Introduction

Weiss, Daniel H.

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Introduction

Daniel H. Weiss

Why the Museum Matters

It is difficult to argue with the idea that museums matter. Those of us who live in large cities are surrounded by an astonishing variety of them, and the rest of us are touched by them in one way or another. The cultural life of every city, and most communities of any size, is in large part defined by museums. This is true not only in Europe and the United States...

Author

Daniel H. Weiss

PublisherYale University Press

https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00353.1

Stable URL: https://aaeportal.com/?id=-23591

Introduction

It is difficult to argue with the idea that museums matter. Those of us who live in large cities are surrounded by an astonishing variety of them, and the rest of us are touched by them in one way or another. The cultural life of every city, and most communities of any size, is in large part defined by museums. This is true not only in Europe and the United States but also, increasingly, around the world. In China alone, new museums are opening at a rate of about one per week, a trend likely to continue well into the future. The nation-building work underway in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Nigeria as well as China has made cultural infrastructure, and particularly the establishment of art museums, a priority for new investment and international cooperation. In the United States, immediately prior to the Covid-19 outbreak there were more than 35,000 museums of all types in operation; they accounted for 750,000 jobs and contributed $50 billion annually to the country’s economy. For any number of reasons, it would appear that museums matter a great deal.

Public art museums, some vast and others more modest, are complex enterprises, serving not only as repositories for objects of aesthetic or historic interest—and as engines of the economy—but also as civic monuments. Like the venerated sanctuaries of ancient Greece, the soaring cathedrals of the European Gothic Age, and the opulent palaces of Renaissance Italy, art museums have become the secular temples of our time, revealing a great deal about our values, politics, cultural preferences, and identity.

The American art museum as it exists today—a civic, mission-driven enterprise offering public access to art, education, entertainment, community, and, increasingly, political controversy—is widely recognized as a distinctive contribution to the cultural world. But its essential character is a reliable descendant of the European Enlightenment. The first truly public museums of the early modern era—the Capitoline in Rome, followed by the British Museum in London and the Louvre in Paris—had by the end of the eighteenth century emerged as enthusiastic participants in the nation-building that was revitalizing much of Europe. In so doing, these vital, community-oriented institutions helped to redefine the urban experience not only for the wealthy and educated but also for the emerging middle class, which was essential to the success of the social and political moment. Within the United States, in the era of post–Civil War Reconstruction and Gilded Age prosperity, the European version of the encyclopedic art museum became established on a large scale with the founding of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, both in 1870.1The earliest American art museum is the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut, founded in 1842. Within a few decades, with the advent of Progressive Era reforms, the museum phenomenon had become an engine of social progress and a central feature of the cultural landscape of most sizable cities: the Philadelphia Museum of Art was chartered in 1876, the Corcoran Gallery in Washington, D.C., in 1869, and the Art Institute of Chicago in 1893, among many others. Successfully established on American soil, art museums began to proliferate and evolve in myriad ways that distinguished them from their more traditional European ancestors.

The extraordinary success of the art museum movement throughout the United States can be measured by the depth and remarkable diversity of collections and programs, expansion of local and international audiences, growth of philanthropic support, and admirable resilience through good times and bad. But at the same time, we acknowledge that the current moment has brought unprecedented challenges that call into question museums’ fundamental purpose, efficacy, and civic function. It is therefore something of a paradox to observe that, while public art museums have become vital contributors to many communities, critiques from these same communities say their museums are falling short, with some calling for fundamental change to museums’ core purpose and questioning if they benefit those they are supposed to serve. Although this debate has become acrimonious and occasionally histrionic, it has provided—for those who will listen—an opportunity for reflection on all sides, and a chance to generate new thinking on how the museum can improve in its mission to be a useful and relevant cultural resource for all.

For most of my adult life I have been closely associated with museums—as a scholar and university professor, as a trustee at various institutions, as a cultural tourist, and, most recently, as president and CEO of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where I have had the chance to reflect carefully on questions of institutional mission, values, and evolving purpose. Like many of my colleagues, I have long recognized that, for many people, life would be unimaginable without these extraordinary institutions to enrich our daily experience, guide us in our search for beauty, inform our understanding of the world, give form to our ruminations, and help us to build more enlightened and meaningful lives. Yet I also recognize that some may find museums to be little more than an occasional distraction or momentary amusement, if they matter at all. Not everyone believes that museums are essential to a functioning society, even if most agree, for any number of reasons—intellectual, social, aesthetic, and practical—that they are nonetheless a good thing to have.

I embarked on writing this book just before the spring of 2020, when the world shifted on its axis as a result of the Covid pandemic, the national protest movements seeking racial and social justice, and the economic turmoil that was to follow. These factors and others, such as polarization in our national politics at levels unseen since the Civil War, have contributed to a sustained national crisis that is revealing ominous signs of further change. My original idea, before the crisis engulfed us all, had been to explore the state of the American art museum—its foundational vision, evolving reality, and most compelling critiques, as well as its enduring importance—within a larger historical and social frame. I also wanted to give careful thought to the observations held by some that these venerable institutions were increasingly becoming victims of their own success—or, to put it more directly, that they were losing their way and, in so doing, sowing the seeds of their own destruction. Although these criticisms are not new, one consequence of recent events has been that these concerns are seen to be increasingly urgent, perhaps because museums are recognized as important in our lives and communities. If no one really cared what museums did, there would be little reason for such impassioned criticism and call for change. With these considerations in mind, I embarked on this book with a renewed sense of purpose and with the conviction that there is something of fundamental importance about the art museum to our society and our democracy. I was confident that in making the case for why the museum matters I would have the opportunity to reflect on my reasons for thinking so and, along the way, perhaps propose a few suggestions for improvement.

My primary focus in this book is what we call encyclopedic art museums, particularly in the form envisioned and created in the United States. These institutions, as distinguished from more specialized collections, aspire to collect art and archaeological materials from the great epochs of human history across the vast geographies of the world. Although my observations are intended to encompass the widest range of these institutions, my specific frame is often the largest of these places, especially the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which I know best. In exploring both the history and performance of the museum idea in the United States, I wanted to set out my own views about why it matters so much, especially now, and what is at greatest risk if it is lost—even as I concede that I have no special knowledge about what lies ahead for our museums, any more than I do for society in general. Like many of us, I have deep concerns about the fragile state of our democracy and the efficacy of our civic institutions to help us find a productive way forward. Yet, as a museum leader, I am convinced that the cultural world can play an essential role on this journey, in part simply by bringing us together in a shared, uplifting purpose but also by offering us perspectives that are larger than our own and that might help us to navigate toward a more just and equitable future.

Written for the general reader rather than the specialist, Why the Museum Matters is intended to offer an accessible narrative on the origins and history of the art museum idea, the larger purposes of such institutions, and what steps we might take for museums to achieve a better future. I provide a perspective on the evolving idea of the museum, explore some of the pressing issues before us, and offer ideas on a way forward for a vital enterprise dedicated to the public good. I do not write as an activist or a partisan, and this book is not a polemic but rather is intended to offer a balanced assessment of the issues, inform and engage readers, and make the case for how museums must continue to evolve in our complex and riven society. My hope is that this book will help us find common ground, value what these institutions represent, and suggest pathways forward that unite us rather than divide us—which is the only way forward if museums are to remain meaningful in the years ahead.

The museum movement in the United States has been a resounding success for the many ways it has improved our cultural lives and, more broadly, for the contributions it has made to many communities. The seismic social changes wrought by recent events have led to significant progress in the museum world, some of it a long time coming and especially welcome. But it has been difficult and sometimes painful as well. In the chapters ahead, I explore the American art museum both as an evolving idea within the larger arc of human history and in terms of its specific role and meaning today. The book is divided into three sections, the first of which outlines a few central themes in the long history of art collecting, a phenomenon begun in the ancient world and evidently linked to the essential practices of civilization from its earliest days. The middle section of the book examines the roles that museums play in our world today, attempting to answer the question about why, and in what ways, I believe that the museum does matter. In the last section, I offer some thoughts about what is at stake for museums if they are to continue serving a useful purpose, and ideally to thrive, in an uncertain future.

In reflecting on the place of art museums in the world today, my thoughts are drawn to the ancient Greek sanctuaries of Delphi and Olympia, which were in their own way among our earliest museums. These haunting and evocative sites, filled with works of timeless beauty and historical resonance, were dedicated to a shared set of values, beliefs, and cultural practices—what the Greeks of the ancient world referred to as Panhellenism—and were where they found common ground in a world otherwise riven by competition and conflict. Within these special places, each dedicated to a specific purpose—athletic prowess at Olympia and sacred ritual at Delphi—the diverse city-states of the Greek world came together to celebrate what united them while also recognizing the distinctiveness of human achievement. In so doing they found enduring value in concord and shared purpose. What makes these places alive for us today, in some ways like our own museums, is the genius of their creative expression as realized in such an astonishing array of individual objects—from the iconic to the epic—within a sublime setting and in conversation with the larger world.

1 The earliest American art museum is the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut, founded in 1842. »

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