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Featured
Story 3 Exhibit Firms Hired for ND Heritage Center Expansion Project KFYR-TV, 9 December 2011
NORTH DAKOTA, US – "The State Historical Society of North Dakota has hired Great Plains Exhibit Development Joint Venture to assist the historical society staff in designing, developing, and installing exhibits in the new galleries now under construction as part of the North Dakota Heritage Center expansion project. Great Plains Exhibit Development is made up of three exhibit firms: Lord Cultural Resources, Taylor Studios, and Xibitz, Inc. The three firms have collaborated on projects ranging from the Hong Kong Heritage Museum and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas to the Army Museum of Singapore and the National Archaeological Museum of Aruba, which is located in the Caribbean."
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Cultural News, a free service of Lord Cultural Resources, is released at the end of every week by our Librarians Brenda Taylor and Danielle Manning, with contributions from Ameline Coulombier and Camille Balmand of Lordculture and Lord Cultural Resources consultants Javier Jimenez and Veronica Blandon. Excerpts are directly quoted from the articles – please click on the links to read the full articles on the original news sites. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for the latest digest of cultural news. |
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Our Clients and Lord Cultural Resources in the News
MarketWatch, 9 December 2011
OTTAWA, ON – "Mr. Stuart Murray, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR), and His Excellency Wim Geerts, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Canada (Netherlands Embassy), signed a memorandum of understanding today that will facilitate collaboration for the promotion of human rights through joint projects and education. "Both Canada and the Netherlands play leading roles in the field of human rights," said Mr. Stuart Murray. "Our mandate speaks to a special, but not exclusive reference to Canada. This type of international partnership will allow us to collaborate in projects of international scope and further our mandate of enhancing knowledge about human rights and encouraging reflection, while challenging people to take action for human rights." [For more commentary on this topic, see also Rights museum signs memorandum of understanding with Netherlands embassy, By Staff Writer, Winnipeg Free Press, 9 December 2011]
Les musées municipaux parisiens veulent inciter les visiteurs à faire des dons Artclair, 14 December 2011
PARIS, FR – "Les 11 musées de la Ville de Paris, dont les collections permanentes sont accessibles gratuitement depuis 10 ans, vont faire appel à la générosité des visiteurs. Une délibération, proposée par les adjoints au maire, Christophe Girard et Danièle Pourtaud, doit être votée au Conseil de Paris le 14 décembre 2011. Les musées pourront installer, dès 2012, une urne dans leur hall d’accueil pour inciter les visiteurs à participer financièrement à l’entretien des collections."
Tate Board Reviewing Renewal Contract for BP Sponsorship Steve Delahoyde, Unbeige, 15 December 2011
LONDON, UK – "Maybe Time and Shepard Fairey are right and this truly is the year of the protestor, and maybe constant activism and things like oil spilling stunts really do work toward making change. At the end of last month, we wrote that protestors were preparing to ramp their activities back up in trying to stop the Tate from taking sponsorship money from British Petroleum, and that trustee Patrick Brill had broken ranks to come out against the museum’s association with the oil giant. Now it appears that all of those efforts may have worked to, at the very least, shake up the relationship a bit. The Guardian reports that the Tate’s board has been reviewing the sponsorship very closely as it nears BP’s three year financial pledge to the museum, which is set to end in 2012. While the institution hasn’t come right out and said that it’s thinking of no longer taking the company’s money, those in support of the move away see it as a positive sign that the Tate is even talking about the decision to renew with BP."
Knelman: Pecaut Centre for social innovation to open in Toronto Martin Knelman, Toronto Star, 14 December 2011
TORONTO, ON – "Wednesday marks the second anniversary of David Pecaut’s death. In 2011 his memory was honoured when Metro Square was renamed David Pecaut Square. But in 2012, Toronto’s great problem solver and master of brilliant new ideas will be honoured with an even more significant development — the creation of a well-funded nursery for developing the kind of social-improvement schemes that Pecaut virtually patented. Welcome to the David Pecaut Centre for Social Enterprise — a bold new organization to foster innovative programs of the sort that would have been championed by the intrepid, relentless upbeat Toronto booster, Luminato creator and mastermind of schemes to fix social problems. According to Helen Burstyn, Pecaut’s widow and one of the driving forces behind the new centre, the goal is to create a distinctive organization to inspire other social entrepreneurs by drawing on Pecaut’s example — celebrating his memory while striving to replicate his achievements." [For more commentary on this topic, see also, Social enterprise centre to be created in honour of Pecaut, By Michael Posner, The Globe and Mail, Published 13 December 2011 3:00AM EST]
Bemoaning the Canadian media’s lack of passion for Canadian artists like Jack Chambers Barry Chong, The Walrus (blog), 14 December 2011
TORONTO, ON – "Do we have more than four people? This is Jack Chambers, for God’s sake!" These are the words of a bewildered Art Gallery of Ontario foot soldier, uttered moments before the nearly media-less media preview for Jack Chambers: Light, Spirit, Time, Place, and Life, the gallery’s expansive tribute to Canada’s best-known artist outside the Group of Seven. I was surprised too — Chambers should not be a tough sell. [text omitted] To promote Chambers is to promote Canadian history and culture. University of Toronto professor Dennis Reid, arguably the country’s foremost expert on Canadian painting, claims that artists like Chambers may help decode our incoherent yet evolving identity."
Crowston AGA’s acting director Edmonton Journal, 9 December 2011
EDMONTON, AB – "The Art Gallery of Alberta's chief curator and deputy director has agreed to steer the gallery until a permanent executive director can be hired. Catherine Crowston will serve as the AGA's acting executive director beginning in January. The current director, Gilles Hébert, is leaving at the end of December for a job in Winnipeg. He has been with the AGA just two years. Hébert announced his resignation in November after accepting a position as the vice-president of museum practices with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg."
Museums
Peterborough Museum may start to charge for admission Matthew Reville, The Evening Telegraph (PeterboroughToday.co.uk), 15 December 2011
PETERBOROUGH, UK – "Heritage bosses are considering introducing an entry fee when Peterborough Museum re-opens in Easter 2012. Vivacity, Peterborough’s culture and leisure trust, is looking at the proposal to start charging visitors when the museum in Priestgate re-opens in the new year. The trust’s heritage services manager, Sarah Stannage, said the proposal was being considered but would not confirm when a decision will be made or how much the charge could be."
Quick Takes: Stanford plans museum Los Angeles Times, 15 December 2011
PALO ALTO, CA – "Having been given a prized collection of contemporary American art earlier this year, Stanford University on Wednesday announced plans for a new $30.5-million museum to house it. New York-based Ennead Architects will design a 30,000-square-foot building devoted to the Anderson Collection — 121 works by 86 artists collected by the Bay Area family of Harry and Mary Margaret Anderson, including Jackson Pollock's 1947 "Lucifer," Willem de Kooning's mid-1950s "Woman Standing — Pink," and pieces by Ellsworth Kelly, Mark Rothko and Franz Kline, among others. Plans call for a late 2014 opening."
Speed Art Museum to close for three years during renovations Ed Green, Bizjournals.com, 15 December 2011
LOUISVILLE, KY – "Louisville’s Speed Art Museum will close its doors in October of next year and remain closed for about three years as it undergoes a major renovation. Plans for a $44 million renovation of the museum have been in the works for about four years. But this week museum officials decided to close while the improvements are being made."
Vancouver Maritime Museum buoyed by city funds Jessica Werb, Straight.com, 15 December 2011
VANCOUVER, BC – "The Vancouver Maritime Museum has been awarded $902,000 by the City of Vancouver for upgrades, three years after it was threatened with closure. Council approved the allocation of funds to the museum on December 13. The money will go toward a number of improvements to the VMM’s building, as well as maintenance work on the St. Roch, the RCMP Arctic-exploration vessel housed in the museum."
Les députés péquistes demandent plus de soutien pour les musées Le Placoteux, 15 décembre 2011
QUEBEC, CANADA – "Les députés du Parti québécois de l'Est-du-Québec demandent à la ministre de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition féminine, Christine Saint-Pierre que les institutions muséales reconnues non soutenues bénéficient d’une mesure transitoire de financement pour l’année 2012-2013 et leur adhésion au programme d’aide au fonctionnement."
New museum launches with a bang Robert Speer, Newsreview.com, 15 December 2011
CALIFORNIA, US – "I dig art museums. I’ve spent days in some and weeks in one, the Prado, when I lived in Madrid for a year. The entry fee was five pesetas. That was eight cents American to see Goya’s caprichos and Velásquez’s Las Meninas, among so many other masterworks. When I lived in Idaho about 10 years ago, I went often to the Boise Art Museum, an excellent regional facility. Besides exhibits mounted out of its permanent collection, it regularly hosted traveling exhibits, shows by up-and-coming artists, musical events, poetry readings and much more. Boiseans saw the museum as the heart of their cultural life. So I’m excited that an effort to create a Museum of Northern California Art is under way in Chico and Butte County. What makes it seem especially promising is that it’s starting off with a major acquisition, thanks to Reed Applegate."
Gerardo Rueda se traslada a Oporto Ana Marcos, El País, 14 de diciembre de 2011.
OPORTO, PORTUGAL – "Su hijo y heredero inaugura en Portugal el primer centro de arte dedicado a uno de los mayores exponentes de la abstracción española. El Atlántico, agitado por las embestidas del viento del otoño, golpea la costa sur de Oporto para llamar la atención del caudaloso río Duero, que atraviesa en calma la ciudad portuguesa en un diálogo propio de un paisaje del pintor británico Turner. Como el océano y el río, Gerardo Rueda (Madrid, 1926-1996) conversaba con sus maestros clásicos (Piero della Francesca, Fra Angelico, Bellini, Velázquez, El Greco y Goya), al tiempo que, con el gusto que su pulida pintura y escultura le otorgaban, coleccionaba el trabajo de sus coetáneos: Fernando Zóbel, Carmen Laffón y Antonio López. De este encuentro de corrientes y amigos resulta el Centro de Arte Moderna Gerardo Rueda que se inaugura esta tarde en Matosinhos, un distrito al sur de Oporto."
Computer History Museum Receives Google.org Grant for Digital Repository Preserving and Creating Access to Original Digital and Digitized Artifacts MarketWatch, 14 December 2011
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA – "The Computer History Museum announced today that Google.org has provided a grant of $500,000 for the Museum to preserve its valuable digital collection chronicling the birth of computing through the modern networked world. Support from Google.org will allow the Computer History Museum to create a Digital Repository infrastructure that will effectively preserve its present digital collection as well as future acquisitions, to prevent the loss of digital material through physical degradation and digital obsolescence, as well as support increased storage capacity, to allow the Museum to expand its collection to include new media, such as email, websites, databases and datasets."
Treasury rules stop museums spending donors’ cash Nationals reluctantly set up trusts to help gain access to their own reserves Martin Bailey, The Art Newspaper, 14 December 2011
BRITAIN, UK – "National museums are reluctantly setting up charitable trusts to bypass Treasury restrictions on spending future financial reserves. Current reserves, much of them from philanthropic donations, total more than £285m (The Art Newspaper, November 2010, p8). The British Museum (BM), the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) and the National Portrait Gallery are among the institutions establishing trusts. A year ago, Neil MacGregor, the director of the BM and author of a report on museum endowments, described the situation as "positively damaging from a charitable perspective." The creation of independent trusts would be "a cumbersome and awkward structure designed to accommodate heavy-handed bureaucracy rather than encourage philanthropy," he said."
Folklife Museum to close for renovations Heather Mays Beck, Farragut Press, 14 December 2011
FARRAGUT, TN – "Farragut Folklife Museum director Julia Jones-Barham is looking to bring the Town’s historical and cultural centerpiece, the Museum, into the 21st Century – just in time for Civil War sesquicentennial celebrations that begin next year. And doing all of that will require a nearly two-month closure. Farragut Folklife Museum, housed in Town Hall, will close Dec. 19 for renovations and refreshing, and will reopen the night of Feb. 2 with a ribbon-cutting, informative dialogue from some of the area’s historians and other festivities."
Don’t like the name of new art museum? Move on Michael Putney, Miami Herald, 13 December 2011
MIAMI, FL – "Welcome to the intersection of art, ego, philanthropy and jealousy. It’s where you’ll find the Jorge M. Perez Art Museum of Miami-Dade County. My initial reaction to renaming the Miami Art Museum for Jorge Perez was negative. Why should our stunning new $225 million civic art museum — with $103 million coming from taxpayers — be named for any individual, no matter how generous his donation? The decision by MAM’s board of trustees to change the name struck me as weak-kneed and wrong-headed. And the requirement by Perez to do so as arrogant and self-aggrandizing. I said as much on TV. But I’ve reconsidered. After speaking to Perez and looking at how other arts institutions are funded here and across the country, I’ve concluded that Perez should be thanked, not condemned for his $35 million gift to MAM. If the price is for the museum to bear his name, hang his art and be his legacy, well, why not? He’s certainly not the first South Florida art patron to make a deal like this." [See also Lauder Shows Up Miami Developer Museum Deal: Lance Esplund, By Lance Esplund, Bloomberg Businessweek, 14 December 2011]
El Ayuntamiento de Barcelona creará un abono único para todos sus museos La Vanguardia, 13 de diciembre de 2011
BARCELONA, SPAIN – "El Ayuntamiento de Barcelona ha aprobado este martes crear un abono único válido para toda la red de museos de la ciudad, que el consistorio quiere incluir en las ordenanzas fiscales -tasas e impuestos- de 2013, si bien aún tiene que estudiar las características del nuevo pase."
Transportation Museum opens its doors Mark Hughes Cobb, Tuscaloosa News, 13 December 2011
TUSCALOOSA, AL – "An audience of financial, aesthetic and political supporters applauded the opening of the Mildred Westervelt Warner Transportation Museum on Tuesday morning, the culmination of planning and renovations that took about seven years. "This is a long-awaited day," said Theresa Lewis, economic development coordinator for the city of Tuscaloosa, who helped run the project. Applications were made in 2004 and federal funds came the next year. The project has been underway at various levels since then, Lewis said."
Cuno on Bomford's departure and hiring a new museum director Jori Finkel, Los Angeles Times, 13 December 2011
LOS ANGELES, CA – "We can now cross one person off the list of possible museum directors for the Getty: David Bomford, who has served as the museum’s acting director for nearly two years without much fanfare or criticism, has announced that he is leaving the museum Feb. 1. In an email sent to Getty colleagues Tuesday, Bomford wrote that he will "return to London, where I plan to continue to pursue research, scholarship and writing." Deeper in the email, he added: "As you know a search for a permanent director is underway and, until the new Director is hired and in place, [J. Paul Getty Trust CEO and President] Jim Cuno has elected to serve as Acting Director of the Museum." [For more commentary on this topic, see also Acting Getty Museum director David Bomford is leaving, By Kelly Scott, Los Angeles Times, 13 December 2011, and Getty Museum’s Acting Director is Leaving, By Carol Vogel, The New York Times, 14 December 2011]
One Man’s Passion Births Islamic Museum David Byrd, VOA News, 13 December 2011
WASHINGTON, DC – "Washington D.C.’s Mall is the home of many of the city’s finest museums, housing works of the masters at the National Museum of Art, historic aircraft at the Air and Space Museum and America’s Native heritage at the American Indian Museum. But one man saw that something was missing: Amir Muhammad couldn’t find a museum that showed Islam’s history in America. So he started digging. His results - including photos, artifacts, and displays - have become America’s Islamic Heritage Museum and Cultural Center in Southeast Washington, DC."
Nelson-Atkins Museum Given National Accreditation Kansas City infoZine, 13 December 2011
KANSAS CITY, MO – "Attendance at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City jumped significantly in the 2011 calendar year, to 410,000 visitors. In 2010, 359,000 visitors came to the museum. The higher numbers are attributed to a renewed sense of energy surrounding the exhibitions and events offered by the Nelson-Atkins." [For more commentary on this topic, see also Nelson-Atkins Museum in KC sees attendance jump in 2011, The Republic, 14 December 2011]
Iraq museum pays smugglers for looted treasures Arwa Damon, CNN, 13 December 2011
SULAIMANIYA, IRAQ – "Iraq's second largest museum in Sulaimaniya is recovering stolen artifacts by paying smugglers to return the treasures. Located in the semi-autonomous northern region of Kurdistan, the Slemani Museum has taken drastic measures to refill display cabinets following looting. "The position of not just UNESCO but the international museum community is that we don't buy back looted objects because it encourages looting. Simple. Full stop," says Stuart Gibson, director of the UNESCO Sulaimaniya Museum Project. "The Kurdish authorities took a very difficult and I must admit a very courageous position and they said we are going to buy these objects," he added."
British Museum to boast new gallery and exhibitions Opodo Travel News, 13 December 2011
LONDON, UK – "The British Museum has highlighted some of the experiences on offer to people planning breaks in London next year by providing details of a new gallery and exhibitions set to open at the attraction."
Passive Solar Museum In Ordos, China Sits Empty: Will China's Real Estate Bubble Burst Soon? Kimberley Mok, Treehugger, 13 December 2011
ORDOS, CHINA – "Though the sustainability of building large planned cities out in the middle of the desert is rather questionable, it doesn't seem to stop anyone from doing it. Case in point: Ordos, one of China's latest planned developments, is located in the desert of Inner Mongolia and modelled after Dubai. It is also a city that was built overnight on the coal and natural gas fortunes of the region, boasting a "hot" property market and newly constructed houses and beautiful civic buildings, like this passive solar museum by MAD Architects. [text omitted] There's only one problem though: according to a number of reports, this new development area of Ordos, dubbed "Kangbashi" -- is intended for 1 million residents, but lies mainly empty, despite the local government's efforts to convince people to move from the older, established city center of 1.5 million inhabitants, 15 miles away." [See also Ordos Museum by MAD, Dezeen, 13 December 2011, and China built a ridiculously science fictional museum in a city where nobody lives, By Cyriaque Lamar, io9, 13 December 2011]
How Do Staid Museums Navigate a User-Generated World? Bill Adair, Benjamin Filene, and Laura Koloski, George Mason University's History News Network, 12 December 2011
GLOBAL – "The traditional expertise of the history museum seems to be challenged at every turn. Web 2.0 invites ordinary people to become their own archivists, curators, historians, and designers as they organize images on Snapfish, identify artifacts through Flickr, post text on wikis, and create websites with WordPress and Weebly. Bricks-and-mortar museums, meanwhile, in pursuit of "civic engagement," give community members more say in what stories the museum showcases and how they get told. Exhibitions frequently shun the authoritative voice."
Integrating the Museum into the City, the new SFMOMA expansion Michael DiTullo, Core 77, 12 December 2011
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – "Earlier this year I was asked to join the accessions committee for the Architecture and Design Department of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. It seems it was an opportune time, as the museum is making some exciting changes, most notable of which is a new expansion of the museum itself. The expansion project will double the existing gallery space to 130,000 square feet, and will also heavily modify the existing galleries to differ in scale, materials and lighting specifically designed to showcase a range of art, from photography to installation, video, painting and sculpture."
El Centro Niemeyer cierra provisionalmente desde mañana Masdearte.com, 12 de Diciembre de 2011
AVILÉS, SPAIN – "El cierre provisional del Centro Niemeyer se hará patente mañana. Ayer se desmontaba la exposición dedicada a Hugo Fontela con la que los actuales gestores del centro de Avilés daban por finalizada la programación. De seguir así las cosas, la fundación cuya gestión ha sido puesta en entredicho por el actual gobierno Principado también dejará el viernes las instalaciones. Posteriormente, las instalaciones pasarán a depender exclusivamente de la Administración regional." [see also La fundación Niemeyer anuncia acciones legales contra el Principado de Asturias, By Javier Cuartas, El País, 14 December 2011]
Un projet de 88 millions pour un nouveau musée d’art contemporain Éric Clément, La Presse, 12 December 2011
MONTREAL, QC – "Le Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal (MACM) mise sur un projet d'agrandissement de 88 millions de dollars qui pourrait voir le jour d'ici à 2016, si Québec et Ottawa l'appuient. La direction du MACM a présenté jeudi les détails du projet de reconstruction du musée sur son emplacement actuel, entre la place des Festivals et la Place des Arts. Le projet verrait le jour en 2015 ou en 2016 si Québec et Ottawa acceptent de payer 82% du coût total, soit 73 millions. Le reste (15 millions) proviendrait des donateurs, des partenaires et du grand public."
UNI Museum in Cedar Falls Faces Uncertain Future The UNI Museum has served the community for over a century, though budget and location problems mean the institution might have to struggle not to become history James Frazier, Cedar Falls Patch, 12 December 2011
IOWA, US – "After years of service, the current location of University of Northern Iowa’s University Museums might soon be history. For 119 years, University Museums has served the community as a museum and nontraditional classroom. Members of the public can visit the museum free of charge to view exhibitions, while UNI students and faculty can browse the collection of animals, artifacts and fossils for educational and research purposes. Recently, the UNI administration declared the current building to be in disrepair and unfit to continue housing the valuable collection. So far, a fitting replacement site has not been found, and the budget is insufficient to entirely repair or rebuild the current location."
Troisième jour de grève au Musée des arts décoratifs Artclair, 12 December 2011
PARIS, FRANCE – "Une partie du personnel du Musée des arts décoratifs était toujours en grève lundi 12 décembre 2012 (jour de fermeture du musée) à l’appel des syndicats. Les revendications portent notamment sur les salaires et la mutuelle des employés. Près de 150 salariés (source syndicale) administratifs, d’accueil et de surveillance des Arts Décoratifs sont entrés en grève jeudi 8 décembre 2011 à l’appel des syndicats CFDT, CGC, CFDT, FO et UNSA pour protester contre la politique salariale de l’association, qui gère quatre musées (arts décoratifs, mode et textile, publicité, Nissim de Camondo), l’école Camondo ainsi que la bibliothèque des arts décoratifs et les Ateliers du Carrousel."
New Arts of Japan Gallery to culminate five-year initiative to expand presentation of Asian art Recent News, artdaily.org, 12 December 2011
HOUSTON, TX – "The new, permanent Arts of Japan Gallery at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will open to the public on Sunday, February 19. The Japan gallery will be the final installation in a suite of permanent Arts of Asia galleries surrounding Cullinan Hall in the Caroline Wiess Law Building, culminating an effort begun in 2007 to expand the presentation of Asian art at the museum."
Kansas’ Nerman Museum celebrates the unorthodox Wayne Anderson, Columbia Daily Tribune, 11 December 2011
OVERLAND PARK, KS – "Among the many striking examples of imaginative art at the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art in Overland Park, Kan., were two pieces that stood out even in a setting of unusual displays. The first was a projection by the controversial fashion designer and artist Peggy Noland that showed a series of pictures of the fashion police destroying her costumes. Each scene starts with a large colorful cabinet of markedly different clothes obliterated in intimidating ways. One is by an explosion replayed in variations one might expect to see on the show "MythBusters." Then a similar display is set afire with flames devouring the clothes. Next, a cabinet is dropped from a height and destroyed. Finally, a clone is allowed to fall over and slowly sink into a lake. The destructions are repeated in short shots. We found this quite impactful."
Human rights museum a place for introspection: culture minister Taiwan News, 10 December 2011
TAIPEI, TAIWAN – "The head of the Council for Cultural Affairs (CCA) recognized the value of history that records negative human conduct as he opened a national human rights museum preparatory office Saturday. "Transforming such conduct into material for public education, it can be used by people in future generations as a warning or to engage in self-reflection," CCA Minister Ovid Tzeng said in addressing the inauguration ceremony held at the Jingmei Human Rights Memorial and Cultural Park in Taipei. Speaking of Taiwan's two human rights cultural parks, situated in Jingmei and Green Island, Tzeng said the facilities were founded to "preserve the negative cultural assets that represent the development of human rights and politics in Taiwan." [For more commentary on this topic, see also National Human Rights Museum launched in Taiwan, By Grace Kuo, Taiwan Today, 12 December 2011]
New boss takes helm at maritime museum Steve Meacham, The Sydney Morning Herald, 10 December 2011
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – "Kevin Sumption, a former associate director of Sydney's Powerhouse Museum, is the new director of the Australian National Maritime Museum. The federal Arts Minister, Simon Crean, announced the appointment yesterday following the retirement of Mary-Louise Williams after 23 years at the Darling Harbour institution, the past 12 of which she spent as director of Sydney's only federal museum."
Dianne Lister, ROM governors recognized as top fundraising executive and woman of influence Recent News, artdaily.org, 9 December 2011
TORONTO, ON – "Robert Farquharson, Chairman of the ROM Governors, congratulates Dianne Lister, President & Executive Director of the ROM Governors, for being acknowledged as one of Canada’s Top 25 Women of Influence and as one of Canada’s top 20 professional philanthropic fundraising executives for her contribution to the publication of Excellence in Fundraising Canada. This recognition highlights the leadership at the ROM and provides a valuable public platform to profile the world-class philanthropic work of the ROM Governors. In September 2011, Dianne was named one of Canada’s Top 25 Women of Influence among some of Canada’s most talented women across the business, NGO, professional services, health and public sectors. Women of Influence Inc. is dedicated to the advancement of professional women. The organization produces a quarterly magazine, featuring inspirational stories on the triumphs and tribulations of women across Canada and around the globe, as well as events across the country."
Why it’s so good to be a university-owned museum Thomas Söderqvist, Medical Museion, 9 December 2011
DENMARK – "Stefanie S. Jandl and Mark S. Gold are planning an edited volume tentatively titled Academic Museums, to be published by MuseumsEtc. next summer. The volume shall examine successful strategies, tactics and activities within the academic museum community internationally, and the editors are particularly interested in innovative practical experiences that can be applied within the wider museum community. Their call for contributions to the volume is exciting because it sums up what I think are some of the major strengths of a university-owned museum like ours."
Museums club together for future Elizabeth Ann Macgregor, The Australian, 9 December 2011
AUSTRALIA – "There has been much debate in Australia around what the future holds for the arts. A great deal of effort has been put into drafting responses to the National Cultural Policy, the government's first legislated effort in 15 years to put the arts on the national agenda. In NSW, the Liberal government has been vocal in its desire to promote the importance of the arts, and in Western Australia a new partnership with New York's Museum of Modern Art has substantial state government support. But these positive signs are set against a worrying backdrop of economic uncertainty, in terms of corporate sponsorship and public sector funding. These concerns were thrown into relief by a recent conference organised by the International Council of Museums."
Toronto couple opens their own museum Murray Whyte, The Toronto Star, 9 December 2011
TORONTO, ON – "Samara Walbohm arrives with a steel-grey knit toque pulled low over her eyes, clutching a bowl of picked-over oatmeal. It’s the week of the opening of Scrap Metal, the new gallery/art foundation/private museum (“We’re still not quite sure what to call it,” she says) that she and husband Joe Shlesinger have started in a squat cinder block building near Bloor and Lansdowne, and anything that saves a minute or two, like breakfast on the run, helps."
Fort Frances museum fees being waived during off-season Duane Hicks, Fort Frances Times Online, 9 December 2011
FORT FRANCES, ON – "While user fees will be going up in the new year at other town facilities, admission rates to the Fort Frances Museum have been waived during the off-season (Thanksgiving to Victoria Day) for a two-year trial basis. The museum, however, will put out a box to collect donations from visitors during that time. As well, admission to the museum and heritage sites will remain status quo during the peak season. The request from museum curator Sherry George to do so was approved by council earlier this week."
Access to museum's artifacts with click of the mouse Daily Express, 9 December 2011
KOTA KINABALU, MALAYSIA – "Now everyone in the world can access the Sabah Museum Department's artifacts with a just a click of the mouse at a minimal charge. The department's Sabah Museum Repository Information Cultural Heritage System (Smriches), according to Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, Datuk Masidi Manjun, is a portal aimed at reaching out to the public apart from just viewing galleries. "With more than a million items I believe Smriches would be able to provide the information required by everyone on our cultural heritage," he said in his speech read by his Assistant Minister Datuk Bolkiah Ismail at the launching of Smriches on Thursday. "I was made to understand Sabah Museum is one of the earliest to develop such information data base," he added."
Belding Children's Museum under construction; to open in fall of 2012, be free to public Karin Armbruster (Sentinel-Standard), The Republic, 9 December 2011
BELDING, MI — "Due to the Belrockton Museum Board's decision earlier this year, children throughout the Belding community and beyond will be able to enjoy their own place to learn, build and explore. The second floor of the museum is currently under construction to house the Belding Children's Museum, which will showcase eight separate rooms featuring a different theme to create a focus of learning and fun coinciding with the regional area. Each colorful room will host hands-on displays to enhance the interactive and hands-on experience of each child visitor."
Le Musée Rodin ferme partiellement pour travaux dès janvier 2012 Artclair, 9 décembre 2011
PARIS, FRANCE – "Le Musée Rodin a donné de plus amples informations sur sa campagne de travaux. Les opérations de rénovation, estimées à 7,5 millions d’euros, seront étalées sur 2 ans. De janvier à mars 2012, l’hôtel de Biron, qui abrite les expositions permanentes, sera fermé au public. Les espaces seront ensuite rouverts partiellement jusqu’en 2014. L’architecte Dominique Brard a été choisi pour réaliser la nouvelle scénographie."
Museum scared to open ancient Roman wine The Local, 9 December 2011
SPEYER, WEST GERMANY – "Scientists want to study samples of the world’s oldest wine, currently on display at the Historical Museum of the Palatinate in the western German city of Speyer. There’s just one problem: everyone’s afraid to open the bottle. The glass bottle, thought to be at least 1,650 years old, was found in a Roman grave near Speyer in 1867 and put on display at the museum. Since then, it’s been handled extremely carefully, and been on display in the exact same spot in the museum for 100 years."
A better way to create exhibitions? Mark Walhimer, Museum Planning, 8 December 2011
UNITED STATES – "A year ago we started work on a 15,000 square foot start up Science Center. Most Science Centers cost approximately $350-$500 per sq. ft. (see 2011 exhibition cost survey). This Science Center had neither the time nor the budget to go through the typical museum design process; prototyping, value engineering, fabrication and installation process. I suggested an “off the shelf” process. We would create schematic designs of the areas of the science center, create a storyline for each area, a color palette, then go and look for new or used existing exhibits that would work within the developed frame work. Using this methodology, we set a budget of $1.2 m for 15,000 square feet ($80 per square foot). For the $1.2 m, we took the project through 50% design development, purchased the exhibits, managed the project, shipped the exhibits and exhibition installation. We were able to design, purchase, deliver and install the exhibits in less than one year at a significantly lower cost."
UI requests hearing with FEMA over art museum Emily Schettler, Press-Citizen.com, 8 December 2011
IOWA, US – "The University of Iowa has requested an open hearing with officials at the Federal Emergency Management Agency to discuss the status of funding for the UI Museum of Art. UI spokesman Tom Moore said Thursday that the request was made two weeks ago after the school waited more than five months for a response from the agency on an appeal filed earlier this year. Moore said the school still has not heard back. UI and FEMA are at odds over who should pay to replace the art museum, which was heavily damaged in the 2008 flood."
'Green' museum to rise in QC’s memorial circle Julie M. Aurelio, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 8 December 2011
QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES – "The Quezon City government will soon be putting up a "green" social history museum on the grounds of Quezon Memorial Circle. To be designed by architect Jun Palafox, the structure will feature green technology like green roofing and vertical gardens. Mayor Herbert Bautista and Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte led officials in a ground-breaking ceremony on Monday to signal the start of construction. The museum, which took three years to plan, is expected to be completed in six months."
Le Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal veut s’agrandir Radio-Canada, 8 décembre 2011
MONTREAL, QC – "Le Musée d'art contemporain (MAC) propose un ambitieux plan d'agrandissement de 88 millions de dollars, qui passerait par la reconstruction de l'édifice qu'il occupe actuellement, au coeur du Quartier des spectacles, à Montréal. La direction du MAC demande la participation des gouvernements de Québec et d'Ottawa, et s'engage à contribuer à raison de 10 millions de dollars au projet avec des dons privés, a appris Radio-Canada. « C'est une transformation complète de l'édifice que nous voulons [text omitted]. Si on veut un nouveau musée, c'est que notre collection a énormément grandi », explique Paulette Gagnon, directrice générale du MAC."
Stoney Creek women take initiative to reopen landmark Kevin Werner, Hamilton Spectator, 8 December 2011
STONEY CREEK, ON – "Nearly a year after the Federated Women’s Institutes of Ontario (FWIO) abruptly closed the Erland Lee Museum, a new plan could reopen the historic building next year. Lynn Ruigrok, the FWIO’s executive director, confirmed the organization’s board approved a two-year pilot project that would have volunteers operate the museum."
La longue route vers le musée du rock québécois Jean-Christophe Laurence, La Presse, 8 décembre 2011
MONTREAL, QC – "En 2009, Patrice Caron a eu une vision: il a rêvé que tous les objets patrimoniaux de l'histoire du rock québécois seraient réunis dans un musée. Deux ans plus tard, son idée court toujours. Et il met tout en oeuvre pour la mener jusqu'au bout. Après une exposition temporaire présentée cet été au Centre Pierre-Péladeau, il organise lundi soir un «encan du rock» qui l'aidera à financer son projet."
Hungarian national gallery director resigns in protest Backlash in Budapest to proposed merger with Museum of Fine Arts Richard Unwin, The Art Newspaper, 7 December 2011
HUNGARY – "The general director of the Hungarian National Gallery, Ferenc Csák, has announced that he will resign on 31 December in protest at the planned merger of the institution with the city’s Szépmuvészeti Múzeum (Museum of Fine Arts). "I did not feel it was fair to be involved in a process I have been criticising and don’t agree with," says Csák, who has led the national art museum since 2010, which is housed in the Buda Palace . Preparations for the merger of the two institutions, which hold Hungary’s most important art collections, are under way. The national gallery is due to lose its independent status on 1 March 2012. Csák’s position as general director was due to be abolished the day before.The merger is being overseen by László Baán, the director of the fine arts museum, who has been awarded a government commission to create a museum quarter in Budapest (The Art Newspaper, November, p26)."
Leonardo: What’s a show like you doing in a space like this? Leonardo da Vinci deserves better than the National Gallery’s basement Simon Tait, The Independent, 6 December 2011
LONDON, UK – "Last week the national museums and galleries were celebrating 10 years of free admission, hard fought for by some. The trustees of the National Gallery, however, had been aloof from that debate. They had never charged, and when in the 1970s Edward Heath suggested they might like to be able to, they not only eschewed the idea, they said they did not want to do so at any time in the future. The public should never have to pay to see pictures they already owned. It makes a kind of ironic obscenity of the National Gallery's record-breaking loan exhibition, Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan, for which tickets are circulating on the black market for 16 times the cover price of £16. What is far worse, though, is that those lucky enough to be able to get into the "once in a lifetime show" have to see it in dingy, cramped rooms two floors below ground level, space that was never meant for exhibitions, let alone blockbusters like the Leonardo." |
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