Yes, there are sessions on everything from working mothers to green building to public speaking basics. But if you're here in Denver go—now—to the Life Balance Spa (room 604) and get a chair massage.
This is the first year for this feature, and I'm thinking it's a keeper. It was the perfect 15-minute break from carrying a too-heavy bag, running from sessions to meetings to sessions and sitting for a long, long time.
There are also yoga and t'ai chi classes in the mornings and evenings. Fun fact: The yoga instructor also works with Shaquille O'Neal. He brought one of Shaq's shoes to class this morning!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Idea-pooloza
Look for a fresh idea to kick-start a membership campaign. Keep on top of the latest in media and technology gadgets for your museum. Or just sit and brainstorm. AAM's Marketplace of Ideas is chock full of inspiration. I literally have chills walking through here—okay, it's the convention center A/C—but this is one of the most incredible places at the annual meeting. You can practically see the wheels churning in everyone's minds!
The Marketplace of Ideas is hosted by the Standing Professional Committees of AAM, and no matter what your area of interest—curatorial, visitor research, development, marketing, education—there's a solution, idea, new thought or practical advice to glean. My only advice is to prioritize. It's only one day!
The Marketplace of Ideas is hosted by the Standing Professional Committees of AAM, and no matter what your area of interest—curatorial, visitor research, development, marketing, education—there's a solution, idea, new thought or practical advice to glean. My only advice is to prioritize. It's only one day!
Period Rooms Are Timeless
The image of museum professionals is that of a somber lot. That myth was thoroughly debunked by a Monday session at the AAM Annual Meeting, when talk of curatorship, literature and—egad, sex!—had a packed room roaring with laughter.
The session was titled "Exhibitions That Changed My Life," and leading off was noted educator, author and museum historian Marjorie Schwarzer. Her focus was on period rooms, their evolution in the museum toolkit and how over the years they have addressed history, immigrant assimilation, the desire to be rich and, yes, sex.
Schwarzer said that from the time of the first period room in America—George Washington's bedroom at Mt. Vernon, unveiled in the 1860s—period rooms have played a critical role in American institutions. Yet she also said that the perception of museums a century ago was that of "cluttered attics," and she had her audience laughing with her reference to John Updike's novella, "Museums and Women," in which he wrote movingly of his dread at the prospect of a visit to the local museum.
Yet, according to Schwarzer, period rooms also demonstrated our continuing "fascination with the super wealthy." She cited the Peacock Room of James MacNeil Whistler (now on display at Washington's Freer Gallery of Art), a creation that spawned numerous imitations—including one at Elvis's Graceland!—Dewey Blanton
The session was titled "Exhibitions That Changed My Life," and leading off was noted educator, author and museum historian Marjorie Schwarzer. Her focus was on period rooms, their evolution in the museum toolkit and how over the years they have addressed history, immigrant assimilation, the desire to be rich and, yes, sex.
Schwarzer said that from the time of the first period room in America—George Washington's bedroom at Mt. Vernon, unveiled in the 1860s—period rooms have played a critical role in American institutions. Yet she also said that the perception of museums a century ago was that of "cluttered attics," and she had her audience laughing with her reference to John Updike's novella, "Museums and Women," in which he wrote movingly of his dread at the prospect of a visit to the local museum.
Yet, according to Schwarzer, period rooms also demonstrated our continuing "fascination with the super wealthy." She cited the Peacock Room of James MacNeil Whistler (now on display at Washington's Freer Gallery of Art), a creation that spawned numerous imitations—including one at Elvis's Graceland!—Dewey Blanton
Monday, April 28, 2008
The Lines Were Led
At tonight's emerging museum professional event, "Lead Between the Lines" at the Tattered Cover Book Store, partygoers were charged with sharing thoughts on leadership from a book or song. The responses were as diverse as the crowd, which included those from all walks of the field.
The folks who stepped up to the open mic were inspired to lead by everything from Darwin to Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma to Where the Wild Things Are. AAM's Anne Goska applauded Wild Things hero Max for his fearlessness and urged those in the crowd to stand their ground. "Go out there and have no fear of those people gnashing their teeth at you," she said.
Denise Gray, one of the evening's emcees and an educator at the L.A. Museum of Contemporary Art, went out on perhaps the biggest limb by suggesting that founding-father punk-rockers the Sex Pistols provided an example of how to lead. She quoted: "God save the queen; she ain't no human being. There is no future in England's dreaming. Don't be told what you want. Don't be told what you need. There's no future, no future, no future for you."
"Leadership equals risk-taking," Gray explained. "Challenge management. Be your own leader. If it makes sense, make trouble."
The folks who stepped up to the open mic were inspired to lead by everything from Darwin to Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma to Where the Wild Things Are. AAM's Anne Goska applauded Wild Things hero Max for his fearlessness and urged those in the crowd to stand their ground. "Go out there and have no fear of those people gnashing their teeth at you," she said.
Denise Gray, one of the evening's emcees and an educator at the L.A. Museum of Contemporary Art, went out on perhaps the biggest limb by suggesting that founding-father punk-rockers the Sex Pistols provided an example of how to lead. She quoted: "God save the queen; she ain't no human being. There is no future in England's dreaming. Don't be told what you want. Don't be told what you need. There's no future, no future, no future for you."
"Leadership equals risk-taking," Gray explained. "Challenge management. Be your own leader. If it makes sense, make trouble."
International Attendees: Plus Ça Change...
At today's International Attendees Welcome Reception, I assumed there'd be a babel of languages—maybe someone would even give me a chance to use my French or Spanish. I'd also get to eavesdrop on conversations about what was surely the vastly different world of museum practice in other countries. According to Heather Berry, my colleague in the international programs department, the 150 or so people who showed up represented an impressive range of countries from around the world.
"Fundraising for exhibitions can get difficult," one man told his group.
"We're going to have to work that out with the director and the board," I heard someone in another cluster say.
"Which sessions are you going to?" asked somebody else.
Hmph. I wonder if museums in other countries worry about visitation, too. It really is a global museum village.
"Fundraising for exhibitions can get difficult," one man told his group.
"We're going to have to work that out with the director and the board," I heard someone in another cluster say.
"Which sessions are you going to?" asked somebody else.
Hmph. I wonder if museums in other countries worry about visitation, too. It really is a global museum village.
MuseumExposed
At high noon on Monday, MuseumExpo 2008 was officially launched with an opening reception. Buffet tables laden with Western food--barbecued beef and chicken, veggie chili, salads, desserts--were distributed throughout a huge exhibit hall that offers the largest showcase of museum products and services in North America.
Every year, it's one of the meeting's biggest attractions; many people buy day passes just to get into the Expo. This year, more than 350 exhibitors are hawking everything your museum could possibly need, from traveling exhibitions, framing and art handling to audio tours, book printers, liability insurance--even fossils, and who doesn't need those? You wander around and grab the freebies designed to lure you in: pens, chocolates, raffle entries, little reading lights attached to clips. Even if your museum doesn't need heated windows that eliminate condensation or an interactive exhibit that measures brain activity, you can spend some pleasurable time finding out what's out there and filing it away for future reference.
As an AAM staffer, I shouldn't use a word like "favorite," but my favorite booth, not only of the Expo but of all time, sells inversion massage therapy chairs. Oh . . . my . . . GOSH, are those things great. They look like Barcaloungers, but Barcaloungers with a difference. A salesguy asked if I wanted to try one of the three on display. "Watch out; you might never get up," said an attendee who was already splayed out in one.
I sat. The salesguy hit a button. The chair began to hum, to vibrate, to recline. Your body parts fit into depressions shaped like legs, buttocks, back, neck, head. I was happy enough with the humming, but then the massage truly started. Starting at your ankles and working its way north, the blessed contraption starts squeezing and releasing, massaging its way up along your legs and hindquarters, giving a sensation like a baker's rolling pin up your lower and upper back. ("The lumbar region and neck are the two main problem areas," explained the salesguy; "Whatever," I would have said if I'd been still capable of forming words.) The squeezing-releasing concludes at your neck, then the whole process repeats itself downward in reverse.
I took a brochure, even though they're $6,000. Well, $4,295 if ordered at the Expo, and the floor models will be discounted further after the meeting for locals who don't need delivery. Still too rich for my blood; it's mainly chiropractors and such who buy them. But someday. This I vow.
But oh, yeah, the Expo. It's the nerve center of the meeting, bringing together much of what you need into one spot. In addition to the booths, there are, for example, e-mail centers, a cafe and a museum store featuring goods from local museums. And just before you enter the hall, there's the AAM Bookstore, an exhibition of winning entries in AAM's annual Museum Publications Design Competition and booths for registration, information and the press. There are also lots of places for informal chatting. Check it out; when I was there, there wasn't even a line for the massage chairs.
Every year, it's one of the meeting's biggest attractions; many people buy day passes just to get into the Expo. This year, more than 350 exhibitors are hawking everything your museum could possibly need, from traveling exhibitions, framing and art handling to audio tours, book printers, liability insurance--even fossils, and who doesn't need those? You wander around and grab the freebies designed to lure you in: pens, chocolates, raffle entries, little reading lights attached to clips. Even if your museum doesn't need heated windows that eliminate condensation or an interactive exhibit that measures brain activity, you can spend some pleasurable time finding out what's out there and filing it away for future reference.
As an AAM staffer, I shouldn't use a word like "favorite," but my favorite booth, not only of the Expo but of all time, sells inversion massage therapy chairs. Oh . . . my . . . GOSH, are those things great. They look like Barcaloungers, but Barcaloungers with a difference. A salesguy asked if I wanted to try one of the three on display. "Watch out; you might never get up," said an attendee who was already splayed out in one.
I sat. The salesguy hit a button. The chair began to hum, to vibrate, to recline. Your body parts fit into depressions shaped like legs, buttocks, back, neck, head. I was happy enough with the humming, but then the massage truly started. Starting at your ankles and working its way north, the blessed contraption starts squeezing and releasing, massaging its way up along your legs and hindquarters, giving a sensation like a baker's rolling pin up your lower and upper back. ("The lumbar region and neck are the two main problem areas," explained the salesguy; "Whatever," I would have said if I'd been still capable of forming words.) The squeezing-releasing concludes at your neck, then the whole process repeats itself downward in reverse.
I took a brochure, even though they're $6,000. Well, $4,295 if ordered at the Expo, and the floor models will be discounted further after the meeting for locals who don't need delivery. Still too rich for my blood; it's mainly chiropractors and such who buy them. But someday. This I vow.
But oh, yeah, the Expo. It's the nerve center of the meeting, bringing together much of what you need into one spot. In addition to the booths, there are, for example, e-mail centers, a cafe and a museum store featuring goods from local museums. And just before you enter the hall, there's the AAM Bookstore, an exhibition of winning entries in AAM's annual Museum Publications Design Competition and booths for registration, information and the press. There are also lots of places for informal chatting. Check it out; when I was there, there wasn't even a line for the massage chairs.
A Landscape of Change
On our second official day in Denver, the impressive surroundings clearly have made an impression on annual meeting attendees. Today's general session—keynoted by environmentalist and author Terry Tempest Williams—focused on the land. AAM President Ford W. Bell welcomed a packed Wells Fargo Theatre to Denver, the highest city to host one of AAM's 102 annual meetings. At a mile above sea level, Denver is "the perfect place to discuss the high-minded and lofty ideals of this profession," Bell said.
But the snowcapped mountains don't reflect the ideals of this year's theme, leadership. "Unlike the topography all around Denver, leadership is not about hierarchy," Bell noted. All museum professionals, from newcomers to trustees, are critical to what Bell called a "simple bedrock truth"—that museums are working toward excellence. Museums are essentials, not luxuries, Bell continued, just as AAM is not a trade association but a cause. "There's no better cause in the world than our great museums, and that's how we're going to work," he said.
Williams joined in this assessment. Taking the stage after introductions from Denver Museum of Nature and Science CEO George Sparks and Mayor John Hickenlooper, Williams choked up as she thanked museum professionals, who she described as "storytellers and alchemists."
"Museums are wonderful places to quietly be subervise on behalf of the land," Williams said, noting that museums have found a place in every book she's written—environmentally focused works such as Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place and An Unspoken Hunger: Stories from the Field. She worked at the Utah Museum of Natural History for 15 years, raising eyebrows by bringing in outspoken speakers and organizing unusual events. (Read Museum Editor in Chief Susan Breitkopf's recent interview with Williams for the juicy details.)
Williams honored museums for their capacity to break boundaries, create communities and, most importantly, tell stories. Today, "environmental stewardship is the new story, the old story which we forgot and now remember," she said. Museums have the power to draw attention to environmental issues, such as a recent display at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art that featured chunks of ice from the endangered Arapahoe Glacier in an incubator: a glacier in intensive care.
As Hieronymus Bosch's painting The Garden of Earthly Delights led Williams to spend seven years "watching" the work, eventually writing the book Leap about the experience, it only takes one museum experience to inspire change. "All museums are small museums," she said. "One person, one painting: transformation."
But the snowcapped mountains don't reflect the ideals of this year's theme, leadership. "Unlike the topography all around Denver, leadership is not about hierarchy," Bell noted. All museum professionals, from newcomers to trustees, are critical to what Bell called a "simple bedrock truth"—that museums are working toward excellence. Museums are essentials, not luxuries, Bell continued, just as AAM is not a trade association but a cause. "There's no better cause in the world than our great museums, and that's how we're going to work," he said.
Williams joined in this assessment. Taking the stage after introductions from Denver Museum of Nature and Science CEO George Sparks and Mayor John Hickenlooper, Williams choked up as she thanked museum professionals, who she described as "storytellers and alchemists."
"Museums are wonderful places to quietly be subervise on behalf of the land," Williams said, noting that museums have found a place in every book she's written—environmentally focused works such as Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place and An Unspoken Hunger: Stories from the Field. She worked at the Utah Museum of Natural History for 15 years, raising eyebrows by bringing in outspoken speakers and organizing unusual events. (Read Museum Editor in Chief Susan Breitkopf's recent interview with Williams for the juicy details.)
Williams honored museums for their capacity to break boundaries, create communities and, most importantly, tell stories. Today, "environmental stewardship is the new story, the old story which we forgot and now remember," she said. Museums have the power to draw attention to environmental issues, such as a recent display at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art that featured chunks of ice from the endangered Arapahoe Glacier in an incubator: a glacier in intensive care.
As Hieronymus Bosch's painting The Garden of Earthly Delights led Williams to spend seven years "watching" the work, eventually writing the book Leap about the experience, it only takes one museum experience to inspire change. "All museums are small museums," she said. "One person, one painting: transformation."
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