©2011 magyarmuzeumok.hu Minden jog fenntartva.

Take Over Museum

Following the museum education scene in the United Kingdom for the past seven years, one recurring theme that crops up more and more often has really sparked my interest and inspired me to get my feet wet.

Basically, it all boils down to a group of people who identify with one another and share some common characteristics.  In such a multicultural country as the United Kingdom, “communities” does not only incorporate people living nearby one another, or in this case, near the museum.  It can also mean people of a certain age: young adults or even the third age.  In addition, it is also concerned with looking at how to engage with people identifying with one or more an ethnic communities.

When involving communities, and the individuals within them, museum employees and volunteers share the whole process of decision making from beginning to end.  Since every situation, program, event, exhibition or anything else that happens in a museum or heritage site has its limitations, handing the power over to visitors means letting them know how far the the institution's boundaries might be stretched.

In 2011, Take Over (Museums) Day was held on Friday, November 11.  While any organization may participate in Take Over Day, Take Over Museums is an offshoot focusing on one sector in society.  How does it work? Participating museums, galleries, heritage sites and historic homes work with children and young people to prepare them for the work they will be doing on Take Over Day.  This means that staff at a museum have met the children or young people several times before the actual day, gotten to know them and as a team, together they have planned what role the children will take on during Take Over Day. Kids in Museums posted some examples of work children were involved:

At the River and Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames, 12 ten-year-olds chose WW1 objects from the collection, put up a display and even launched it with a press release. ‘My favourite part was placing the objects into the case. I had so much fun. It was really fun wearing the white gloves so we could pick things up,’ said one Year 6 participant.

Interested in dipping into a community involvement project?  Would you like to engage with your local community?  Or maybe work specifically with an ethnic minority in Hungary? Here's a way to start small with a one day program.  If you or the organization you work with has already done

something similar and would like to share your experience, you comments are welcome.