A successful exhibition is much more than history “put up on a wall.” It’s an interpretive work that conveys the complex results of dense research in a compelling, visual form. It’s a metaphor, a piece of visual poetry that can captivate audiences and broaden their understanding rather than limit it. It combines the best of historical scholarship and museum exhibit design to create an engaging experience that demonstrates why museums are worth their tax-exempt status.
Each of these works of art has a unique history that reflects the cultural context in which they were created. Some exhibits highlight human stories, demonstrating that people in the past did not live in isolation and that their actions had profound effects on those within their communities and beyond. Others delve into abstract ideas that are fundamental to human life, such as home, freedom, faith, democracy or mobility.
These exhibitions and many others — each with its own historical perspective, subject matter and audience — provide an important opportunity for historians to engage with a wide variety of museum visitors. They also allow academics to examine a variety of methods for collaboration with museums on the work they do in order to reach the public.
Museums are a powerful medium that give vent to the public’s need to view the past and make it real, touchstones that keep history alive for many. Every year millions of visitors visit the nation’s history museums to learn about American and world history. While the National Museum of American History, Colonial Williamsburg and the Chicago Historical Society draw a large share of this audience, smaller institutions like the California Afro-American Museum and Oneida Historical Society are also making an impact.
Each year, the editors of Perspectives seek to showcase the best of this collaborative work. We will focus on innovative projects that stretch the established parameters of historical interpretation and display. Whether it’s a project that suggests new ways to improve collaboration between the academy and museums; an exhibition that explores community driven collecting initiatives or new techniques for exhibition design; or a show that addresses controversial topics of historical significance, we will feature these projects to share them with our readers.
Unlike other types of historical work, exhibitions are inherently temporary, and therefore are more apt to be reviewed than monographs or books. The publication of these reviews helps to create a literature of the historical presentations that museums produce and to ensure that these critical evaluations outlive the shows themselves. While this column will occasionally look at notable accomplishments in collections, programs and important collecting initiatives, it is primarily focused on exhibition reviews. The review process, in turn, is a way for scholars to communicate with their colleagues about the issues that confront them in their museum practice. This dialogue, in the end, serves to broaden the collaboration that makes museum history possible.