5 Case Study 1 - Leicester Research Archive - University of Leicester

Question 7: What societal processes does this discourse belong to?
It cannot be denied that the traditional museum audience relationship is being
challenged on many different fronts. Government funding for museums across
Europe have decreased over the years, which has put museums under pressure to
generate their own funds. Amongst the many consequences, museums became
much more dependent on their visitors. Visitors not only generate funds for
museums through spending money on the entry ticket, in the café and shop; they
also prove or disprove the legitimacy of the museum as an institution in the
service of the community. This leads to a situation, as Hooper-Greenhill argues,
where “art museums must demonstrate their viability and argue their value in
new contexts.” 357
Thirdly, pressure on museums also comes from cultural policy. In Britain, for
instance, cultural policy “has increased its call for arts and cultural organisations
to make their activities enjoyed by and relevant to as many people as possible in
recent years. The need for cultural organisations and projects to reach out into
wider communities and involve a range of people in cultural activities now crops
up both in the discourse of cultural policy and on the arts and cultural
management agenda.” 358
Another important point is that changes in communication are not only related to
technology alone; i.e. the changes that are taking place are not limited to the way
content is delivered to audiences. Change has also taken place in the manner or
style of communication. Hooper-Greenhill, for instance, describes how
communication and learning theories on which nineteenth century museums
were based are no longer valid. “Today, constructivist learning theory plays
together with post-structuralist epistemologies and post-colonial cultural politics
to position the visitor/learner as both active and politicised in the construction of
their own relevant viewpoints. The post-museum must play the role of partner,
colleague, learner (itself), and service provider in order to remain visible as an
357 Eileen Hooper-Greenhill, ‘Changing Values’, p.11.
358 Nobuko Kawashima, ‘Audience development and social inclusion in Britain. Tensions,
contradictions and paradoxes and their implications for cultural management.’ in International
Journal of Cultural Policy 12, 1 (2006) pp.55-72, p.55.
239