Today, I thought it'd be interesting to post one of my recent assignments for class. After learning about misrepresenting information and institutional critique, we were instructed to write a press release about a couple workshops in the course and submit them for a pass/fail grade.
PRESS RELEASE: “Johanna Gustafsson on the construction and communication of knowledge in museum settings, autumn semester 2010”
October 10, 2010. Gothenburg, Sweden. This November, Johanna Gustafsson highlights the start of Göteborgs Universitet’s Museums and Communication module at the School of Global Studies. Through a series of thought-provoking lectures and workshops, students are invited to explore alternative theories and methods of critique and pedagogy in museums settings over a four-week period.
The course begins November 11 with a lecture on the role of fiction as a communicative strategy providing opportunity for internal institutional critique. The use of mimicry as an act of resistance, the ambiguity of representation, and the effectiveness of using narrative as a rhetoric will be explored through the analysis of contemporary performances by the Yes Men, Jon Stewart, and The YES! Organization.
Later, the relationship between pedagogy and hegemony is explored on November 17 with a workshop discussing the subjective and objective nature of knowledge. Through the active analysis of museums press releases, the theories of Karl Marx, Paolo Freire, and Antonio Gramsci are used to explore the legitimizing power of language, the emergence of populist perspectives in a hegemonic system, and the concept of over-political correctness.
The course ends on November 22 with a discussion on the power of the layman as pedagogical figures and institutional critics. Following the theme of “the personal is political,” students will analyze the works of Andrea Fraser, Anika Erickson, and the formation of such groups as Don’t Put Baby in a Corner as reactionary responses to inspire change and debate. A workshop following on November 23 seeks to expand these social theories and critiques in a collaborative creative-writing session in which students refine their ideas of a utopian museum institution.
An intense philosophical discussion on the creation of meaning, the Gustafsson lecture series seeks to relay the importance of innovative and dynamic communication to tomorrow’s museum curators on both private and public fronts. Lectures and workshops are taught in English for two hours a day, free of cost. Fifty seats available for fall semester 2010 for students of both local and international origin.
Göteborgs Universtet’s Masters in International Museum Studies is a two-year program preparing both local and international students for both research and employment in the museum sector. The program takes an interdisciplinary approach grounded in the field of new museology that is concerned with the holistic nature of these organizations and the relationship they have with society.
Further information from
Nina Arens, IMS-GU Public Relations Officer, Mobile Line: (+46) 076-7795234 Email: gusarensch@student.gu.se
International Museum Studies Website: http://www.globalstudies.gu.se/english/education_student/undergraduate2/masters_programme_in_international_museum_studies/
###I chose to form my press release as an university text, released by the registrar to other departments or educational institutions advertising the guest lecturer and course series before it actually occurred (note the date). It was intended to be read by university professionals and journalists within more academic media sources, who would then distribute the information about the course and its structure to a wider audience. Most of the text was written in an academic style with select advertising vocabulary that sought to grab the attention of the reader.
As I understand it, a press release is a statement not meant for the public, but sent to the media with the purpose to announce or highlight a variety of events, be it awards or accomplishments, new hires or promotions, or, of course, opening exhibitions. As such, press texts should state the facts—like date/time, place, contact information, etc.—in addition to descriptive information that helps to explain the nature of the event and its newsworthy relevance. I also think it is important that a press release properly accounts for the organizations involved; not to do so is a rather arrogant assumption on the part of the institution issuing the statement. To do that here, I paraphrased some of the course description for the International Museum Studies program in order to convey what the group stands for and why it would host such a course series. For an additional level of accessibility, I also included contact information and a website—something I didn’t see many museum press texts including.
However, to say that a press release is only for the eyes of the journalist is, I feel, to grossly underestimate the power of press texts as a mode of communication. What one chooses to explain, advertise, promote, or credit in a press release is of the utmost importance; at every point, you risk misrepresenting information. For this assignment, I tried to make my writing style concise but comprehensive. I wanted to portray the course the way it was received—a more theoretical discussion that, though it had some practical parts, moreorless aimed at stressing the importance of critique and communication within museum settings. Instead of over glorifying the lectures and workshops, I tried to write something that balanced the ideal objectives of the class with what we actually did, and tried to include the names of the artists and thinkers that most exemplified these theories. In the end, I hope I provided a succinct announcement about the start of an unique communication course, which highlighted the topics up for discussion, set up expectations, and asserted the course’s importance within a university curriculum.
Press release aside, I think, the benefits of taking this course as a museum studies student as a whole were both obvious and subtle. On the one hand, being reminded of the hegemonic role of pedagogical figures is an important lesson for anyone who plans to work in a major public education setting. Or anywhere, for that matter. To be aware of the subjectivity that is present in all things helps to keep yourself in check when representing and presenting information. I also think exploring the idea of internal institutional critique was a crucial follow up to the idea of the production and sharing of knowledge, and how “taking matters into common hands” is a viable outlet for anyone who feels upset with a overly strict system. These concepts permeate many of the issues that we, as future museum staff, will have to face, and the course was therefore a valuable opportunity to hone in on our individual opinions and have active discussions.
On the other hand, though, it was sometimes difficult to see practicality of these lessons in something other than an artistic setting. Though the performances and installations we were shown truthfully served as illuminating examples of these theories in action, the discussions we had on the nature of knowledge, using narrative as a critiquing tool, and the power of the individual are all concepts not limited to only artistic or feminist circles. These things can be used in a variety of settings, and unfortunately, much of the lecture and workshops did not take note of our interdisciplinary backgrounds. As someone in the sciences, I found myself forming small, underdeveloped ideas while listening to lectures, and looked forward to the workshops as opportunities to develop those ideas into executable practices that could be, in turn, critiqued by my peers. Ultimately, I didn’t feel that happened. Perhaps instead of a creative writing experience, it would have been better to give us all a serious question—something general that could apply to any and all museum settings—and ask us to invent ways to resolve the issue using the theories discussed?
Either way, the course series as a whole was thought-provoking, and while Wikipedia seemed more of a practical resource for the actual writing of press texts, the theories and concepts I learned while attending class certainly made me think twice about what I included.
