Museum of Illusions’ Post

Dear Siblings in The Struggle against The System, We now know that the next decade, 2025 to 2034, will be a decade of challenges—of a magnitude greater than any, perhaps, than the present generation has ever faced. Rising to these challenges will mean—at the very least—reimagining the stories our society has, up until this point, untruthfully told us about how we got free—if indeed we got free... This is why I have agreed to share conversation with the curator of the International Slavery Museum, about how museums, specifically, and in fact all members of our society, co-productively, might reimagine histories and reconstruct solidarities that, strategically, equip us for the challenges of the daunting decade ahead—a decade during which the very freedom our forebears fought for is very likely to be at stake. Please join us, therefore, as we ask “How can museums take an active role in preparing for the bicentenary of the Abolition of Slavery?” https://lnkd.in/dFKuKPMt

Building relevancy: Cleveland Museum of Natural History defines a new approach for the sector. We speak to director and CEO, Sonia Winner, about the museum’s $150million transformation project. https://lnkd.in/eQHYq2C9

Museums often take a one-way approach to education: professionals teach, and the public learns. But what if we flipped this script? https://lnkd.in/eZZ6Grsk #museum #museums

My recent Medium article: "Impressions of the Yale Peabody Museum." Join me as I explore ancient secrets and share personal insights. Unravel the profound tales of Gilgamesh, reflecting on life and death, delve into the significance of the Cyrus Cylinder and its implications for peace in the Middle East, examine the intriguing connection between the Egyptian god Osiris and "Uzeyr," and investigate the mysterious art of #Quipu through the lens of Liu Cixin's "Dark Forest" hypothesis from "The Three-Body Problem."

Listen to the work of KAREL ČAPEK, the man who introduce the term ROBOT in 1921 https://lnkd.in/ddXB2n5E

“It is important to remember how Hull developed and became what it is today.” In this blog post, Kevin Batty (Contracts Manager at Simpson of York) discusses the challenges of transforming the Grade II* Maritime Museum. https://lnkd.in/et_TyXVg Simpson

Always remember to incorporate physical actors / interpreters / guides (or whatever denomination you prefer) in your attractions / destinations / museums / visitor centres / hotels & restaurants / real estate promotions / fairs / cultural delegations / shopping centre or outlet events / embassy events / university student recruitment / university staff recruitment / international trade fairs etc etc etc. They will be your BEST SALES PEOPLE EVER as they sell the dream. If you have been mandated to undertake responsibility for one of the above, it would be difficult to justify doing otherwise in the current environment! From Las Vegas through luxury retail kilometre destinations to the creme de la creme of international universities, palaces and religious institutions, all are ramping up their interpretation staff portfolios in 2024. There is a reason for this! Every Euro / Dollar / Pound spent on these people results in an enormously higher return than what is spent on digital media. The impact made during some of the historic recreation events can be intergenerational and life-changing. Try replicating that with social media! Social media has a role but that role is extremely junior, subsidiary and complementary to real-world reenactment and interpretation. Visitors at all price points are DESPERATE for real-world non-digital interaction! When your investors or their consultants turn up at your attraction to check out what is going on on the ground, their ABSOLUTE NUMBER ONE priority is to check our real world visitor engagement, not digital engagement. Never lose sight of this!

Slice of Life #4 Your perspective changes everything: 1) Museum of failure or gallery of trying 2) Archieve of mistakes or Library of lessons 3) Mountain of experience or ocean of regret Everything you are going through will be worth in the end. Keep on going. -@opiamotivation-

What are the latest strategies for connecting with local communities? How can partnerships fuel your success? Get the inside scoop on these topics at the Museums + Heritage Show, as one of its chairs Colin Mulberg gives a preview: #MandHShow

Collections Officer Mark Hall discusses how Perth Museum is addressing its colonial collecting practices. He will review the museum's origins and acquisitions through British Empire connections and highlight its current collaboration with the Māori of Aotearoa/New Zealand, including cultural returns and co-curation in the new museum. 🎟️'s https://buff.ly/3XSbj04