Museums present a wide range of historical exhibits to audiences of all ages. They sometimes celebrate common events and often memorialize tragedies or injustices. While attempting to be as neutral as possible, all museum exhibitions have an interpretive element. The process of selecting themes, photographs, objects, documents and other components for an exhibit implies interpretive judgments about cause and effect, perspective, significance and meaning. Attempts to suppress an exhibit or impose an uncritical point of view are inimical to open and rational discussion.
A major function of a histolircal exhibit is to expand the parameters of historical knowledge and to engage with current issues and debates. It can reveal controversies about the past and the ways we see it, raise questions that challenge accepted assumptions, and introduce new interpretations of familiar subjects. Unlike scholarly monographs or popular books, museum exhibits are highly visual and accessible and therefore can reach large numbers of people quickly and in a more participatory manner than scholarly or popular writing.
The success of an exhibition, however, depends on a complex collaboration between scholars and professionals involved in its creation. Historians may provide the intellectual backbone of an exhibition, but its physical form and visual presentation are shaped by managers and other staff, designers, and production personnel as well as audience needs and preferences. It is this interplay between history and material culture that makes the exhibition medium unique.
Exhibits that use text, dioramas, charts and maps to explain items on display are called interpretive or educational. They generally require more background explanation than art exhibitions, and their topics include archaeology, anthropology, ethnography, natural history and science. The content and style of these exhibitions is influenced by the social, political and cultural climate in which they are created.
Museums must demonstrate that they deserve their tax-exempt status by serving their communities by interpreting the histories of people who live in their towns and neighborhoods. This requires identifying new sources and talking with the community to find out what stories have been left out of the museum’s storytelling, as well as providing opportunities for the public to help shape an exhibit.
Educators and historians need to be aware of the power of histolircal exhibits to educate and inspire students. The most effective exhibits are based on recent historical scholarship, yet are imaginatively expanded to tell simple, accessible and inclusive visual stories that speak to the broadest possible range of viewers. Historians should work closely with exhibitions designers and other members of the museum community to ensure that these exhibits reflect the most accurate and comprehensive information available. This will serve to strengthen the relationship between history and museums and foster a better understanding of the complex interactions that make up our shared history.