Author Archives: Max van Balgooy

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About Max van Balgooy

President of Engaging Places LLC, a design and strategy firm that connects people to historic places.

NEH Shares Film Series on Civil Rights

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The National Endowment for the Humanities and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History recently launched Created Equal, a new program to bring four nationally-acclaimed films on civil rights to historic sites, museums, and libraries.  They can easily fill a summer series of programs when accompanied by an historian and spark a conversation about your community’s experience with civil rights.

The films include:

  • The Abolitionists.  A small group of moral reformers in the 1830s launched one of the most ambitious social movements imaginable: the immediate emancipation of millions of African Americans who were enslaved. 
  • Slavery by Another Name.  Even as slavery ended in the south after the Civil War, new forms of forced labor kept thousands of African Americans in bondage until the onset of World War II. Produced and directed by Sam Pollard. 
  • Loving Story.  The moving account of Richard and Mildred Loving, who were arrested in 1958 for violating Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage. Their struggle culminated in a landmark Supreme Court decision, Loving v. Virginia (1967). 
  • Freedom Riders.  The Freedom Rides of 1961 were a pivotal moment in the long Civil Rights struggle that redefined America. This documentary film offers an inside look at the brave band of activists who challenged segregation in the Deep South. 

Up to 500 communities across the nation will receive these four inspiring NEH-funded films, accompanied by programming resources to guide public conversations. Each participating site will receive an award of up to $1,200 to support public programming exploring the themes of the Created Equal project.  Applications are due May 1, 2013 and open to museums and historical societies; humanities councils; public, academic, and community college libraries; and nonprofit community organizations. 

Highlights from the Virginia Association of Museums conference

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Last week the Virginia Association of Museums (VAM) held its annual conference at the Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia, and I was fortunate to be asked to speak at their historic house forum.  It was my first time at their conference and I was so impressed by the quality of the sessions and the camaraderie of the participants.  I wasn’t able to stop by every session, but I wanted to provide some highlights from a few I did attend.

The Nexus of Art and Science.  Rebecca Kamen, professor of art at Northern Virginia Community College, talked about the ability of art to interpret historic scientific and medical collections found in museums and libraries.  Rachel Carson’s The Sense of Wonder (1965) prompted her to work with such diverse institutions as the American Philosophical Society, Chemistry Museum, and the National Institutes of Health.  A recent work, “Divining Nature: An Elemental Garden,” explores the orbital rotations of elements in the periodic table through sculptures.  I’ve seen lots of examples of science being explained in new ways, but I’ve only encountered a few glimpses of it being done with history–anyone have any suggestions?

Using Social Media to Conduct Historical Research.  Lynn Rainville, a professor at Sweet Briar College, discussed how she used Facebook, Tumblr, and other social media to study Continue reading →

Video: Interpreting a woman suffrage photo

The Local History Specialist of the Pikes Peak Library District in Colorado interprets a 1915 photo of women seated in an open car advocating for the woman’s right to vote.  The content is a bit overwhelming for me (its needs some themes and fewer discrete facts) but it provides an example of interpreting collections through video.  It’s part of the “Framing Community, Exposing Identity” series to interpret “iconic images capturing life at the foot of Pikes Peak.”

NEA Survey Reveals Patterns in Historic Site Visitation

On Monday, March 11, I’ll be a plenary speaker at the Virginia Association of Museums conference to discuss the trends, challenges, and opportunities facing historic house museums.  It will be followed by a forum with historic site managers, tourism experts, preservationists, and community leaders on the needs and opportunities for historic sites in Virginia, such as a statewide association for historic house museums.  It’s great timing for this topic:  Governor McDonnell declared 2013 as the Year of the Virginia Historic Home in recognition of the bicentennial of the Executive Mansion and Virginia’s more than 100 historic homes, most of which are open to the public as museums and historic sites.

Whenever I’m asked to give a presentation or write an article, it’s an opportunity to do some research and reading to gains some new or deeper perspectives on the issue.  For the VAM presentation, I’ve been looking closely at the Survey of Public Participation in the Arts by the National Endowment of the Arts.  For decades, NEA has interviewed thousands of people across the United States to learn about their involvement in music, art, theater, festivals, reading, and dance.   NEA conducted the last survey in 2008 and published a series of analytical reports in 2009-2011.

Looking back over 30 years, the survey confirms that attendance closely correlates with Continue reading →

Video: Connecting the Threads

https://vimeo.com/57448478

This 38:00 freshly produced documentary follows the transformation of an historic clothing factory in Lebanon, NH into an art center.  Directed by Ken Turino of Historic New England and produced in collaboration with AVA Gallery and Community Access Television of Upper Valley, it features interviews, oral histories, and historic images.

Small Museums Association Conference Impressions

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Last week I was a plenary speaker at the Small Museums Association conference, where I talked about ways to rethink mission, vision, and strategy to have greater impact with the 200 people in attendance.  Although the conference has been held annually in Ocean City, Maryland for nearly 30 years, it was my first experience and I was incredibly impressed.

Created in 1984 by Lesley van der Lee, executive director of the Montgomery County Historical Society, the conference provides a series of workshops and educational sessions over three days all targeted towards small museums, so the content emphasizes practical approaches for organizations with limited resources.  Secondly, the conference is developed, organized, promoted, and managed entirely by volunteers.  SMA doesn’t have a staff and it doesn’t seem to have membership in the usual sense–it’s primarily the annual conference.  To serve on the board, you have to rise up through the ranks by first  working on one of the conference committees (try that with your board!).  Finally, meals and receptions are included in the registration fee and lodging is just $68 a night (February is the low season for hotels at the beach).

If you’re based in the Mid-Atlantic region, consider attending the conference next February.  Because of the nature of small museums today and the low costs, the conference attracts a wide range of ages and the program committee develops a nice mix of sessions, exhibitors, and speakers (Linda Norris was the other plenary speaker) so you receive good value.  For museum studies students, it’s a welcoming introduction to the issues, people, and organizations that represent the majority of museums in the United States.

On an aside, I heard from Heritage Preservation that Conservation Assessment Program grants won’t be announced until the federal budget is passed.