Museums and the Public Sphere (eBook)

Jennifer Barrett is the Director of Museum Studies at the University of Sydney, Australia, and currently collaborates with the University of Hong Kong on a museum studies program to support developments in their museum sector. She is the editor, with Caroline Butler-Bowdon, of Debating the City: An Anthology (2001).

List of Images vii

Introduction 1

1 The Public Sphere 15

2 Historical Discourses of the Museum 45

3 The Museum as Public Space 81

4 Audience, Community, and Public 118

5 The Museum as Public Intellectual 143

Conclusion 164

References 175

Acknowledgments 191

Index 193

"[Barrett]constructs a framework within which it is possible to
both confront some startling realities about the gap between
museums' purported 'public' role and their efficacy and
relevance in the 'public sphere', and consider initiatives
that might rectify this situation." (Visitor Studies Journal, 9
March 2012)



"An elegant application of Habermas' theory of the
public sphere to museums, this book adds greatly to our
understanding of the nature of public museums. The focus on the
importance of spaciality and vision in the history of museums and
public spaces is particularly enlightening."
Andrea Witcomb, Deakin University

"Barrett tackles head on the assumption that the museum is
a public institution. She artfully unravels the many publics of
contemporary museum talk - public space, public
culture, public intellectual, public sphere. At last museum
scholars and practitioners have a book that gives these terms
historical specificity and theoretical precision. Museums and the
public sphere is must read for any one who believes in museums,
their relevance and their future." Jane M. Jacobs,
University of Edinburgh