A museum is a non-profit institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public that acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity for education, study and enjoyment. It is a democratic and inclusive space for dialogue about the pasts and futures that is committed to human dignity, social justice, global equality and planetary wellbeing.
A lot of things can be a museum, even if they don’t have a big collection of objects on display. The Griffith Observatory or the National Constitution Center are examples of museum experiences that do not have many artifacts, but still manage to tell powerful and memorable stories or provide important information. Other museums, such as the Musee Rodin in Paris, are famous for their sculptures. They were sculpted in the garden of Hotel Biron where Rodin spent his last years, and now visitors can walk around these gardens and see how the sculptures were created.
But the main reason that museums exist is to collect objects and artifacts and make them available to the public to learn from, and admire. This is why museums often have large visitor numbers, and it is also the reason that museums need to raise funds to maintain their collections and continue to attract visitors.
The way that a museum is managed and what role it plays in society depends on the size of the museum and the cultural sector in which it operates. There are different types of management roles, but all museum professionals share a common responsibility to safeguard and care for the objects in their museum’s collections.
There are also a number of other staff who contribute to the success of the museum. Curators spend their time learning about the objects in their museum’s collections, and often put together exhibitions for visitors to enjoy. Design teams are responsible for the visual identity of the museum, including how it looks on the website and in brochures. And archivists look after records that are relevant to the museum and its collections.
Some museums also have horticulturists, architects and web designers on their staff. And then there are the facility managers who ensure that the museum is a safe and pleasant place for people to visit, as well as making sure the building runs smoothly. Fundraisers help to find money to manage the museum, to collect new objects and to put on programs. And registrars are the people who know where all the objects in a museum are, how they are being cared for and the logistics of moving them within the museum or to another one for an exhibition.
As the world’s leading professional association for museums, ICOM needs to periodically review and update its definition of museum. At the recent ICOM conference in Kyoto, a definition proposal was presented by museum historian Gary Edson. It sparked an enormous debate that ended in the proposal being referred back to committee.