3.0

Average Course Rating

An increasingly significant amount of our cultural and historical heritage is in private collections and outside the protective sphere of public institutions. Numbering in the tens of thousands in just the U.S., private collections span a great variety of objects reflecting the wide range of enthusiasts who collect them. This course will explore private collectors and trends in their collecting plus the similarities and differences between public and private collections and museums. It will help prepare students for the unique challenges they may face, illustrated by real world examples and interviews with collectors, curators, collections managers, and service providers plus hands-on experience. It will include developing problem solving strategies and project management skills they can use to adapt and implement institutional ethics and best practices, especially as private collections evolve into public museums. Prerequisite: Collection Management (460.666)