites micro transgressional racism. These comments are just “subtle” enough that most who offend don’t even realize that they are doing it”. ​Statements​ explores the racist micro-transgressions that the artist has experienced throughout their life to visually assert the absurdity of “subtle racism” and just how often it occurs in today’s society, even to white-representing interethnic people. Velasco will activate this work with a performance piece, Hindi ako nagsasalita ng Tagalog, on the opening night of the exhibition.

Liam Mullen, Flat, 2019. Installation. Image Courtesy of the Artist. 

An artist and student from the University of Toronto St. George campus, Liam Mullen, experiments with photography and personal narrative. Flat​, looks to compress original pictures to create an aura-less image by way of creating a reproduced reality in a repeated pattern that obscures narrative offers an insight into the tragedy of reproduction as a means of stripping away detail in a picture. Flat is a twenty-first century reply to the writings of cultural theorist Walter Benjamin. The installation is composed of heirloom negatives, an Epson printer, and 8 ½ by 11’’ printer paper. Mullen’s work is often accompanied with a documentary video which records his installation process.

The above works are only three of the seventeen works activated in the University of Toronto Art Centre. The exhibition displays a variety of media, including; photography, works on canvas, kinetic sculpture, film, participatory art, performance art and more. Works are displayed unconventionally as they are installed on the floor, hung from the ceiling, and camouflaged into the architecture of the gallery space. Collectively, the artworks on display present current representations of contemporary art practice from across Toronto.

The University of Toronto Shelley Peterson Student Art Exhibition is projected to open April 16th and run until May 17th 2020. Due to the national response to COVID-19, the exhibition reception and opening date may change. Please consult Art Museum’s website for current information.

MUSEUM OF THE FUTURE

COLLECTIONS CORNER

BY: KATLYN WOODER

 Wow this video's dramatic music and special effects are going are going to be hard to live up to.

At the end of winter I can't help but think of next year, and one of the things that I don't expect to find in a profession that historically has been about history is a Museum of the Future. In 2019, this 200 million pound museum will open in Dubai. The futuristic focus of the musuem's collection will be on invention. They are set to emphasize the trends of tomorrow rather than inform people of the past. They are also going one step further in their museum programming, in that they are planning to offer support, so that people can realize their ideas. This museum is set to be a place of international change.

The act of hosting a site where the best of international invention can be seen, and ideas shared, is not a new innovation. World expositions have been happening since 1851 in London. The 1855 Paris expo showcased the architectural marvel of the Eiffel Tower, the first ever building whose parts were constructed elsewhere and assembled on location. Canada itself has hosted world expos in Montreal 67 and Vancouver 86. But the expo is a festival, something that comes together and disperses after it's done. The Museum of the Future is interesting in that it has built itself a single, stationary location, and proposes that it won't stagnate.

I can't help but wonder how they are going to collect their collection, and disperse their collections when they are no longer innovative. Is this museum going to emulate some modern art galleries. Who have no permanent collection, instead choosing to showcase exhibits where the artifacts come from multiple points of origin? What does a futuristic collection look like? How are they going to curate it? Will they be experimental in their museum practices or will the use conventional museology practice to situate the unfamiliar in a familiar setting?

I can't wait to see how this museum of the future uses technology in new ways. Hopefully one of the applications is a database or web design that makes this museum - which exists on a different continent - accessible for us here in North America.

VISIONS FOR THE FUTURE: MMSt 2018

MUSEUM INNOVATIONS

BY: HANNAH MONKMAN

Hello and welcome to a special issue of Museum Innovations! As the last installment for the term, I decided to go out into our student community and ask our soon-to-be Museum Studies graduates where they think museums are headed in the future. Asking, "what's next for museums?" I wanted to highlight the fantastic ideas and insights of our grads in all areas of the museum field, from collections management to interpretation, diversity and inclusion strategies, and even museum management.

I'm so excited to see all the passion and ambition coming into the field, and with such drive amongst our graduates, we may... dare I say it? ... change the world. 

Source.

Do you agree with these visions for the future of museums? Let's see what our grads have to say!

Collections Management 

"Collections Managers & Conservationists should be more environmentally aware of their material consumption (plastics, crates, tissue paper, etc.) when protecting, shipping and storing objects. I want to learn how to lead the way in best practices and show our colleagues it is possible to waste less!"

- Jessica Baptista 

"Widespread acceptance of the use of deaccessioning in tailoring our overgrown collections to those that best fit our mandates, allowing us to properly preserve what needs to be preserved for future generations. But, of course, great power comes with great responsibility."

- Emily Welsh 

"Collections that are accessible, not just visibly but physically. Accessibility to fit a variety of communities' needs. There is a tendency to 'hoard' objects but at the same time, we say museum objects are for the public. I think museums will start to move towards using the collection to better fit the needs of the public in different ways."

- Kathleen Vahey 

Interpretation and the Visitor Experience 

"I would love to have more interpretation that immerses the visitor in a given experience to foster empathy. I don't think we need to sideline objects as a thing of the past - let's animate them in new ways and facilitate interaction (digitally, using replicas, etc.) through storytelling. Within this framework, I hope to encounter/create museum content that explores the idea of "place" at the heart of an experience. Can places be artifacts themselves?"

- Serena Ypelaar 

Source.

"I think museums are constantly learning and introducing inclusive practices. This proactive programming is preparing the future of museums to be even more aware of and engaged with different visitors’ needs that have historically been overlooked. Now museums are moving in a direction that acknowledges that there is no “average visitor,” and every person that comes into the museum has different needs - whether they are mental, physical, or emotional."

- Aurora Cacioppo

"Museums need to start to incorporating new technologies to become more inclusive and accessible for a wider demographic. I really think that museums are in a state of change already; it's just up to them if they want to take the blind leap into something new."

- Breanna Stephenson 

"Museums are in a transition in two ways. Firstly, the museum exhibition experience is becoming much more visitor-centric with an emphasis on creating a meaningful and memorable narrative with defined and tangible short- and long-term outcomes. Secondly, and especially in Canada, museums are reorienting themselves to embrace and mobilize the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and continue to build better relations with our Indigenous communities. While it will be a long process, the results of this mobilization will change the face of museological practice in Canada."

- Bretton Weir

Source.

Diversity and Inclusion

"Where are museums headed? As a graduating class we should be asking, where can we take museums? Things I hope for (and these are just a few) include: Increasing interactivity within exhibits and during general programming. (For example, the sold out immersive Infinity Mirrors exhibit at the AGO). Museums that are more inclusive and work with communities to represent their diverse publics. I have every confidence that my graduating class will be able to lead the way in this respect."

- An Eager MMst Grad

"Becoming more relevant to a wider and diverse audience. I’d like to focus on how this can possibly be achieved through programming that is more accessible and applicable to a wider audience. I believe programming is powerful enough to engage, connect and teach a diversity of people."

- Julia Zungri

"I think - or at least I hope! - that we're going to see more concerted and sustained efforts at incorporating diversity and inclusion into museums at all levels. Community-based stories won't just be featured in exhibitions; communities themselves, as partners and staff members, will shape how collections are managed and how the museum operates. For a specific example, I think that we'll be seeing more women in positions of museum leadership in the coming years!"

- Sadie MacDonald 

"It's hard to tell, but I hope to see changes for the better. One thing I want to see is marginalized people (POC, LGBT+, disabled, ...) who are working in the museum field being represented and listened to more, and given more leadership roles."

- Anonymous 

Management and Operations

"More engagement with environmental concerns across the sector, both in programming/exhibitions and on an institutional level: carbon-neutral operations and climate justice programming especially."

- Jennifer Lee

"I believe that we are seeing a greater movement towards specialization in all sizes and facets of cultural institutions. Whereas previously some museums and heritage sites were able to operate with passionate, untrained staff curating and attending collections, developments in curatorial practice and collections management techniques mean that this tradition is no longer sustainable in the competitive cultural market. Small sites, which had previously rolled collections management and curatorial duties into one hybrid position, are moving to separate the two into individual staff members to better handle the rigors of each role and to offer a more appealing product to cultural consumers. Due to the strain this puts on the limited resources these institutions have, I foresee an increase in zero-hour contract labour, allowing these sites to reap the benefits of informed practice while saving money during off-seasons."

- Dan Rose


A sincere thank you to everyone who contributed!

MUSEUM PEOPLE — GET READY

AFRICAN CANADIAN HISTORY

BY: KENDRA CAMPBELL

Earlier this month the National Portrait Gallery announced it was moving the portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama to another location in order to provide a “more spacious viewing experience.” The response to Amy Sherald’s portrait of the First Lady has been overwhelming, far exceeding the institution’s expectations for visitor numbers. Commentary about the impact of this portrait has beautifully illustrated the importance of representation in museum spaces. I’m glad this museum mishap had a happy ending and that museum publics will have increased opportunities for representation. However, I am left wondering if this situation is indicative of a larger gap in museum thinking. Namely, why are museums surprised by audience responses? As audience needs, interests, and expectations change, museums appear at best, unprepared, and at worst, unaware or uncaring.

Amy Sherald's Portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama at the National Portrait Gallery. Source.

I had the distinct pleasure of writing for Musings for the last two years. During that time I was able to cover a sliver of the shifting politics of display, expanding communities of practice and emerging socially-engaged approaches. All of these converge to positively transform the ways that African-Canadian history and Black history more broadly are interpreted. At the same time I have also observed the maintenance and reproduction of anti-Black, colonial mentalities that threaten this progress. Particularly in areas of African Canadian history, there is an immediate need of enhanced strategic foresight that allows for new possibilities. Now on my final post for this column, my only offering to museum colleagues is to get ready.

Get ready for a new canon of African Canadian Black history that is independent from and incomparable to Western worldviews. Get ready for Black history narratives that are decidedly desire-centered, not damage-centered. Get ready to listen to publics who neither look nor live like you do. Get ready to compensate your partners, collaborators, and co-conspirators fairly. Get ready to be called into a critical discourse with your staff that may make you uncomfortable. Get ready to be challenged both professionally and personally about your work as it relates to the role of museums in society. Get ready to think and work differently.

What must you do to not only respond to visitor needs, but to anticipate them?

Get ready.

#5WOMENARTISTS...AND THEN WHAT?

SHE’S MY MUSE

BY: KATHLEEN LEW

As Women’s History Month comes to an end, it is important to remember the feminist art collective Guerilla Girls’ iconic 1990 Pop Quiz:

“If February is Black History Month and March is Women’s History Month what happens the rest of the year?”

“Discrimination.”

March is almost over, but sexism and oppression remain in the art world, museums, and beyond.

Source.

This is the 3rd year of the National Museum of Women in the Arts’ (NMWA) social media campaign #5WomenArtists. During Women's History Month, the campaign asks people to name 5 women artists. It’s more challenging than you think—try it (bonus points if your list only includes living artists). The hashtag also encourages museums to highlight women artists in their collections. The NMWA strives for equal gender representation in the art world. #5WomenArtists elicits shock, creates greater engagement with women's art, and starts valuable discussion about gender parity in the arts.

Source.

This year, the campaign emphasizes women artists of colour with #5WomenArtists of colour. The exercise becomes increasingly powerful when race is added to the equation.

The questions are endless—Can you name five Black women artists? Five Indigenous women artists? Five Asian women artists?

#5WomenArtists of colour encourages participants to explore the importance of intersectionality in feminism and why certain gaps of knowledge exist.

Can you name #5WomenArtists of colour?
This #InternationalWomensDay we spotlight #TabitaRezaire - a digital artist who unearths the possibilities of #decolonialhealing through the politics of technology. Her is work currently on show @thearmoryshow Focus (F25, Pier 92). pic.twitter.com/ZzYgxAosK8

— Goodman Gallery (@Goodman_Gallery) March 8, 2018

What is a “woman artist” anyway?

Yes, some artists identify as women, among many other things. “Woman” is a category made up of a diverse group of individuals who act within intersections of race, sexuality, class, age, ability, etc. By limiting artists to the title of “woman artist”, we risk further marginalizing an entire group of creators based on their gender.

"The construction of femininity is a construction, yes, but also it can be twisted and turned around in such a way that doesn't necessarily mean it is pointing to the female body or male body in such a binary fashion." —Lorna Simpson #5WomenArtists

"Backdrops Circa 1940s," 1998 pic.twitter.com/907ag9072n

— Hammer Museum (@hammer_museum) March 12, 2018

#5WomenArtists is an important first step (or tweet), but it is far from the last. Campaigns like #5WomenArtists need to lead to concrete institutional and systemic change—in our textbooks, in our museums, and in our understandings of art. As Linda Nochlin teaches us, male-dominated narratives are institutionally reinforced through museums, the art market, and education, building an environment that fundamentally disadvantages women.

Source.

Fighting for greater representation of women artists is important and inspiring, but how can we address what left them out in the first place? We must push our celebrations and criticisms to both incorporate and move beyond womanhood. Engaging with intersectional feminism in museums is crucial. It means unlearning sexism, teaching anti-oppression, and holding ourselves and others accountable.

A museum can tweet about the women artists in their collection, but where is the explanation of why  gender disparities continue to exist on gallery walls? #FiveWomenArtists raises awareness for all the incredible women creators of past, present, and future. That future needs to include addressing institutional weaknesses, bringing the hashtag into concrete action and sustainable change.

Can you name #5WomenArtists? Today we’re marking day one of #WomensHistoryMonth by handing over to Katy Hessel of @thegreatwomenartists to share her favourite five from Tate’s collection. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ '2017's #TurnerPrize winner, and the first artist ever to win the prize over the age of 50, Lubaina Himid found fame championing the British Black Arts Movement of the 1980s. Zanzibar-born and Preston-based, Himid's work (which comes in woodcuts, ceramics, paintings and more) challenges stereotypical depictions of black figures in art history. The above painting from 1991 shows two women covered with a map of the past in search of new robes and a new direction. As Lubaina is the poster woman for contemporary art right now, it seems to be going in a very good direction.’ - Katy ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Keep posted for Katy’s #5WomenArtists today and let us know who’d be amongst your #5WomenArtists. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Lubaina Himid, Ankledeep 1991, Tate collection

A post shared by Tate (@tate) on Mar 1, 2018 at 5:04am PST

NMWA’s use of social media has spread the reality of gender inequality across the internet in a creative and effective way. This month’s emphasis on race is an extremely valuable addition. But how can we end the discrimination that is occurring the rest of the year?

Yes to #FiveWomenArtists. Even more yes to #FiveWomenArtists of colour. But then what?

Source.

AN EMOTIONAL EDUCATION: WALKING "A MILE IN MY SHOES"

MUSEUM INNOVATIONS

BY: HANNAH MONKMAN

A recent trend in museum exhibition and programming has been to try to foster empathy for others, like we saw in Sadie's exhibition review for BAND Gallery and Cultural Centre. With the global political climate as it is, now more than ever we must promote understanding and compassion to our fellow humans. Since museums are in a unique position to educate our publics, many are trying to find ways to educate visitors on empathy with varying levels of success. Creating a truly affective impact is easier said than done, and museums will need to go beyond a simple object + label display. 

But what does learning empathy look like?  Source.

How can museums really foster empathetic development at an emotional level, rather than just a cognitive one? How do you innovate with a fundamental human process like empathy?

Once I found the Museum of Empathy and their innovative pop-up style project, "A Mile in My Shoes," I knew my questions had been answered. Operating out of a larger-than-life shoebox, the Museum of Empathy gives visitors the chance to listen to an incredibly diverse array of emotional narratives while walking in that same person's shoes. Literally. 

"Through a series of participatory arts projects with a focus on storytelling and dialogue, it explores how empathy can not only transform our personal relationships, but also help tackle global challenges such as prejudice, conflict and inequality."

The most recent physical iteration was hosted at the Migrant Museum in London, and brought in new stories of refugees and migrants. But in case you can't make it out to England—or wherever they next pop up—they have a handful of their stories posted on their website, available for anyone to listen. These stories range from love and hope, to grief and unimaginable pain. 

Listen to the joy of a florist as she delights in her community, in connecting with her customers who might be a bit shy, as she expresses a true love for her life and her work. 

Listen to the experiences of a man living with Achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder causing dwarfism, and the discrimination he has faced his entire life paralleled with the support he has received from his family and friends. 

Listen to the cracking voice of a mother whose daughter was murdered recount her memories of the worst time in her life, only to conclude that she was able to open her heart to empathy—even towards the woman who killed her daughter. 

"I choose not live my life in hatred." 

The participants in "Walk a Mile" have revealed themselves at their most vulnerable, allowing the solitary listener to emotionally connect with the storyteller—all while walking in the same shoes.

Boasting over 150 shoes and stories, and over 10,000 visitors since its first opening in September 2015, their strategies have clearly been successful. Source.

Now with the proven effectiveness of participatory programming with personalized stories, the model of "A Mile in My Shoes" may pave a future for emotional education in museums. As they say, if the shoe fits...

DEBRIEFING BLACK HISTORY MONTH IN YOUR INSTITUTION

AFRICAN CANADIAN HISTORY

BY KENDRA CAMPBELL 

Just like that, 28 days dedicated to Black art, Black voices and Black stories is over (sort of).

As Black History Month 2018 draws to a close, what did you discover?  What inspired you? What surprised you? This year’s offerings, both at home and abroad, were extensive as they were impressive. For instance, the sound of Sylvia D. Hamilton’s installation continues to literally and figuratively resonate long after I exited the Royal Ontario Museum’s Here We Are Here. On the final day of Black History Month, perhaps the most important question to ask of museum professionals is what comes next? Or rather, what will you do next?

Sylvia D. Hamilton's Naming Names at the ROM. Photo courtesy of Kendra Campbell

It is my hope that the incredible content that intentionally and unapologetically centres Black experiences will not be de-installed and packed into crates to lie dormant for the next 11 months. In fact, I am elated to see that in Toronto the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), The Power Plant, and a number of other institutions will continue to feature and interpret these works well into the Spring. But beyond displays and programs, I’m curious to know how museums will continue the conversation.  How will you sustain critical conversations within your own institution and with audiences?  If you are struggling to begin, I recommend the following:

5 Questions Your Museum Should Ask in Your Black History Month Debrief

1.What was our greatest success this month? Would our partners (publics, teachers and school groups, communities) also consider it a success?  What prevents us from reproducing similar experiences the rest of the year?

2.What was our greatest challenge this month? What actionable steps will we take to mitigate this challenge in the future?

3.What did we learn about visitor needs, interests and expectations? What changes do we need to make in order to prioritize audience relevancy?

4. With whom inside and outside of your museum do you need to have further dialogues? What will we do to sustain reciprocal relationships and ensure ample space for critique?

5. What resources will we use to redress anti-black racism in our institutional practices? What is our plan to hold everyone accountable to this work?

This set of questions makes for a full agenda, but a Black History Month debrief is neither complete nor effective if it does not ask this final question: What are we doing to address staff diversity? The relationship between diverse audiences and a diverse staff is not exactly causal. However, I am convinced that staff diversity and the range of voices who feel safe and supported to respond to these questions will result in higher quality museum experiences.

Consider this debrief an opportunity to be proactive, rather than reactive to forthcoming changes in the museum world, not just in February but all year round.

There are 338 days and counting, but you need not wait that long.

2016 American Alliance of Museums Annual Meeting and Museum Expo - Alliance Labs Source.

NEW MUSEUMS IN THE LAST YEAR: A GLOBAL LOOK

MUSINGS ABROAD

BY: KRISTEN MCLAUGHLIN

We may hear a lot about new museums opening in Toronto (like the old city hall turning into a museum, anyone?), yet I find that perhaps we are a bit out of the loop as museum professionals in Canada--especially Eastern Canada, where we tend to focus on the more local--when it comes to museums around the world. As was discussed at length in the Museum Studies Student Association's Women in Leadership panel earlier this month, getting global experience can be vital to our growth as professionals but also as globally aware human beings!

So I decided to make a small article this week listing some of the museums that have opened across this world of ours in 2017 and one to look out for in 2018; be sure to look out for some that will be opening over the coming years!

1. Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town, South Africa

An image of the ceiling dome of the new contemporary arts museum. Source.

The Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa is not just a landmark for South Africa but for the world. It will be the biggest museum to open on the continent in over a century. The art inside has only been created since the year 2000 from Africa and its diaspora. This is a new cutting edge museum with over nine floors of work; if anyone is headed for Cape Town this will be a must see! 

2. 2017 World Expo, Astana, Kazakhstan

The 2017 World Expo at night. Source.

The world at large is generally familiar with the idea of the world expo: a large gathering of exhibits from around the world demonstrating a variety of cultures, scientific innovations, art, and more that began in 1851. The act is still going strong, with last year's debuting in Kazakhstan in modern buildings. This expo took place between June and September 2017, focused on the question "how do we ensure safe and sustainable access to energy for all while reducing CO2 emissions?". The question of sustainability has been very popular in museum groups in the last year or two, so it is important to look at this world expo to see what was shown. We also know that World Expo buildings frequently outlive the expo itself and take on second or third lives as other types of museums. Let's keep our eye on Kazakhstan to see what they do with these grounds!

PS: Canada did not participate in this world expo.... despite all of my Googling I couldn't find a reason, so any info is appreciated!


3. Louvre Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

It's finally open! Source.

Despite the difficulties this museum has run into--it was originally meant to open in 2012--it finally opened in November of last year. The UAE are well known for eye-catching gimmicks to catch the world's attention, such as the World Islands initiative in Dubai, and this latest iteration of the Louvre may be along a similar vein. However, it may be worth the visit just to see the architecture, meant to imitate sunshine through palm leaves and its collection; it showcases art from the Louvre, the Centre Georges Pompidou, the Musee d'Orsay, and the Palace of Versailles, as well as a new photography collection. The museum, created through an agreement between the French and UAE governments, is important for future considerations of new international museum creations. 

4. Beit Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon

A new urban cultural centre focused on the civil war. Source.

Beit Beirut (or "the house of Beirut") is a museum and an urban cultural centre focused on the history of Beirut and specifically, the civil war. The original building, also known as the "Barakat building" or the yellow house, is a historic landmark from 1924. The civil war took its toll on the building when Christian militants moved in and took it over. It was sentenced for demolition in 1997 but saved by heritage activitists. The new museum traces the 7000-year history of the city. It has run into some problems: it was supposed to open in 2013 but didn't open until 2016, and then closed again with temporary re-opening in 2017. The significance of this building and its bullet-peppered walls is a symbol of the civil war in Lebanon and what that means for a nation still in turmoil. The museum contains documents, records, and the municipality's archives, all accessible to the public. 

5. 2018 to Look For: Grand Egyptian Museum (Giza Museum), Giza, Egypt

The facade of the new museum. Source.

This coming year has many exciting museum openings, but one that should be at the heart of the global interest is the Grand Egyptian/Giza Museum in Giza, Egypt. Described as the world's largest archaeological museum, it should exhibit the full Tutanhkamun collection with many pieces displayed for the first time. The museum is within 2 km of the Giza pyramids, making for a great day trip where one can see the pyramids through the glass walls of the museum. It should display over 100,000 artifacts and open in late 2018. Objects on display will be from all over Egypt and will be a place of national pride for Egypt, which has undergone heavy political upheaval in the last several years. It will be interesting to see how this museum, poised between the pyramids and the city of Cairo, will act as a balancing act between the history and the future.

Museums around the world are on an exciting precipice: one of intriguing architecture, global collection sharing, and national importance. As museum professionals it is necessary that we look outside of our own bubble to take note--and visit!--what is happening outside of our country and around the world. 

FINDING NEW OPPORTUNITIES IN CLOSED MUSEUMS

HERITAGE MOMENTS

BY: AMY INTRATOR

This December, Torontonians and CBC-lovers from all over the country received some sad news: the small CBC Museum was closing its doors for good. Many Canadians weren’t even aware of this tiny gem of a museum in the CBC headquarters, but many others loved the small museum dedicated to Canadian broadcasting and radio history. The museum housed everything from historic microphones to puppets from beloved Canadian television shows.

Vintage sign from the now-closed CBC Museum. Source.

Museum closures aren’t frequent news. Lately, it seems like Toronto is full of new museums. Last month alone, we received two exciting announcements: the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) will open its doors in May, and City of Toronto staff recommended that Old City hall be converted into a museum. In a time of museum openings and expansions, the closure of smaller museums sometimes goes unnoticed, but what does it mean to lose institutions dedicated to representing pieces of our national heritage? In this edition of Heritage Moments, I will be exploring a couple of the recent museum closures in Canada, and trying to find hope in the sad fate of these institutions.

The CBC Museum (permanently closed on December 22nd, 2017)

The CBC Museum opened its doors in 1994, but the collection was started decades before, as early as the 1960s. The small museum housed important pieces of broadcasting history, but the space was also home to some beloved Canadian characters. The museum included several iconic props from Canadian children’s television shows such as Mr. Dressup’s Tickle Trunk and The Friendly Giant castle set. You may not be familiar with these shows, but many generations grew up with these Canadian classics.

Exterior shot of the former CBC Museum. Photo courtesy of Serena Ypelaar.

The museum's closure was announced rather suddenly, but the collection wasn’t left in limbo. The group Ingenium, which oversees three museums including the Canada Science and Technology Museum, will take over the collection. In many ways, it makes sense to house part of the collection in this museum. Visitors of the Canada Science and Technology museum will have the chance to see pieces from the CBC collection alongside other historic technologies. A new home for part of the collection might allow the collection to remain relevant, but breaking up a collection is always risky. If the technology in the collection is separated from the collection's props, sets, and characters, the objects might lose some of their value as icons of Canadian cultural development.

Image of the microphone collection displayed at the CBC Museum. Photo courtesy of Serena Ypelaar.

The Museum of Inuit Art (permanently closed on May 29, 2016)

The Museum of Inuit Art was founded in 2007 and remained a small but active museum in Toronto for nearly ten years. The museum filled a gap in the heritage sector by promoting awareness and support for Inuit art. The museum ran workshops organized by Inuit artists, and maintained a large collection of pieces created by Inuit artists.

Image of the now-closed Museum of Inuit Art. Source.

The museum’s closure in 2016 left a significant void in the heritage sector. While museums are beginning to recognize the importance of including Indigenous voices, the Museum of Inuit Art was unparalleled in its dedication to Inuit culture and heritage. The loss of the museum is enormous, as the museum did not just exhibit Inuit art, it also helped visitors engage with Inuit culture and heritage. There is, however, potential for institutions to help fill the void left by the loss of the institution. The Winnipeg Art Gallery recently unveiled its plans to create an Inuit Art Centre, a “world-class cultural landmark that is home to the largest public collection of contemporary Inuit art on earth.” The closure of the Museum of Inuit Art means new organizations, like the Inuit Art Centre, are under increased pressure to represent and preserve Inuit art in Canada.

It is hard to find opportunities in the loss of heritage institutions. When a museum closes, the public doesn’t just lose access to the space, they lose access to history, art, and culture. I never made it to the CBC Museum or the Museum of Inuit Art, and I’ll always be left wondering what I missed because no picture will stand in for the experience of visiting those museums. I am hopeful, however, that museums can work collaboratively to carry on the legacy of closed institutions, whether that means assuming ownership of a museum’s collection or taking on the museum’s mission to support under-represented voices in Canadian arts.

FRAMEWORKS FOR THE FUTURE: 12 WAYS MUSEUMS CAN TAKE ACTION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE

MUSEUM INNOVATIONS

BY: HANNAH MONKMAN

Museums often specialize in preserving and exhibiting the past for the present publics, but what are we doing as a collective to ensure that the heritages we safeguard will even have a future to exist in? Climate change has been a hot topic for such a long time, advocates often seem to be shouting into the void. But we all need to take action, now more than ever - so what innovations are museums producing to lead the fight against climate change?

We have already surpassed some of the measurable limitations of our planet, so how can we get back into the "safe space" before it's too late? Source.

Museums are not neutral, and climate change is not a debate. 

As museums, we often look to educate our publics rather than to reflect inwardly, as I discussed back in May 2017. I want to reemphasize that now, as more resources along these lines have been produced since then and the case is growing more urgent every day. When the very core of many museum operations contribute to an enlarged carbon footprint, including the high cost of energy for environmental controls vital for the preservation of collections, should we not take responsibility for preserving our future as well as our past?

We should be empowered as cultural institutions to take responsibility for our roles in contributing to climate change, and take actions to mitigate our impact. Source.

Julie’s Bicycle, a company aimed at bringing climate action to the creative arts, has partnered with the Arts Council of England and numerous other institutions in the UK’s cultural sector to produce Museums’ Environmental Framework in November 2017. This new resource provides tangible and measurable actions that museums can take as leaders in the environmental practice. The outline identifies twelve main areas museums can integrate climate justice into their operations:

• "Aligning environmental values and stewardship with museum values and mission
• Embedding environmental sustainability in governance and management
• Commitment to environmental improvement and action
• Understanding environmental impacts and measuring what matters
• Communicating and engaging internally on environmental impacts and action
• Communicating and engaging externally on environmental impacts and action
• Engaging visitors and audiences on environmental values, understanding and action
• Taking action to make buildings and sites more environmentally sustainable
• Developing environmentally sustainable practice for collections care and exhibitions
• Embedding environmental sustainability in commercial services
• Integrating environmental sustainability in financial and investment decision-making and fundraising
• Developing environmental collaboration and partnerships"

This provides a solid framework that expands on previous models to include every facet of the museum’s activities, and that can be overlaid any current museum model. While each institution will have to find their own way to best incorporate climate justice into their operations, the Museums’ Environmental Framework concludes by drawing together examples across the world of museums leading environmental action – proving it can be done.

Just say NO to those deniers and defeatists! Source.

In order to truly preserve heritage in the long-term, we must face climate change with optimistic action rather than passive defeat.

What action will you take?

(Keep your eyes out for fellow Musings Contributing Editor Lana Tran’s piece tomorrow to look at what museums are doing now, here in Ontario!)

LESSONS IN UNLEARNING - EXPLORING HERE WE ARE HERE: BLACK CANADIAN CONTEMPORARY ART

AFRICAN CANADIAN HISTORY

BY KENDRA CAMPBELL

“Collections take time to transform,” explains Dr. Silvia Forni, Curator of African Arts and Cultures in the Royal Ontario Museum’s Department of World Cultures. I had the privilege to speak with Dr. Forni, hours before an opening of the new ROM exhibition Here We Are Here: Black Canadian Contemporary Art. She, along with Dr. Julie Crooks and Dominque Fontaine, were co-curators of the new show that features the works of 9 emerging and established Black Canadian artists. The installations by Sandra Brewster, Michèle Pearson Clarke, Chantal Gibson, Sylvia D. Hamilton, Bushra Junaid, Charmaine Lurch, Esmaa Mohamoud, Dawit L. Petros and Gordon Shadrach all comment on themes of race, exclusion and belonging, but are ultimately distinct. Collectively, Here We Are Here provides a lens to understand the varied and dynamic experience of Blackness in Canada.

Suck Teeth Compositions (After Rashaad Newsome), Michèle Pearson Clarke, 2017.
Photo courtesy of the ROM. 

Knowledge about Blackness and Black history in Canada is skewed by the mythologizing of the underground railroad and other lore, which is particularly pervasive at this time of year. This is further compounded by the fact that the sights and sounds of the Black diaspora are not given adequate space in public discourse, let alone the opportunity to be refracted on gallery walls. This is one of the reasons why Here We Are Here is so important. According to the co-curatorial team, there is a great deal of unlearning that must take place. This multi-narrative show challenges Canada’s purported anti-slavery past as well as the current narratives of acceptance and multiculturalism.

Sweet Childhood, Bushra Junaid, 2017. Photo courtesy of the ROM.

Beyond the unlearning of Canada’s Black past and present, there is a deeper lesson of unlearning the biases of curatorial practice. This is a lesson that would benefit many professionals within this sector. Regarding the curatorial process, Dr. Forni notes that the curatorial team did not have studio visits where they selected the best examples of artists’ work. Rather, the co-curators supported a 9-member community of artists who worked closely together to refine their individual work. Regarding the curatorial vision, there is no sweeping narrative or protracted timeline of Black history in Canada. Instead, each work reflects vestiges of time and emphasizes the specific linkages to the present.
Most importantly, Here We Are Here is not a fleeting 28-day stint of inclusion. Dr. Forni comments that in many ways the show was a culmination of the 3-year multiplatform Of Africa initiative, led by the same curatorial team. In addition to issuing an apology for the 1989 Into the Heart of Africa exhibition, the Of Africa curators partnered with an advisory council, listened to community members and worked with a range of artists to think through the process of interpreting and engaging with the complexity and diversity of Africa.

Souvenir, Chantal Gibson, 2017. Photo courtesy of the ROM.

As Dr. Forni alluded to in our conversation, the importance of time cannot be underestimated with respect to rebuilding museum and community relations. Evidenced by the ROM’s increasingly diverse collection and exhibitions, systemic change requires continuous effort and commitment from the institution. Next month and thereafter, I look forward to more examples of transformation at the ROM and elsewhere within the broader museum sector. In my active search for sustained models of change in the museum sector, I wonder, what else do today’s and tomorrow’s museum professionals need to unlearn?

AN EMPATHETIC VISION: HACKING BLACK FUTURES AT BAND GALLERY

EXHIBITION REVIEWS

BY: SADIE MACDONALD

This weekend, accompanied by Musings Editor-in-Chief Serena, I paid a visit to BAND Gallery and Cultural Centre in the Parkdale region of Toronto to see the exhibition Hacking Black Futures. BAND partnered with the Toronto Design Offsite Festival to host this exhibition from January 15th to the 21st this year.

Approaching BAND. Photo courtesy of Sadie MacDonald.

It was the first time that I had encountered a project associated with BAND. Founded in 2009, BAND (which stands for Black Artists' Networks in Dialogue) "is dedicated to supporting, documenting and showcasing the artistic and cultural contributions of Black artists and cultural workers in Canada and abroad." The BAND Gallery is located in an old Victorian house painted entirely black on the outside, and its familiar, comforting interior space is a far cry from the traditional “white cube” style of art galleries. When Serena and I walked into the BAND Gallery, we were warmly greeted by Addae, who was assisting in the gallery, and invited to engage with the exhibition.

Hacking Black Futures invites speculation on what a Black-centric future society could look like. The exhibition houses multimedia artistic projects by artists of colour and is informed by the values of Afrofuturism. This philosophy draws on Black cultural perspectives and Black imaginations to create optimistic visions of the future that challenge white-centric speculative models. Through this lens, the exhibition artists examine concepts such as food sovereignty, which is expressed through the idea of Black societies determining and controlling their own food systems. Other concepts on display include social economy, as explored through works such as Addae Nurse’s intimate photography. A form of sustainability is present in Renée Mathews’ Denim Wigs, which notes the importance of hair in Black cultural expressions and repurposes old jeans to create hairstyles that serve as an alternative to synthetic methods of styling.

A common thread throughout the exhibition is the belief that personal and community connections will ultimately form the lifeblood of equitable futures.

One of Renée Mathews' Denim Wigs. Photo courtesy of Sadie MacDonald.

While we were at the gallery, Serena and I had an opportunity to chat with Andre Baynes, who curated Hacking Black Futures with Chiedza Pasipanodya. Andre told us how he approached artists of colour from the OCAD community and invited them to contribute works that support the exhibition’s themes. In addition to Andre Baynes and Chiedza Pasipanodya, the artists featured in Hacking Black Futures include the aforementioned Addae Nurse and Renée Mathews, along with Ene Agi, Denzel Arthur, Toni Cater, Lequanne Collins-Bacchus, Daejuawn Hamilton, Thomas Graham, Ashley Jane Lewis, Maisha Marshall-Ende, Kelvin Mendie, Michael Otchie, Kimani Peter, Peter Scott, and Olivia Spence.

A view of Living Lab by Andre Baynes and Ashley Jane Lewis. Photo courtesy of Sadie MacDonald.

In addition to curating the show, Andre also collaborated with Ashley Jane Lewis to make the plant-covered piece shown in the photo above, entitled Living Lab. Andre told us that this work started with him envisioning a typical desk workspace and then imagining it supporting living plant life. Serena and I were mesmerized by this piece. You become transfixed by the soothing fluidity of the moisture spreading out over the greenery. Living Lab is truly living, and never stagnant; it is maintained by the generated streams of gentle fog, and Andre also gave it a spritz of water during our visit. He told us that the look of the lab can change during the day depending on the humidity and temperature in the air. By having a miniature ecosystem occupying a desk, nature is beautifully incorporated into a home environment.

Tree Tank by Ashley Jane Lewis. Photo courtesy of Sadie MacDonald.

Another exhibit that blended science with domestic-focused art was Ashley Jane Lewis’ Tree Tank, which contains a living Jamaican orange tree bearing bright fruit. An accompanying booklet explains how some people of colour “want to feel connected to their heritage through the food they eat, while avoiding the oppression that comes from the growth, production, and transit of that food from its country of origin to their plate.” The orange tree on display is housed in a tank made of accessible materials, and as such provides a tangible vision of what it might look like for people to grow food from their own cultures within their own homes.

As Serena and I explored the exhibit, we also had the pleasure of speaking to Toni Cater, one of the artists in the show. A designer by trade, Toni created for this show a textile-inspired wallpaper design that envisions a connected unity between Black people and illustrates how community narratives are woven together through storytelling and sharing. Toni also explained to us the initiative behind another work on display, the LOUD Micro Studio Kiosk presented by Kimani Peter. This transportable kiosk contains a sound booth for Black artists to record their own music in, the output of which is then managed through the app produced by LOUD. This Black-owned initiative provides hopeful artists with an accessible way to make their voices heard, and supports them through every step of the process.

Artists are invited to sign up to use the LOUD Micro Studio Kiosk. Photo courtesy of Sadie MacDonald. 

The LOUD Micro Studio Kiosk, along with the other works in Hacking Black Futures, demonstrate the core meaning of the exhibit. Hacking Black Futures uplifts and mobilizes mindful community empathy. The artworks on display aim to show that marrying this communal empathy to new technologies and ideas will be the key to realizing a better Black future.

Hacking Black Futures ended its run at BAND on January 21st. However, I encourage you to visit BAND Gallery to explore its other offerings. Black History Month is approaching, but that doesn't mean you should only engage with the ideas of Black creators in February. These ideas are always present at any time, and everyone should become familiar with them. As Addae told us, “everyone is welcome” at BAND Gallery.

I also suggest you keep an eye on the artists involved in this show and see how they will continue to create new futures.