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Interpretation of Religion

  • 1.  Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-28-2015 02:35 PM

    I am working with a number of collaborators on a book on “Interpreting Religion at Historic Sites and Museums" for the interpreting history series published by Rowman & Littlefield.

    We are looking for examples of historic sites and museums that include some aspect of religion as part of their interpretation in programs, exhibits, tours, and other educational materials. The definition of religion for this study is broad and includes any faith practices, both individual and institutional, drawn from a variety of faith traditions. We are particularly interested in the experiences of museums with audiences of both members and non-members of faith traditions. 

     

    Barbara Franco

    Independent Scholar/Museum Consultant



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    Barbara Franco
    Harrisburg, PA
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  • 2.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-29-2015 07:38 AM

    Hello Barbara - I would be happy to speak with you.  Our tours (Santa Fe, NM area) highlight the life of Yogi Bhajan who was The Siri Singh Sahib of "Sikh Dharma" - the Sikh Faith.  Our property also has monuments and shrines honoring other faiths so some of the dialogue is about that.  Please let me know if I can be of service to your project.


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    Gurufateh Khalsa
    Manager
    Yogi Bhajan Museum Project - Siri Singh Sahib Corp
    Santa Cruz NM
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-29-2015 08:07 AM

    Good morning Barbara,

    Sue Day here from the Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah in Kuwait.  I don't know if you want to include international museums or not, but if you do, we might be able to help.  We're a mostly Islamic art museum in a building built as a hospital by American missionaries and currently feature a pre-Islamic exhibition (hence the 'mostly') which brought with it it's own religious concerns.

    Let me know,

    Sue


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    Susan Day
    Education and Communications Consultant
    Dar Al-Athar Al-Islamiyyah Museum
    Safat
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-29-2015 10:12 AM

    About three years ago, the Chicago History Museum presented an exhibition titled "Shalom Chicago," about Chicago´s Jewish community.  It was developed in consultation with a variety of community groups, and was very well-received by the museum´s broad constituencies including Jewish and non-Jewish visitors alike.  The curator, Olivia Mahoney, and the  education programming specialist, Ilana Bruton, would be good contacts for you. 

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    Phyllis Rabineau
    Chicago History Museum
    Chicago IL
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-29-2015 11:52 AM

    Hi Barbara,

    You should definitely look at the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia. They've done a beautiful job of weaving the Jewish experience into the story of American history.

    Best,

    Robin

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    Robin White Owen
    Principal
    Mediacombo, Inc
    Brooklyn NY
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-29-2015 12:31 PM

    Barbara,

    The Glebe House is the birthplace of the Episcopal Church in the New World.It is open to the public in Woodbury, CT.

    Betsy

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    Elizabeth Fox
    Independent Curator
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    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 09:55 AM

    Barbara:

    Please come for a visit! Feel free to contact me with more information about your project.

    akraut@nmajh.org

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    Alisa Kraut
    Curatorial Assistant
    National Museum of American Jewish History
    Philadelphia PA
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    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-30-2015 08:26 AM

    Barbara

    The NYPL mounted a stunning and comprehensive exhibition, Three Faiths, that focused on the three Abrahamic Faiths. Public and related programs - including an operational scriptorium and exhibition of contemporary photographs of faith on the street - were well done. Check out the exhibition website for resources:

    Three Faiths - Judaism, Christianity, Islam | The New York Public Library

    I also recommend connecting with Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA) whose mission is to explore artistic expression across faiths and cultures. 

    Loyola University Chicago - LUMA

    Yeshiva University Museum and St John the Divine both in NYC and the Museum of Russian Icons in Massachusetts are also great resources that you may not have considered. 

    ------------------------------
    Laura McManus

    Coordinator of Youth and Family Programs

    North Carolina Museum of Art

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    Original Message


  • 9.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-30-2015 11:18 AM

    Perhaps a day in Salem, Massachusetts in order? The religious context of the witch hysteria and trials of 1693 is interpreted heavily at multiple sites to varying degrees of accuracy and from a variety of perspectives ranging from colonial Puritan to 21st century Wiccan. The numerous museums and historic sites in the area (and for some I use these terms cautiously), are sites of historical interpretation, memorialization, pilgrimage, and active ritual. We have legit art- and artifact-based museums, living history sites, reenactment theater, candlelit walking tours, and numerous side-show-style attractions all contributing to the spirited interpretation for which tourists (of all faiths, I suppose) are so hungry.

    If you like your history served with extra cheese, come in October when numerous pop-up "museums" join the mix. If you Google "Salem MA Museums," you'll see that over 20 permanent institutions claim to be museums and most of them address religious context in some way. 

    (PS: Barbara, you and I collaborated on the master planning of the PA St. Museum so many years ago. Those were the largest meetings I have ever seen!!)

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    Matt Kirchman
    Interpretive Planner / Exhibit Developer
    ObjectIDEA
    Salem MA
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    Original Message


  • 10.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 07:34 AM

    Barbara--

    The Museum of World Religions in Taipei, Taiwan is lovely small museum founded by a buddhist monk.

    "The Museum of World Religions belongs to all faiths. Its founding is inspiring and encouraging interfaith dialogue so that we all work together to create peace and understanding in the world we share."

    http://www.mwr.org.tw/content_en/introduction/origin-concept.aspx

    Guy


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    Guy Hermann
    Principal
    Museum Insights
    Mystic CT
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    Original Message


  • 11.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 10:05 AM

    Hello - 

    We are a small house museum that mainly interprets our site as a home and gardens but the founders, the Sterns, were Jewish so we do discuss this within the context of the tour to a small degree.  As most of the staff is not Jewish I have in the past had a local historian of Jewish history in New Orleans come to speak so that people could ask questions and feel better informed to answer inquires from the public.  I would be happy to talk about how we as a small institution discuss religion if you would like.

    Thanks

    Lenora


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    Lenora Costa
    Curator
    Longue Vue House & Gardens
    New Orleans LA
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    Original Message


  • 12.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 09:43 AM
    Edited by Anne Richards 08-31-2015 09:44 AM

    Hi Barbara, 

    During my master's I did a research project on faith exhibitions on common successes and issues that were prevalent in these exhibitions. One of the exhibitions/sites I used for this study was St. Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art in Glasgow, Scotland. All of the programs and interpretations at this site center around creating a common understanding and respect for people of different faiths and of none. I visited the museum and they had programs/exhibits that catered to not only adults but had well-developed education programs for children.  This may be a great case study because it is a public museum which encourages everyone to come in and explore. 

    http://www.glasgowlife.org.uk/museums/st-mungos/Pages/default.aspx

    Hope it all goes well! 

    Anne Richards

    Program Assistant 

    Minnesota Historical Society

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    Anne Richards

    St. Paul, MN
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    Original Message


  • 13.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 09:56 AM

    Yes, talking to the people at St. Mungo's would be a great place to start. I researched the stained glass windows there as a graduate student at Glasgow Uni (and, got to see Dali's Christ of St. John of the Cross there, which was a-maz-ing). Further, Glasgow Museums adds additional religious life context to exhibits at the People's Palace museum, not far from St. Mungo's, and also some at Kelvingrove Museum, each museum interpreting the artifacts in a slightly different way, appropriate to the respective museum's mission. 

    Closer afield, the Heinz History Center has not only the Rauh Jewish Archives, but also recently (last two years or so) did an exhibition on Catholic religious communities in Pittsburgh. The exhibition focused on the religious sisters, their habits, archival material, etc. It was a really interesting way to talk about the influence and the role of the church and religious societies in the city. 

    Cheers,
    Tracey 



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    Tracey Berg-Fulton
    Collections Database Associate
    Carnegie Museum of Art
    Pittsburgh PA
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  • 14.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 10:11 AM

    The Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester's Teacher Resource Center circulates 5 kits for classroom use with objects illustrative of the Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Islamic & Judaic faiths.  The kits were created based upon the excellent example of the North Carolina Museum of Art, and with extensive consultation with area religious leaders.

     

    The Memorial Art Gallery's World Religions: Teaching with Objects kits bring authentic objects used for personal religious prayers and devotion to the classroom. Guided Discovery lessons ask students to begin with a careful observation of each object or image and then, through their questions and answers, progress to the integration of information and interpretation. Close and thoughtful analysis of the object leads students from the concrete to the abstract, from the particular to the general, from an understanding of ritual practices to the larger context of religious concepts, beliefs and traditions. The objects and activities in the kit can be used as an introduction to a belief system unit, as a student inquiry strategy about objects within a unit, or as an assessment tool. Contents of the World Religions: Teaching with Objects Kits include:

    ·         Objects and information art cards

    ·         Photographs of religious objects in the Memorial Art Gallery and information art cards

    ·         Osborne, Mary Pope. One World, Many Religions: The Way We Worship. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1996

    ·         Guided Discovery sample scripts

    ·         Visual Literacy Lesson – One Object, Four Skills!

    ·         Worksheets and Graphic Organizers

     

    Lu Harper

    Librarian/Webmaster

    Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester

    500 University Ave.

    Rochester, NY 14607

    585.276.8997

    lharper@mag.rochester.edu

    85F81054-ED3E-40EE-A96A-642B7F10298D

     

    Rochester Finger Lakes Exhibition  July 26-Sept. 13 | Sixty-eight works by 46 local artists

    M&T Bank Clothesline Festival  Sept. 12 & 13 | Rochester's longest-running fine art and crafts festival

    MAG Thursdays |  5-9 pm  |  music, art, food  | 1/2 price admission

     




    Original Message


  • 15.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 10:24 AM

    Andrew Jackson's Hermitage interprets Andrew and Rachel Jackson's Presbyterian faith in a variety of contexts on site including the 1823 old Hermitage Presbyterian  Church (one of our historic structures), especially in relation to the Second Great Awakening.  We have done some special programming, as well as discussing religion at various points in our tours.   Please let me know if you would like more information.

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    Marsha Mullin
    Vice President of Museum Servi
    The Hermitage
    Hermitage TN
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    Original Message


  • 16.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 10:24 AM

    Perhaps you might consider two separate, independent museums in Jerusalem - the Israel Museum (http://www.imj.org.il/en/) and the Bible Lands Museum (http://www.blmj.org/en/), both of whose coverage is far wider than just  Judaic material.

    Alfred Kromholz



  • 17.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 11:40 AM

    Chicago History Museum has done special exhibitions on Catholic Chicago and Jewish Chicago, and there are plans for other faith communities in the future. How can I help you?

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    Tamara Biggs
    Director of Exhibitions
    Chicago History Museum
    Chicago IL
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    Original Message


  • 18.  RE: Interpretation of Religion

    Posted 08-31-2015 06:14 PM

    Dear Barbara,

    My name is David Brinker and I'm the Assistant Director of the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art (MOCRA). MOCRA is (to the best of our knowledge) the world's first interfaith museum of contemporary art that engages religious and spiritual themes. Located on the campus of Saint Louis University in St. Louis, MO, MOCRA opened in 1993 and is dedicated to the ongoing dialogue between contemporary artists and the world's faith traditions, and to serving as a forum for interfaith understanding. We have presented nearly 50 exhibitions in our first two decades and still feel like we've barely begun to explore the range of ways in which today's artists continue to engage the various faith traditions and other aspects of the spiritual dimensions of our human existence.

    I invite you to explore our past exhibitions on our website. Many people are (pleasantly) surprised at the wide range of artists, media, and approaches to religion and/or spirituality represented in our exhibitions and collection. You might also browse our podcast, MOCRA Voices, for a variety of perspectives on recognizing and expressing the religious and spiritual dimensions in contemporary art.

    Beyond MOCRA, I know LUMA in Chicago has already been mentioned in this thread. LUMA and MOCRA have had some fruitful collaborations on exhibitions over the years -- we congratulate LUMA as they celebrate their tenth anniversary this fall.

    In case you've not yet come across it, I'd also recommend the book Reluctant Partners: Art and Religion in Dialogue, edited by Ena Heller, former Director of the recently closed Museum of Biblical Art and now Bruce A. Beal Director of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College, Winter Park/Orlando, Florida. 

    Good luck with the project. I look forward to seeing the book when it is published.


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    David Brinker
    Assistant Director
    Museum of Contemporary Religious Art
    Saint Louis MO

    http://mocra.slu.edu
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    Original Message