Menu
Log in


Login/Logout
My Profile


MANY NEWSLETTER | MAY 2019


Dear MANY Members,


Welcome to the May 2019 edition of This Month in NY State Museums. As summer approaches, each of the three newsletter articles include things that you might do this summer. At the Schenectady County Historical Society, where a change in programs is changing the museums’ relationship with their community, you can take a kayak tour of the Mohawk River. You can get back to the garden at the Museum at Bethel Woods where they are celebrating Woodstock's 50th anniversary with the exhibition entitled “We Are Golden” – the title taken from the Joni Mitchell lyric that called a generation to action following the renowned music festival. A summer activity that ties some of us to our desks when we would rather be out at play is the July 26th deadline for the Regional Economic Development Council grant applications. Our article dedicated to resources this month features the work of some recent grant recipients that we hope will get your ideas flowing and inspire you to apply for these grants that are making a difference for so many of our state’s museums. 


We are busy this summer preparing to see you all in the fall at workshops, Meet Ups and at The Museum Institute at Great Camp Sagamore. Write to us about your summer programs and we will include you in our upcoming newsletters.


Thank you for your continuing support,


Erika Sanger


Executive Director, MANY


 



RESOURCES

Regional Economic Development Council Competition is Now Open


Design mock-up for the Albright Knox Gallery exhibition space. View of the north building from Elmwood Avenue. Image courtesy Albright Knox Gallery.

Design mock-up for the Albright Knox Gallery exhibition space. View of the north building from Elmwood Avenue. Image courtesy Albright Knox Gallery.


In 2018, over $23 million was awarded to fifty-seven museums through the Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) Initiative. With the opening of the grant portal on May 1, New York State’s ninth round of REDC initiatives includes two New York Council on the Arts (NYSCA) funding programs.

Reamore >

Community

How the Schenectady County Historical Society Embraced Change and Their Role in the Community

New programming has brought in new audiences at the Schenectady County Historical Society like their Independence Day Celebration with the Schenectady Symphony (pictured above). Image courtesy Schenectady County Historical Society.

New programming has brought in new audiences at the Schenectady County Historical Society like their Independence Day Celebration with the Schenectady Symphony (pictured above). Image courtesy Schenectady County Historical Society.


As communities that surround museums change and the pressure to remain relevant and create more sustainable sources of revenue increases, museums are looking at the roles they play in their community. Through relevant programming, exhibitions, and events, museums can reach new audiences, celebrate local history and culture, and add to the quality of life in their communities.

Read more >

Exhibitions & Collections

Connecting Today’s Youth With the Woodstock Generation

The replica of the Message Tree, designed to model the landmark tree on the field at Woodstock. The original, a red maple tree would serve as a meeting point and be covered in messages like asking people for rides, times to meet, etc. This replica Message Tree (pictured above) allows visitors to We Are Golden to leave their own thoughts about the exhibition and what they want to see in the world. Image courtesy The Museum at Bethel Woods.

The replica of the Message Tree, designed to model the landmark tree on the field at Woodstock. The original, a red maple tree would serve as a meeting point and be covered in messages like asking people for rides, times to meet, etc. This replica Message Tree (pictured above) allows visitors to We Are Golden to leave their own thoughts about the exhibition and what they want to see in the world. Image courtesy The Museum at Bethel Woods.


We Are Golden: Reflections on the 50th Anniversary of the Woodstock Festival and Aspirations for a Peaceful Future, an exhibition at the Museum at Bethel Woods celebrates and interprets Woodstock’s golden anniversary through artifacts, oral histories, and mixed media and connects social movements in the 1960’s to events at Woodstock and beyond by drawing parallels from then to today. 

Read more >

Letters from Erika

Jambalaya Nation


Sugar boiling pots and slave cabins, Whitney Plantation


When I was young, teachers at PS 110 in Manhattan tried to teach me that America was a “Melting Pot.” As I learned about my friends, classmates, neighbors, and how my family came to this country, that phrase lost its sensibility. My grandmother never opened a cookbook and my mother embraced the ever expanding frozen food aisle. I learned about the people who shared my world through their music and food ways and was fortunate to be surrounded by an endless supply of sounds and flavors to nourish my heart and my body.

Read more >



Lonnie G. Bunch III to Become the Smithsonian's 14th Secretary

The founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Bunch represents the first insider to lead the institution in decades.

Read more>

Should These Clothes Be Saved?

Thousands of articles of everyday women’s clothing are being preserved in lockers in a college basement. But where, exactly, does their value lie?

Read more >

Gurvich is New Executive Director at Warwick Historical Society

The Historical Society welcomes Nora Aman Curvich as the new Executive Director.

Read more>

Culture Pass brings library patrons to New York museums-and now, museums to libraries

Branches across the boroughs are now hosting museums' educational programs

Read more>

Weeksville, a Haven for Free African-Americans Before the Civil War, Is Fighting for Survival

Weeksville could have vanished altogether once before.The remains of the village of free African-Americans who had carved out a settlement after New York abolished slavery were crumbling in the 1960s. Preservationists crusaded, and the refuge nestled in the heart of Brooklyn was saved.

Read more>

Local Students Bring Perspective to Smithsonian Institution

Some local students were able to take a trip to Washington, D.C earlier this month to bring some perspective to the Smithsonian Institution. Three teens from the High School Learning Center in Corning drove to D.C. to represent the Rockwell Museum, which is a Smithsonian affiliate. 

Read more>

New Statue of Liberty Museum Illuminates a Forgotten History

The museum, opening Thursday on Liberty island, reminds visitors of the vague and often dubious ideal of "liberty for all."

Read more>

The Long Journey Home for Chief Cornplanter's Tomahawk

The Seneca Nation is hoping that the cherished relic will reside permanently in their new museum. The tomahawk and pipe of the great Seneca Nation Chief Cornplanter was recently unveiled at the Seneca Iroquois National Museum, but the road taken to get there was a long one.

Read more>


A Queer Look at Brooklyn: Student-Curated Exhibition on Brooklyn's LGBTQ History, Opens at Brooklyn Historical Society 

A Queer Look at Brooklyn is broken down into four panels which explore how themes of community, gentrification, and advocacy have historically affected Brooklyn’s queer experience.

Read more>

Fort Wood Creek on the National Register of Historic Places

On March 14, 2019 the French and Indian War fortification known as Fort Wood Creek was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Fort Wood Creek, located on the Rome Historical Society’s Fort Bull property, dates to 1756 when it was constructed by the British to replace Fort Bull after it had been attacked and destroyed by 362 French and their Indian allies.

Read more>

New Directions at New York History

Cornell University Press is pleased to announce that the journal New York History, published in association with the New York State Museum, will begin its second century of publication with a new look and an expanded mission. With volume 100, number 1, to appear this summer, New York History will feature a fresh design and offer more space and devote greater editorial attention to public history and the essential work done in museums and historical societies across the state. 

Read more>



"Access and Identity: Leading for the Future"

The Museum Institute at Great Camp Sagamore

September 24-27, 2019

The Institute is the perfect place for emerging and established leaders to develop strategies to face new challenges. What you learn in this immersive, participatory program will help you affect positive change in your organization, your career, and your community.

Learn from other leaders in the museum field who will share their experiences across a variety of disciplines to help create solutions, build audiences, and develop your institutional management skills.

2019 The Museum Institute Presenters:

Tonya Matthews

Director of Inclusion, American Alliance of Museums


Sonnet Takanhisa

Teaching and Learning Consultant, Arts and Cultural Strategies, Inc.


Andrew Marietta

VP, Regional Development, NYCON


Garet Livermore

 Independent Museum Professional with 30+ years in the museum field


Bruce Whitmarsh

Executive Director, Chemung County Historical Society


Erika Sanger

Executive Director, Museum Association of New York


Learn more


Orpheo is a 20 year old company focusing on audio and multi media guide solutions. We equip devices including Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, 9/11 Memorial, and Grand Central Station in NY and many other high profile global portfolio locations. Let us design self guided or guided tours, content creation, smartphone apps, multimedia installations, and Virtual and Augmented Reality. Revenue share agreements welcomed! We design our own equipment and service them in New York. Learn more about what Orpheo can offer you on their website.


Frameless Technologiescreates Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) experiences for marketing, exhibits and education. We specialize in 360/VR Video, Virtual Tours, Interactive VR Experiences, AR Experiences, 3D Artifact Scanning/Volumetric Photography and 360-degree Drone photos/video. We offer the latest technology and create content for use across multiple platforms. Technical support is included with all projects. We welcome the opportunity to discuss project ideas and provide free estimates.  Please contact Michaela: mgaaserud@framelesstechnologies.com or visit www.framelesstechnologies.com.

Are you interested in becoming an industry-level sponsor of This Month in NYS Museums?Email info@nysmuseums.org to find out how!


Collections Manager, Education and Volunteer Program Coordinator, Museum Director and more!

Visit our job board to search for museum jobs or to post your job opportunities!


In this

Newsletter

 MANY News

 Museums in the News 

 Member News 

 Share Your News

 From Our Sponsors  

  Upcoming Events 

 Job Board


#WelcomeWednesday

Inside what looks as an old subway stop with large archways and classic subway tile. A subway train car can be seen in the distance.

New York Transit Museum

Founded in 1976, the New York Transit Museum tells the stories of mass transportation from extraordinary engineering feats, workers who labored in the tunnels, how communities were drastically transformed, and the constant evolving technology, design, and ridership of a system that runs 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

#FreeFriday

Front image of the NYS Museum looking up at the building from the front steps.

NYS Museum

Not just the location for #MANY2020 but the New York State Museum is the oldest and largest state museum in the country. established in 1836, the museum collection is among the finest in the world with more than 16 million scientific specimens and one million cultural objects.

#MuseumMonday

The sun is coming over in the distance with the Fort in the foreground. The Vermont Green Mountains can be seen in the distance

Fort Ticondergoa

Sunrise views from Fort Ticonderoga's southwest overlooking the Green Mountains of Vermont.

#WelcomeWednesday

exterior image of the museum. The building is a brick facade and has a green and white awning that is over glass doors and windows

Seneca Museum of Waterways and Industry

Located in historic downtown Seneca Falls, the Seneca Museum of Waterways and industry shares the history of how the Seneca River and the Cayuga-Seneca Canal powered the rise of industry and fostered cultural development, helping to spread social and reform movements.

#FreeFriday

Blue skies over the Erie Canal at Schoharie Crossing with kayakers paddling

Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site

Now open for the 2019 season, Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site is located on the Erie Canal in Fort Hunter, NY and is where you can find the Schoharie Aqueduct, which carried the water from the Erie Canal over the Schoharie Creek. Schoharie Crossing is also the site of the 18th century Fort Hunter. The grounds are open dawn to dusk and are free of charge.

#MuseumMonday

A cosmic image of the universe that features a cluster of stars like the Milky Way

The Museum at Bethel Woods

Weeks before 450,000 young people came together in the name of peace and music in August of 1969, the world was captivated by another event: the first moon landing. Each of these monumental events came to serve as beacons of hope during an otherwise tumultuous decade. The Museum at Bethel Woods' special exhibit We Are Stardust will present objects related to the Apollo 11 Lunar landing and interpret the history surrounding the moon landing through the lens of American culture.

#WelcomeWednesday

Summertime exterior image of an early 19th century building with Willaims-Pultneyville Historical Society sign out front

Williams-Pultneyville Historical Society

Located in the historic district in the hamlet of Pultneyville, the Williamson-Pultneyville Historical Society owns and operates three sites. One site, Gates Hall, was built in 1825 and has witnessed many historic events for the community including talks on religion, slavery, and women's rights.

#exploreMW #MuseumWeek

A tugboat going along the Erie Canal

Water/Ways

We celebrated #exploreMW for #MuseumWeek by exploring New York State's waterways with the Smithsonian Insitute's Water/Ways Museum on Main Street program. It seems rather fitting that the first MoMS exhibit in NYS is Water/Ways. New York has more than 7,600 freshwater, ponds, and reservoirs, as well as portions of two Great Lakes and over 70,000 miles of rivers and streams flow within New York's boundaries.

#InternationalMuseumDay

Group of images featuring many close up of faces of museum professionals.

Together We Are MANY

We are honored to inspire, connect, and strengthen our #nysmuseums community by advocating, educating, collaborating, and supporting professional standards and organizational development.

#MuseumMonday

A large full scale dinosaur in the middle of an exhibition hall with sky lights above filling the room with natural light

Buffalo Museum of Science

Find why. The Buffalo Museum of Science pushes us to ask "Why?" For nearly a century the Museum has been a resource for why. Answering many times over. "From exhibits that captivate, to a staff that guides, to a collection that inspires, we are about perpetuating the amazing questions of why in all who walk out halls."

#MANYontheMove

NYS museums meeting up at #AAM2019! Pictured L-R Hillarie Olson (RMSC), Erika Sanger (MANY), Eliza Koslowski (George Eastman Museum), and Lynda Kennedy (The Intrepid Sear, Air & Space Museum)

AAM!

NYS museums meeting up at #AAM2019! Pictured L-R: Hillarie Olson (RMSC), Erika Sanger (MANY), Eliza Kozlowski (George Eastman Museum), and Lynda Kennedy (The Intrepid Sear, Air & Space Museum)

#WelcomeWednesday

interior image of the Square House Inn, an 18th century building with colonial style furniture and large fireplace

The Rye Historical Society

Founded in 1964 by a group of citizens concerned with preserving, restoring, and protecting an 18th century inn located in the Village in Rye, the Square House, the Rye Historical Society was established.

#MuseumMonday

An actual unused Apollo Lunar Modul

Cradle of Aviation Museum

The museum contains over 60 aircraft and scale models of airplanes from various time periods, including Charles Lindbergh's Curtiss Jenny, and an actually unused Apollo Lunar Module.

Want to be featured? 

Tag @nysmuseums or #nysmuseums in your social media posts.



Submit your articles on:

  • Engaging community stories
  • Exhibition and collection developments
  • How you're using resources to accomplish your vision and mission

Upload your articles to the MANY Share Your News or 

Email your articles to our Marketing & Social Media Coordinator Megan Eves at meves@nysmuseums.org

Keep our three main issues in mind when you're brainstorming ideas: Resources, Community, and Exhibitions & Collections.


265 River Street, Troy, NY 12180 | www.nysmuseums.org | 518-273-3400

Connect with us:
     
#MANY #NYSmuseums

Back to Newsletter Archive


The Museum Association of New York helps shape a better future for museums and museum professionals by uplifting best practices and building organizational capacity through advocacy, training, and networking opportunities.

Museum Association of New York is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization. 

265 River Street
Troy, NY 12180 USA
518-273-3400

Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software