American Association for State and Local History (AASLH)’s Post

I was watching the news the other night and saw a segment on The Rabbit Hole museum in North Kansas City, Missouri. According to its website, the museum celebrates and brings to life a century of American children's literature. The museum has areas that reconstruct settings from books like "Goodnight Moon," "Where the Sidewalks End," "Curious George," "Madeline," "Caps for Sale," "The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales," and "Captain Underpants". The museum charges admission and plans to rent out space for birthday parties. It also sells merchandise. And of course the first thing I asked after seeing the segment was whether the museum had permission to construct settings from these (and other) books. After all, wouldn't those be derivative works? Would they be a fair use? I looked on the museum's website and did not see any information about permissions that have been granted. Maybe permission has been granted, and maybe it has not. What do you think? Did the museum need permission to build its exhibits? Or am I thinking about this too much? #IntellectualProperty #IP #copyright #copyrightinfringement #BusinessLaw #legalinsights #offitkurman www.rabbitholekc.org

I’m doing some research on inclusive and reparative collections management practices. What are some resources you’ve come across that have been helpful on this topic? Do you have any top tips to share that you’ve learned along the way, or things you wish museums would consider when writing policies and procedures to help manage collections? Know of any museums leading the charge on this topic?

Important joint declaration by International Council of Museums (ICOM), International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), & International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) move to emphasize the importance of museums, heritage sites, archives and libraries in times of conflict: https://lnkd.in/d4nUyhJN #conflictualculture #agonism

🖥️ Internet Archive has launched an MTV news repository of nearly 480,000 articles! 🖥️ When mtvnews.com was disabled hundreds and thousands of articles about music and pop culture were removed from the internet. So, the the not-for-profit Internet Archive assembled a searchable index of 479,020 of MTV News web pages to keep this piece of cultural history alive. The new collection ensures that much of MTV News’ articles remain accessible in some form, including MTV News’ well-known “Mixtape Mondays” 🎧 When asked about their work, Internet Archive said: 'Without such artifacts, civilization has no memory and no mechanism to learn from its successes and failures. Our culture now produces more and more artifacts in digital form. The Archive’s mission is to help preserve those artifacts and create an Internet library for researchers, historians and scholars.' - and we couldn't agree more!  Read the whole news story here - https://lnkd.in/dyWsMwH2   #Archives #MusicArchives #Preservation

What can heritage institutions learn from (international) best practices regarding the ‘decolonization’ of museums? And what role can contemporary artistic practices take in these processes? Delve into these complex theoretical and practical questions in our new release 'The Future of the Dutch Colonial Past', where the very design of the book is a strategy of decolonization. The book is read backwards, questionning dominant forms of knowledge sharing. Read a sample, and order your copy here! https://lnkd.in/eXcmvt66

🐓 Yes, that’s right - I decided to turn my old chicken coop into a museum. At most, it will fit three visitors at a time.⁠ ⁠ The thought I’m grappling with during this process is, "How do you choose which items get a place in a museum?"⁠ ⁠ Follow for more behind-the-scenes of the coop-to-museum renovation process, and hear more about this project on my latest Substack: robynmetcalfe.substack.com #substack #substackwriters #writers #homerenovations #homereno #farmrenovation #museums #austin #austintx #austintexas

Important declaration on the protection of archives, libraries, museums and heritage places during armed conflicts and political instability:

Founded over 30 years ago, Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) revolutionized art education by prioritizing viewers' observations and interpretations over contextual information about artworks. Yet, questions have arisen in recent years regarding its alignment with equity, diversity, and inclusion in art education, raising concerns about its compatibility with anti-racist teaching methods. In this article, three VTS coaches and seasoned museum educators examine the balance between healing and harm in museum education incorporating VTS. They start with a quick overview of VTS's history and principles, then delve into its role in the evolving museological landscape of late 20th century American museums. The article discusses both the constraints and possibilities of VTS within liberating pedagogies, offering insights into its complexities. This article appears on page 115 of Museological Review Issue 26. https://lnkd.in/ecnvFZ3 #AntiRacist #VisualThinking #VisualThinkingStrategies 

ICOM Museum Communications Professionals: DID YOU GET MPR's August e-newsletter? If not, then click on this link: ps://https://lnkd.in/e4mspVCs If you would like to start getting it in your mailbox, write to [email protected] DID YOU KNOW that you can get automatic translation of our e-newsletter? In the e-newsletter, for translation, click on "View this email in your browser" above, then "Translate" upper right.

In 2023, The Space (Digital Arts) collaborated with the University of Exeter to investigate the current digital evaluation methods in the cultural sector. The study revealed insufficient resources and funding for thorough evaluation, scarce models for best practices, and a shortage of common terminology. Consequently, The Space has produced a set of resources tailored for digital professionals in arts and cultural organisations globally. Alongside Halsey Burgund & Francesca Panetta I contributed to the 👨💻 Embedding evaluation into interactive projects article. Read the full article on the link below. ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/edkgHfDb #ArtsAndCulture #Museums #SocialMedia #DigitalEngagment #DigitalStrategy