"The museum should take every opportunity to develop its role as an educational resource used by all sections of the population or specialised group that the museum is intended to serve". This is one of the key statements in the Code of Professional Ethics of the International Council of Museums. Although adopted as far back as 1986, this requirement has proven to be increasingly important.

In many ways, museums can be seen to represent 'institutionalised exclusion' (Richard Sandell). They operate a host of mechanisms that may serve to hinder or prevent access to their services by a range of groups. In recent years, museums have paid increasing attention to issues of representation, participation and access, often denoted by the term 'audience development.'

Tyne & Wear Museums in Newcastle in the UK is one of the museum organisations that have adopted a proactive role in response to the international debate on the social role of museums. Their mission is defined as 'To help people determine their place in the world and understand their identities, so enhancing their self-respect and their respect for others.' In Newcastle they believe that the museum can (or should) inspire and challenge people to explore their world and open up new horizons. A museum should even act as an agent of social and economic regeneration. This mission is pursued by 'maximising access to our outstanding collections, through research, scholarship and lively interpretation, [and by] ensuring that our displays, exhibitions and programmes are wide-ranging, entertaining and effective.'

The same point of view is reflected in the new definition as used by the Museums Association: "Museums enable people to explore collections for inspiration, learning and enjoyment. They are institutions that collect, safeguard, and make accessible artefacts and specimens, which they hold in trust for society." This definition emphasises the purpose of museums, but also lists its responsibilities. Museums make their unique contribution to the public by collecting, preserving, and interpreting the things of the world. It is incumbent on museums 'to preserve unimpaired for the future the significant material that comprises the museum collections' (ICOM code). Taken as a whole, museum collections and exhibition materials represent the world’s natural and cultural common wealth.

The new social reality also affects this preservation function. Collecting is not longer a core activity. The new museological approach asks for 'collection development,' an integrated methodology to optimise the museum's resources. Since disposal is as important a tool as collecting, collection development should be discussed within the context of regional, national, or perhaps even international museum policies.
With social inclusion and audience development at the one hand, and collection development at the other, new museum policies ask for a new view on professionalism. This new view should be based on adequate, new theoretical frame works. The Reinwardt Academy in Amsterdam is one of the institutions that has made a major contribution to the development of such a new theoretical framework. Its programs are theory based, but practice oriented, aiming to create invaluable tools to stimulate performance excellence in the museums of the 21st century.

 

Author:
Peter van Mensch
Course Director Master's Degree Program in Museology
Reinwardt Academy
Amsterdam School of the Arts
The Netherlands