LDF Special: Murray Moss from It's Nice That on Vimeo.
Museum programming has been on my mind a lot lately. Not only because it is an area of huge potential for museums to connect with visitors, but also because I recently took a position designing these happenings for the Denver Art Museum. One part of this job involves creating the museum’s monthly late nights called Untitled. I have been involved with DAM’s Untitled before and am beyond excited to be working on these projects on a regular basis.
But one thing troubled me as I began to plan for the 2012 season of events, and what was even worse was that I could not seem to find a way to articulate it. As I have witnessed and read about museum late nights around the world, there seems to be a huge variety of approaches – and not all of them are noteworthy. I can appreciate that each institution has its own mission and methods, but some of these events come across as a little shallow. Thumping music and setting up a bar alone do not constitute valuable museum experiences. Add a token lecture/tour and it’s a program!
The Denver Art Museum has really been a leader in this area, producing Untitled events for several years and pushing the boundaries in every direction. It’s exciting to be at a place that values the unexpected and also realizes the importance of connecting with its exhibitions. It seems like some museums, in the quest for being culturally relevant, have left the culture out of it and ignored their greatest assets – their collections.
Then I came across a story about Murray Moss (the design boss of NY), who recently collaborated with the V&A during the London Design Festival. At the museum’s request, Moss invited a handful of designers/artists to create a 3-D printed work related to a piece in the V&A collection. The exhibition was wonderful, but what was even more intriguing was Moss’s commentary in the various interviews I found. Hearing about his approach, as the invited curator, was so refreshing. And then, during one of the many videos I watched (at about second 52 above), Mr.Moss muttered the words that I have been struggling to find. Describing his planning, Moss said the first thing he wrote down was: Do not use the museum as a cool address. And just like that, he summed up my piles of notes, conversations and feelings. There are so many ways to produce programming that is meaningful, experimental, powerful and enjoyable. We do not need to treat the museum merely as a venue to gain the interest of our audiences. His simple words rung so true and clear, I printed them out and have them staring at me above my desk. As I look forward to next year and lots of amazing projects at the DAM, I will be keeping Mr. Moss’s mantra close at hand.