Museums chronicle the past, depict the present, and become touchstones for the future. They bring history to life, educate the public, and help communities to understand their history, culture, values, and identity. They also face many challenges, including addressing collections that result from power and colonization, making the case for the value of their work to non-museum stakeholders, and adapting their services in an increasingly digital world.
Despite the fact that museums are often perceived as elitist and exclusive, they do have a role to play in the society in which they operate. As the world faces increasing environmental, economic, and social challenges, museums have responded in diverse ways. These include implementing sustainable practices, hosting community conversations about art, highlighting racial and gender equity, advocating for diversity and inclusion in museum leadership, supporting the restitution of cultural property to its countries of origin, and raising awareness on climate change and the Anthropocene.
The new definition of a museum sets a much more ambitious goal: “A museum is a public institution, independent from any commercial, political or religious interest, dedicated to the collection, preservation and communication of cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, for the purposes of education, research, enjoyment and tourism.” This shift in focus reflects the need for museums to be a point of reference and dialogue on the issues that affect our societies today.
It also challenges museums to question their own positionality and the values and priorities that they hold. This is especially important given the ongoing debates on the place of museums in society, which have been fueled by events like the 2018 report on the restitution of African cultural property by French museums and by the claim by indigenous peoples to their cultural heritage.
This is why the new definition calls on museums to address the complex interrelationships between human rights, cultural heritage and ethics. The new definition also challenges museums to develop more inclusive and equitable museum policies, and to be more transparent about the process of collecting and exhibiting objects.
Museums have a long history of changing with the times, and this trend is likely to continue in the future. Pop up museums have shown that institutions don’t need to be permanent to make a big impact; they can meet their audiences where they are. They can also be more flexible in how they interpret and deliver their content, adjusting to the needs of each audience.
The new definition was developed through the largest outreach project in ICOM’s history. More than 126 national committees of ICOM, representing more than 50,000 museums in the world, participated in a four-round consultative process with ICOM Define. The results of the consultation were published on May 5th during ICOM Prague 2022.