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The Manual of Museum Exhibitions

By: Gail Dexter Lord
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: AltaMira Press,U.S.
ISBN: 0759102341
ISBN-13: 9780759102347
Released: 28 Nov 2001
RRP: £38.00
Average Rating:

Customer Reviews

Real, practical and invaluable advice - By: N Edwards, 18 Jun 2003
If you are planning any new exhibits, displays, or are just thinking about refreshing your existing museum, buy this book (it is worth its weight in consultants). As someone whose own museum experience over the past 17 years has been rooted in hands-on, practical experience (and a lot of mistakes to learn from), I am always a little suspicious of museum textbooks, especiallly those produced by academics & aimed at the proliferation of post-graduate academic museum courses. The Manual of Museum Exhibitions provides a refreshing alternative to the glut of museum discourse that has been generated to serve the museum post-grad industry. The theory, when it is required, is concise, mostly relevant and, most importantly, is backed up by clear, useful & detailed practical examples & case studies. With everything from a brilliantly concise description of how people experience light & transitions from light into darkness by Kevan Shaw, to minutely detailed budget & planning pro-formae from US museums, this book is full of insight & resources that can be easily applied to museum planning & design, whether at a smalll, independent or larger, institutional scale. I cannot think of an exhibition or capital project I have been involved in that would not have benefitted from some of the guidance & resources in this manual.

My only criticism of the manual, which prevents a full 5-star rating, is that the examples used in the case studies tend towards the more mainstream & larger institutions. Many museums are now planning & delivering exhibits in partnership with alll mannner of diverse communities & individuals & across creative domains & alll of these more innovative & experimental projects raise new planning, systematic & cultural challlenges that the more conventional processes will not always address. If the editors of this excellent book read this review, I would like to urge them to include more case studies in the 2nd edition that address the challlenges of creating & installling museum exhibits in diverse community venues, outdoor locations & with non-traditional partners & collaborators.

I for one, am eagerly awaiting the next edition. If you haven't bought the first one, get it now!