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A far-from-complete list of other examples might include the “West As America” exhibit in the National Museum of American Art the “Science in American Life” exhibit in the National Museum of American History the recreation of a slave auction at Colonial Williamsburg various controversies surrounding aspects of the Columbus quincentenary and the tensions in the creation of the Holocaust Memorial Museum. Recent years have seen a number of public controversies surrounding museum exhibits of various kinds the Enola Gay exhibit is only the most recent and perhaps most publicized example. Indeed, we hope that the public will come away with a better appreciation of the manner in which scholarly discourse about history takes place, of the very real public value of that discourse, and of the way in which that discourse does and should bear upon the creation of exhibits. We hope therefore that the audience for this symposium will come away with a better understanding of the complexities that bear on the creation of interpretive exhibits–complexities that can lead, whether naturally or because of misunderstanding, to controversy of one sort or another.
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Historical museums constitute a key vehicle through which large numbers of people are exposed to history.
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It is our hope that such a discussion will begin to help in the articulation of principles that museums might employ as they create, improve or enhance working guidelines and scholarly procedures for the development of historically interpretive exhibits.Īt the same time, it is our hope that the symposium will help enhance public understanding of the roles that historical museums and exhibitions play in public life– including but not limited to their role in assisting us reach a new level of understanding of the history that is being exhibited. The purpose of the Symposium is to carry out a scholarly discussion of the roles that historical museums and exhibitions play in a democratic society, of the factors that contribute to public controversy surrounding exhibits that provide an interpretation of history, and of the means through which these factors can and should be handled in the planning of an exhibit. That planned exhibit, titled “The Last Act,” was embroiled in a great deal of public controversy and was cancelled in late January by the Secretary of the Smithsonian.Īlthough the Symposium will indeed examine aspects of the controversy surrounding the Enola Gay exhibit, it will do so only insofar as they exemplify the larger themes outlined below. Such an overview might be particularly pertinent, inasmuch as news stories in recent weeks have perhaps created the erroneous perception that the symposium will focus solely on the Smithsonian’s planned exhibit of the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima. I would like in this article to provide the University community with some background information on this event, and encourage your participation.
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On Wednesday (April 19), the University will cohost with the Smithsonian Institution a major one-day symposium, “Presenting History: Museums in a Democratic Society,” in Rackham Auditorium. PERSPECTIVE: “Presenting History: Museums in a Democratic Society” PERSPECTIVE: “Presenting History: Museums in a Democratic Society”īy Homer A.