Thinking Museums Differently From Vancouver
Waiting for the sun on North Vancouver, having spent part of yesterday with Hilde Hein’s tour do force of a book: Public Art: Thinking Museums Differently http://www.altamirapress.com. I need a place without distractions to read Hein as she works at the intersections of disciplines – philosophy, art history, history – with a long view of museums where I can easily get lost without concentration.
The first half of the book carefully builds the argument for no less than a new paradigm for museums, parsing the distinctions between public art, private art, nonprivate art, and art in public places. Precise language carries the argument along with the insistent joy of careful thinking.
I am probably the only person on the planet to do so, but I think Hildi Hein is also a laugh riot for her nuanced word choice:
· Museums…cannot shift gears without massive lubrication.
· …public art thrives in the world of bird droppings and vandalism.
I’ll review this book in full later in the year.
The first half of the book carefully builds the argument for no less than a new paradigm for museums, parsing the distinctions between public art, private art, nonprivate art, and art in public places. Precise language carries the argument along with the insistent joy of careful thinking.
I am probably the only person on the planet to do so, but I think Hildi Hein is also a laugh riot for her nuanced word choice:
· Museums…cannot shift gears without massive lubrication.
· …public art thrives in the world of bird droppings and vandalism.
I’ll review this book in full later in the year.
posted by Mary Case at 8:55 AM
1 Comments:
I also love Hein's book, word choices and all. This book was a cornerstone to my recent paper for the Museums and the Web 07 conference entitled Remixing Exhibits: Constructing Participatory Narratives With On-Line Tools To Augment Museum Experiences. In case you are interested, the paper can be found here: http://www.archimuse.com/mw2007/papers/fisher/fisher.html Her book continues to be an inspiration to my research. I hope you are still considering a review of this book, as there are very few out there.
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