Collecting Perspectives

We value museums because they make sense of the world around us. They collect our tangible and intangible heritage and invite us to share in the many stories they help tell. Their collections broaden, inspire, and facilitate a shift our thinking, but the most important work of museums is in collecting perspectives: in showing us how our stories are told.

“[Museums are] a place to bring people together… It’s so important to have places like this where people can learn and engage with each other by discussing what they see. It helps bring better understanding of your community and the people in it.”

Museums for Me survey respondent

“[Museums] can take me beyond my own experience of life and help me understand other perspectives.”

Museums for Me survey respondent

Museums…

Collaborate: 58% of respondents think museums should have dialogues with local communities, “Museums need to use their agency toward community partnerships and co-creative projects.”

Amplify: 93% of respondents agree that museums help them understand other cultures and communities, “[Museums] inspire by representing other cultures and differences.”

Learn: 95% of respondents think that the museum is a place to learn and be inspired, “The walls of the museum should be porous – allow ideas to flow in and out. When a community views the museum as ‘their’ place then you have made progress.”

Whose perspectives do you collect?

Share the different perspectives that your museum collects by downloading and customizing the Collecting Perspectives graphics. Share the finished images on social media using #collectingperspectives and #reconsideringmuseums. Help us spread the word about the important work that museums do in collecting perspectives.