Lucie Heins, BSc, MA, Assistant Curator, Daily Life & Leisure
Royal Alberta Museum
Uncertain Times
March 11, 2020: "WHO [World Health Organization] formally declared the existence of a pandemic."[i]
Little did we know that one year later we would still be in the midst of a pandemic. It has been a difficult year for museums around the world as they navigate the effects of restrictions from social distancing, from reduced capacity to temporary closure. The big question is, how do they remain sustainable?
In September 2012, the Alberta Museums Association (AMA) launched the Sustainability Working Group (SWG) "to develop a series of recommendations to focus on ensuring sustainable practice within Alberta's museums for long-term viability, vibrancy, vitality, and future success."[ii] These recommendations remain relevant today; however, they need to be viewed with a pandemic lens. Outside forces that are out of our control may determine how these recommendations will be applied. Within the report, the SWG identified and explained the different stages of a museum's organizational life: start up, adolescent, mature, plateau, renewal, and closure. As museums have been severely shaken this past year, many may find themselves at a very different stage today than prior to the pandemic. For some, a museum closure may actually be a reality. Although an unpopular topic, a dissolution and closure planning strategy, in these unprecedented times, may be well worth revisiting.
It Happened to Us and We Didn't Expect It
Museums close for different reasons. If a museum chooses to disengage and follow a path of failure, then undoubtedly the museum will eventually be forced to close.[iii] However, at times, there are extenuating circumstances that force a museum to close its doors despite all efforts made by the museum board to keep it open. The Victoria School Museum and Archives (VSMA) experienced this, firsthand, in August 2011. As president of the board for the VSMA Society in Edmonton, I had to coordinate the pack and move activities of its collection.
The pack and move team: Karyn, Candace, Lucie, and Ian.
The VSMA had its own exhibit and storage space within the school for almost 25 years. It maintained the school's collection that spanned 100 years. In 2009, the Victoria School of the Performing Arts had begun major reconstruction and renovations. A new space for the VSMA was assigned on the original blueprints. Unfortunately, when the budget was cut back by half, the school lost half of its space. Inevitably, there was no longer room for the VSMA exhibit space. A storage space was offered in what was the basement of the old school. This proved to be an unsuitable space as we experienced leaks and flooding, damaging some artifacts from a collection that was considered the best school-related collection in Edmonton. The school did offer an alternative, unsecure, storage space. Concerned that an important collection could be lost to theft or vandalism, the VSMA Board decided to find it a new home. The Board no longer had any control over what happened to the collection as long as it remained in the school. Although the school supported the Board's decision, a new home needed to be found and everything moved within five days.
Artifacts specific to the Victoria School.
These artifacts were duplicates already in the Edmonton Public School Board Archives & Museum collection.
The Edmonton Public School Board Archives & Museum (EPSBAM) was immediately contacted to see if they would consider taking the collection since the collection met their mandate. Recognizing the importance of this collection, the EPSBAM accepted the collection sight unseen. However, the archivist was very clear that they would not take any duplicate objects that were already in their collection. They did not want teaching paraphernalia that they already had. They only wanted items specific to Victoria School, like trophies, sports and cheerleading uniforms, theatrical posters performed by the school, and so on. Approximately 100 boxes and 5 large textile and archival cabinets were moved.
We did not have a dissolution and closure plan in place. We were extremely lucky that EPSBAM accepted the collection readily, but how could we have been better prepared? My experience with the closure of the VSMA provided some insights to consider.
Museum Dissolution and Closure Planning Strategy
Planning for the possibility of the dissolution and closure of a museum is like having an emergency preparedness plan in place. You hope never to have to use it. The big question is always where to start. It can be overwhelming to think about how a museum will distribute their collection. The following steps will help you get started.
1. Identify the museums and / or archives in your region.
Engaging in a Museum Dissolution and Closure Planning Strategy cannot be done in isolation. It is important to work with one or two museums and / or archives who collect your regional history. Plan a (virtual) meeting to discuss the process and schedule a timeline to meet specific planning goals. While our museums are closed to the public, it may be a good time for museum boards and their staff to begin the process of developing Museum Dissolution and Closure Planning Strategy.
2. List artifact groupings and then identify what's unique.
It is always easier to begin by looking at groupings of artifacts rather than individual artifacts: the blacksmith shop or the local doctor's collection, for example. Within each grouping, identify especially unique objects. Keep in mind that the blacksmith tools are not unique. I have visited more than 50 museums in Alberta and many groupings are duplicated. What is unique is the local blacksmith's well-worn apron or his shop sign. These are not replicated anywhere else and serve to tell his story. The local doctor's instruments are the same as any other doctor's, but her monogrammed medical bag is unique to the doctor. This process will help you identify those objects that should be preserved for their uniqueness. Have this list ready for the next scheduled meeting to present to the partnered museum(s). Just as you need to know what artifacts the other museum(s) wish to have preserved should they need to close, they need to know what artifacts you have as well. The major concern for any museum is how will the artifacts be distributed in an event of a closure?
3. Identify artifacts that are very specific and could potentially augment another museum's collection.
Perhaps yours is the only museum in the region with a collection that tells the history of mental health in the early years or with artifacts for a local business not well represented in Alberta, such as a funeral home. In this case, a large part of that collection may need to be preserved. Remember, however, that storage could be limiting factor.
Fort Ostell Museum collection includes an Electric shock machine used at Alberta's first mental hospital in Ponoka.
Medical exhibit at the Wetaskiwin Heritage Museum.
To assist with the overall decision-making process, the Province of Alberta created the Master Plan 2005 for the Protection, Preservation and Presentation of Alberta's Past to guide museums and heritage sites of what needs to be protected and preserved. The following is a skeletal list.
- Important historical or cultural values;
- Symbolism, imagery, mythology, folklore, or oral tradition of Alberta;
- Resources significant for their
- historical or cultural associations;
- technical or material associations;
- Resources with community significance;
- Full diversity of our historical experience;
- Historical resources in their entirety;
- Facets of a historical theme or community;
- Materials for the study and interpretation of historical resources.
4. Disposal of artifacts considered redundant or duplicates?
Once you have identified all artifacts that will require protection and preservation as significant pieces of Alberta's history, you will need a plan on how to dispose of the rest of the artifacts. I highly recommend that you refer to the Alberta Museums Association's guidance as outlined in the document Deaccessioning and Disposal of Collections Overview.
When well planned, the closure of a museum and redistribution of its most significant artifacts can be done in a manner that will assure the public that the local history has been preserved for future generations. As we live in uncertain times, there is nothing like the present to ensure you are not caught unexpectedly. Be proactive, begin your Museum Dissolution and Closure Planning Strategy now, and hope you never have to use it.
[i] "Flattery and foot dragging: China's influence over the WHO under scrutiny". The Globe and Mail Inc. April 25, 2020. Archived from the original on April 27, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
[ii]Alberta Museums Association (2013). "Sustainability Working Group Recommendations Report". https://www.museums.ab.ca/media/34750/museumsswg_report_final.pdf. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
[iii] Ibid, p.8.
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