THE CULTURE WARS (VIII)

The new museology

LYNNE MUNSON

THE CULTURE WARS (VIII)

The new museology

LYNNE MUNSON

The mindset of modern man today is an expectation level in a museum to react to and acquire information from a primary experience of viewing art. The sensory experience we create is to somehow cluster the information for come out with a personal definition of art versus other aspects of reality we everyday perceive. The culture wars expresses how we as society in general, depend on art museums to provide thru sensory experience and visual detail or representation, the best examples of man’s product with respect to its civilization.

The plight of pluralistic institutions, as the article discusses, is the movement of many museums to alter their physical façade, revamping exhibit programs and changing the idea of aesthetic quality for the masses. The original intent of simply enriching the viewer’s minds, through the use of its celebrated aesthetic excellence regardless of origin, has evolved to a prescriptive institution, dedicated to a different narrative and deconstruction. The objective of such revisionist art museum is to replace the concept of just a showcase of progressive evolution of artistic achievement to, (to quote) a hero-less tale of cultural production.

The article also states Arthur Danto, an art critic and Columbia professor, whose words expresses the “museum of interest and identity” which emphasizes the visits to the museum is not an intellectual act, but a political one. Our response to art is characterized by our demographic properties; such as race, class, and sex, however the revisionist museum assumes we seek art to affirm our group identity. The experience of art starts from an interest; an inclination to further affirm his/her group status which the viewer belongs. Realizing this art is there for the sake there is that interest.

The revisionist museum, as a result, has works catered to specific interests and genres for the different subclasses. A typical Filipino middle class office worker would want to see works that is done by or produced at least of his or her social class. As cited, Black visitors will be only interested in African art, with many permutations of the same race-class-gender based diversity allows.

The change from the single audience which in the early days of the museums hosted by the elite and the wealthy to showcase their collections, was for the visitor seeking to experience greatness. Connoisseurship was the practice of museums relied on determination of quality, setting aside stylistic differences, delivering art objects from any culture that would convey its aesthetic greatness. This direction is why Danto argues why such quality imposes an irrelevant concept, which should not be for the revisionist museums.

Benjamin H.D. Buchloh, a Art Historian and museum curator, called this quality a central tool for which bourgeois hegemonic culture (the white male western culture) has been traditionally used to exclude and marginalize all other cultural practices. This leaves a discriminating underlying tone for museums to compare why such art piece is better than the other, why this period of art is successful than the other, creating a cultural prejudice in showcasing works. To quote; it has been “Classification has come to be seen as an act of domination.

Rather than going for such directions, the revisionist museums highlights established hierarchies of masters, mediums and movements. There are no comparative classifications to force cultural rule, premeditated or unintentional. The goal of such museums is to create standards are relative, where everything becomes art and where politics is left free to guide the museum’s mission

Such changes do need some visible evidence of transformation for such museum mission. The change once intimidating facades and grand doorways for large museums are then supplemented by more subtle entrances that are more inviting for the masses. The situation of mass inviting venues around museums, such as commercial complexes and car parks, is a way of inducing museum visits. The classical grand staircases and ramps, an element of physical work to seek a reach state of knowledge, is now changed to lifts and smaller yet functional access ways to give the museum is little apart from the associations and surroundings of everyday life.

The modern revisionist museum has now given public association to the masses, even to all ages and cultural breeding, that it is as normal to visit the place as you would visit a shopping mall and a supermarket, making it part of everyday living. The change to postmodern collections, which included multicultural emphasis to incorporate, is not of greatness or grandeur, but more artifacts portraying cultural production. Even if historical artifacts of a specific genres or cultural origin, can now be exhibited with different artifacts, given a specific art direction or theme, a practice not done previously in old museums. Contemporary collections can now be more appreciated by the masses, not dictated by social or political grandeur, turning these once elitist collections to a more relative showcase.

However the popularity and growth of museums have a purposive intent of increasing revenue from ticket sales, merchandise and exhibits. With blockbuster projects in mind, they incorporate the revisionist and post modern projects so that they can sell overpriced catalogs and other items in their souvenir store.

Though revisionists claim their goal is to be more audience centered than a traditional museum, it however shows a remarkable lack of interest in public opinion. For public sensitive showcases, museum professionals and admin would dismiss criticism as of sectoral manipulation, politically motivated and even philistinism. When faced with controversies, these revisionist museums will not allow public opinion to dictate its action, as not to compromise its plight for the freedom of expression. Bergman, president of American Association of Museums, suspects such controversy is the result not of honest public critic but an individual or a group with a political or theological or philosophical commitment. Revisionist museums in their perception would be on the a leadership role rather than reactive to the community.

Professional Adaptation

Reading the changes of how museums are now constructed to a more people-centric and mass inclined content and transformation, certain actions can be applied to the current professional artistic practice.

One way it culturally defines an exhibition, to highlight the relative basis of why should the showcase or collection is an affirmation of the chosen cultural group or niche. An example is that of the creation of dioramas, of a given scale, will the market for such artifacts in any way develop an experience that will further their sense of belonging and progress to a more concrete participation to its development. Another could be a showcase of black and white photography of miniature texture and assortment, answering will it increase the activity of creation of similar works, achieving a cultural entropy for the given market.

Another way of application of how the revisionist concept is to see the specific behaviors that will entice and attract viewers to the contemporary collection. Will exhibits or its venues be near or accessible to the masses or particularly the specific market? Will its conduction hours appeal to its viewers or its programming suitable or convenient for such human traffic?

Finally, even the change of mode, the exhibit or museum is transformed. Looking at online museums, the mode or structure is not a marketing tool or a lure to attract physical viewers but to embrace the revisionist concept of pluralistic institutions creating exhibits of cultural production. Websites can now replace the structure of how museums brick and mortar elements, which can be financially expensive. The World Wide Web can now also proliferate the growth of independent showcases from museums to a more individual and personal administration.