Museums Matter: In Praise of the Encyclopedic Museum

by James Cuno

The concept of an encyclopedic museum was born of the Enlightenment, a manifestation of society’s growing belief that the spread of knowledge and the promotion of intellectual inquiry were crucial to human development and the future of a rational society. But in recent years, museums have been under attack, with critics arguing that they are little more than relics and promoters of imperialism. Could it be that the encyclopedic museum has outlived its usefulness?

With Museums Matter , James Cuno, president and director of the Art Institute of Chicago, replies with a resounding “No!” He takes us on a brief tour of the modern museum, from the creation of the British Museum—the archetypal encyclopedic collection—to the present, when major museums host millions of visitors annually and play a major role in the cultural lives of their cities. Along the way, Cuno acknowledges the legitimate questions about the role of museums in nation-building and imperialism, but he argues strenuously that even a truly national museum like the Louvre can’t help but open visitors’ eyes and minds to the wide diversity of world cultures and the stunning art that is our common heritage. Engaging with thinkers such as Edward Said and Martha Nussbaum, and drawing on examples from the politics of India to the destruction of the Bramiyan Buddhas to the history of trade and travel, Cuno makes a case for the encyclopedic museum as a truly cosmopolitan institution, promoting tolerance, understanding, and a shared sense of history—values that are essential in our ever more globalized age.

Powerful, passionate, and to the point, Museums Matter is the product of a lifetime of working in and thinking about museums; no museumgoer should miss it.

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction, Museums

164 pages, Hardcover

First published December 15, 2011

Reviews

[Brian Gatz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rousing defense of cosmopolitanism, told through the development of the public museum. It's a defense of travel for all of us unable to afford the rigors of international movement. The enlightenment, encyclopedic collections as a base upon which the rich cultures, ideas, movements of the world can be appreciated. It puts to shame those of us who visit art museums to see what we like: it's an education, possibly the most essential for maintaining comprehensive human relations. A shot's taken at the antithesis, the parochial, as advanced by thinkers like Burke in the eighteenth century through the never-ending growth of conservatism--all of which seems to prefer established power, nationalism, and religion to democracy, community, and conversation. 'Cosmopolitan' is my new favorite word (it used to be 'metropolitan', but let's aim higher shall we?).

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I came to this work largely agreeing with Cuno (and having enjoyed numerous other works he's written or edited on this issue), this one was disappointing. He spent much of the work discussing cosmopolitanism and the various ways one could approach knowledge and culture, without a clear connection to museums (beyond the obvious 'culture matters'), let alone an argument why museums actually matter. More time was spent, it seems, on 20th century Indian politics or debates over various books and responses than making the solid argument why these specific things relate back to the necessity of museums. This might have worked better either as a refocused argument for cosmopolitanism or a work arguing for museums in a much expanded format with the current work providing theoretical background and paired with specific examples chosen to make the argument, rather than ones which felt superficial and like they had been chosen to fill out the theoretical background. The introduction notes that this is a book developed from a series of lectures, and perhaps this worked better in lecture form, before whatever changes were made to expand it into a book.

[Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

At some points this book puts its finger on our contemporary problems with nationalism and the fixed-culture mindset, and how encyclopedic museums are an antidote to those attenuating influences; at other points it diverges so far from being an argument for museums, and so much a dialogue between academics, that I feel lost as an audience member. But that’s the way it is with such high-minded cultural institutions, isn’t it?

By focusing on the institution of the museum, Cuno provides a helpful in-road to understanding debates around cosmopolitanism, nationalism, and post-colonialism.

[Lenka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting ideas and thoughts, even though not as much space was given to museums as I expected.

[James G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

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