Module Identifier |
MG20410 |
Module Title |
COLLECTION MANAGEMENT |
Academic Year |
2006/2007 |
Co-ordinator |
Mr Robert K Meyrick |
Semester |
Semester 2 |
Other staff |
Mr Robert K Meyrick |
Pre-Requisite |
MG10120 |
Co-Requisite |
MG20110 |
Course delivery |
Lecture | x 9 |
|
Seminars / Tutorials | x 6 |
Assessment |
Assessment Type | Assessment Length/Details | Proportion |
Semester Assessment | Essay of 2500 words | 60% |
Semester Assessment | Documentation Test | 40% |
Supplementary Assessment | Essay of 2500 words and Documentation Test | 100% |
|
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
1. articulate in a range of museum related issues
2. proficient in the documentation and recording of museum artefacts
3. photograph works of art, sculpture, paintings, small objects, glass etc.
4. to appreciate the importance of an Acquisitions Policy to help control and structure accessions and accepting gifts
Relation to Assessment
Essay (1,2,4), Documentation Test (2,3)
The essay provides the opportunity for the student to discuss and demonstrate their comprehension of the methods and importance of effective collection management in a museum. The Documentation Test provides a the opportunity to identify and demonstrate the standards of Collection Management required in museum work through a practical application of the skills and knowledge acquired throughout the module.
Brief description
Good documentation enables the proper management (care, control, usage), understanding, and interpretation of museum collections. This module examines ways in which museums document and looks after their collections, and covers all kinds of recorded information a museum has about the things it collects. It will examine the purpose of museum documentation systems by considering an object'r journey through a museum collection from accession to display. The module will consider various processes of gathering, recording, storing, manipulating and retrieving information about collections, cultural and environmental heritage
Aims
1. introduce the care and control of collections, aiding the use of the collections, aiding the preservation of information
2. introduce various documentation systems and provide practical instruction in database software
3. appreciate the importance of recording information of objects through related archives, photographs, film and audio material
4. explain the necessity for Acquisitions and Disposals Policies and joint collecting strategies amongst neighbouring institutions
5. define Disaster Planning and consider Management Strategies
Content
-
Purchase, Gift, Loan and Find: Acquisitions and Disposals Policies and Accessions Procedures
-
Documentation and the Museum Documentation Association
-
Information Retrieval: Computers, Databases and MODES
-
Classification: Standardised Terminology and Data Dictionaries
-
Archives and Object History Files
-
Recording Heritage: Photography, Sound and Moving Image
-
Research and Scholarship in Museums
-
Storage, Environmental Control, Care of Collections, Condition Checks and Reports
-
Security and Disaster Planning
Transferable skills
1 Independent project work
-
essay
-
preparation for seminars
-
preparation for documentation test
2 IT and information handling
-
word processing
-
database
-
web database searches
3 Use and analysis of numerical information
4 Writing in an academic context
5 Oral discussion and presentation
-
seminars
-
object description and documentation exercises
6 Careers need awareness
-
The module is specifically for students considering a career in museums, art gallery administration, public art organisations, freelance curators and exhibition organisers, and in private galleries.
7 Self-management
-
Course Work
-
Seminar Preparation
8 Group activity
-
Seminars
-
Identification and documentation exercises in groups
Reading Lists
Books
A Fahy (ed) (1994) Collections Management Routledge
London
D A Roberts (1985) Planning the Documentation of Museum Collections
MDA
D L A Williams A Guide to Museum Computing
Gaynor Kavanagh (ed.) (1994) Museum Provision and Professionalism
Routledge, London
Museum Documentation Association (2000) Standards in Action:Spectrum IT Guide Book 2
The MDA, London
Museums Association (1992) Manual of Curatorship
Butterworths, London
Museums Association Museum Practice `Storage', Issue 1, Vol. 1, March 1996, `Display', Issue 2, Vol. 1, July 1996, `Outreach'Issue 3, Vol. 1, [December] 1996, `Environment', Issue 4, Vol. 2, No.1, 1997Issue 3, Vol. 1, [December] 1996, `Environment', Issue 4, Vol. 2, No.1, 1997
Security, Issue 8, Vol. 3, No.2, 1998, `AV & Multimedia?, Issue 9, Vol. 3, No.3, 1998
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 5