Additional Details
What is the future of museums? Is there a future for them?
On Wednesday, May 5 at 4:00 p.m. (CDT) the WAM Collective, The Student Advisory Council of the Frances Young Tang Museum at Skidmore College, and the Agents for Creative Action from the Williams College Museum of Art will join in a Zoom roundtable discussion on the future of museums. Over the past year, museums have worked to adapt within an ever-shifting environment brought on by the global COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing civil rights movement, and the increased awareness of the harmful hierarchies that exist in museum spaces and beyond. As emerging museum leaders and practitioners, each student group will answer:
What is the role of museums today? What needs to change? How can we create it together?
Each group will give a 10-minute presentation of their vision within their institutions and what changes are necessary to the field. The event will culminate with a discussion and Q & A between the student groups, comparing their findings, critiques, and hopes for the future of museums.
Student Groups Participating
Student Advisory Council — Frances Young Tang Museum at Skidmore College
The Student Advisory Council serves as an important voice for the Skidmore student body within the Tang Museum with the goal of fostering and strengthening the museum’s relationship with students. Members serve as representatives of the student body to the Tang staff and advise staff on its relationship with Skidmore students. The Student Advisory Council members have the opportunity to develop public programs in collaboration with museum staff, Skidmore student groups, and community organization and learn about the inner workings of the museum.
Agents for Creative Action — Williams College Museum of Art
The Agents for Creative Action (ACA) is a cohort of students who work with the Williams College Museum of Art during the school year to explore museum practice as a creative process. ACA participants animate the museum’s collections, exhibitions, and spaces through the development of original projects and programs, and contribute to museum-wide initiatives. During weekly meetings and workshops with museum staff and guests, they develop storytelling skills and exercise creative thinking and making.
WAM Collective — Weisman Art Museum, University of Minnesota
WAM Collective Officers are the student leadership team of the Weisman Art Museum. Officers learn about contemporary museum practice, plan programs and events, create digital content campaigns, research and write about objects in the museum’s collection, collaborate with other student groups and departments on campus, and make connections between their studies and the museum’s resources. Officers work with professional museum staff, artists, advocates, and community members on projects that reflect the concerns, interests, and passions of the student perspective.
