tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342911384518459004.post8827745795782194914..comments2023-10-25T03:38:09.523-04:00Comments on Unedit my heart: Duly Noted: Museum Access TrendsLeah Sandalshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13586221448338828889noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342911384518459004.post-78907411511036237512010-04-07T20:04:49.949-04:002010-04-07T20:04:49.949-04:00Hey Michael,
Thanks for your thoughts. I do know ...Hey Michael,<br /><br />Thanks for your thoughts. I do know the median is the "middle numbers" of an array of numbers, and that this study applies to American museums only....<br /><br />Or, in other words, I know my fly-off-the-handleness about the museums admissions issue in Toronto/Canada affects how I read and focus on certain data only! I hear you on that.<br /><br />I do think our national situation could benefit from some accurate analysis and tracking of around admissions fees, attendance, etc. I don't see the Canadian Museums Association or CAMDO doing similar research... why has only the States got this going on? Some research of this kind would be an excellent starting point for discussions around funding and access structures (or lack thereof) in our institutions.<br /><br />To be clear to other readers, I understand very well that museums need money in order to operate. I totally get that. I want artists to be paid. I want curators to be paid. I want installers to be paid. Heck, I even want directors to be paid, even if it's not to the tune of a million dollars a year.<br /><br />But, like Michael, I often wonder if the funding model currently in place for Canadian museums truly does fulfill the mandates upon which our museums have been founded -- to provide public access to public collections. Truly, I say, charge all you want for temporary exhibitions! Hold all the crazy fundraising balls you want! Just *at least* give the public reasonable access to public collections, which are, after all, maintained (and donation-tax-receipted) in the public trust.Leah Sandalshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13586221448338828889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342911384518459004.post-11940585823832900632010-04-07T16:23:31.031-04:002010-04-07T16:23:31.031-04:00Hey, Leah,
The study report doesn't give enou...Hey, Leah,<br /><br />The study report doesn't give enough information to really tell what the $7 median means ... does this include museums that don't charge? What qualifies as a museum for the purposes of the study? et cetera et cetera.<br /><br />If there are ten museums in our fine city, and four of them charge $20+ for admission, but six charge nothing, the median charge is $0. <br /><br />More importantly, there are many studies that look at admissions and attendance in the UK, which shows that (not surprisingly) no admission fees lead to higher attendance. The question is, could a well developed donor campaign be attached to a no-admission fee policy, much akin to the free admissions to the Powerplant during the summer. <br /><br />Likewise, could a much reduced admission fee structure, if applied across the board (e.g. no free admission for membership), lead to the building of a much more receptive and much larger pool for lower-level donations which would offset the lower ticket revenue. These are things that our institutions should be investigating ... instead of focussing primarily on large gifts and the attendant higher costs of servicing those gifts -- and, to boot, increasing attendance which increases public awareness of the importance of governmental support of arts and culture ...Michael Mnoreply@blogger.com