Citizen Curators - Core Two 04.11.2019
Citizen Curators - Core Two
04.11.2019 - Research and Ethics
@ Porthcurno Telegraph Museum
Somehow a month has flown by and we're arriving in Porthcurno in the rain for the second of our Citizen Curators Core sessions.
The morning will cover Research for Curators and then in the afternoon we'll be entering the fascinating world of Museum Ethics.
Research for Curators begins by asking powerful questions of the objects in our care using what, how, where, when, who and why as our starting points. Open questions should be used in preference of those which can be answered yes or no and objects can be analysed by measuring, weighing, identifying materials and observing signs of wear.
We talk about how good research can uncover lost gems and of the importance of saying you don't know over inventing missing information or making spurious guesses.
Alongside the objects themselves, curatorial resources may include:
We are given some scenarios and work through them as groups to determine what we believe is the right course of action. We determine this not following our own individual moral codes, but using the guidelines set down in the Code of Ethics guidance. It becomes clear quite quickly that many of these issues are not black and white and the importance of the Ethics Committee representing a wide sweep of society to navigate those grey waters effectively.
04.11.2019 - Research and Ethics
@ Porthcurno Telegraph Museum
Somehow a month has flown by and we're arriving in Porthcurno in the rain for the second of our Citizen Curators Core sessions.
 |
| Porthcurno Telegraph Museum |
The morning will cover Research for Curators and then in the afternoon we'll be entering the fascinating world of Museum Ethics.
Research for Curators begins by asking powerful questions of the objects in our care using what, how, where, when, who and why as our starting points. Open questions should be used in preference of those which can be answered yes or no and objects can be analysed by measuring, weighing, identifying materials and observing signs of wear.
We talk about how good research can uncover lost gems and of the importance of saying you don't know over inventing missing information or making spurious guesses.
 |
| Objects can be an important place to begin our research |
- object databases
- history files
- books, journals and newspapers
- the internet
- collection databases (eg. Art UK)
- Visual sources
- Experts (such as subject specialist networks or mailing lists)
For the Museum Ethics session we're introduced to the Museums Association's Code of Ethics for Museums.
It's a privilege to access a museums collections and share its stories and both institutions and individuals must act with integrity and within principles that govern our behaviour.
 |
| The Code of Ethics for Museums |
Museums are trusted institutions and difficult issues in this area can be referred to the Ethics Committee. Issues may arise around issues such as:
- sponsorship of exhibitions
- acquisition and disposal of items (deaccessioning)
- collecting policies around controversial materials such as politically sensitive items
- ownership disputes
- censorship
- complaints about the conduct and responsibilities of third parties
We are given some scenarios and work through them as groups to determine what we believe is the right course of action. We determine this not following our own individual moral codes, but using the guidelines set down in the Code of Ethics guidance. It becomes clear quite quickly that many of these issues are not black and white and the importance of the Ethics Committee representing a wide sweep of society to navigate those grey waters effectively.
Comments
Post a Comment