Making History Collections Relevant in a Modern World

Four Points by Sheraton, Meriden, Connecticut

Monday, June 1, 2015

 

With Special Thanks to Our Platinum Sponsor

CT Explored Magazine

Jump to...

 

Registration	Schedule	Keynote
Exhibitors	Location	1st Time Attendees

 

ABOUT

 

The Annual CLHO conference attracts more than 100 museum professionals, board members and volunteers representing the over 400 history museums, historical societies, historic sites, historic house museums, libraries and archives in Connecticut.

This full-day conference offers an Exhibitor and Vendor Hall, the Award of Merit Luncheon and Awards presentation, and opportunities for net-working with people just like you! (And especially for this year's conference, join colleagues afterwards in the Silver City Bar & Grill for Drinking About Museums with special happy hour pricing until 7 pm!)

 

THEME

 

As a volunteer and/or staff member at a museum, historical society, historic house, or archive you know that your collections are central to your organization’s existence. These resources shape mission and vision, define values, and guide institutional planning.  The traditional notion of collect, preserve and interpret intentionally focuses upon visitors walking through the front door; however, today’s studies indicate that our public wants and expects more accessibility to cultural resources and organizations. 

 

But in today’s fast-paced world, what do our collections truly mean to our audiences, and how might knowing this influence our programs and policies?  Does this virtual way of engaging our audiences enhance and deepen their connection to our heritage collections?  Do these new virtual opportunities and online visitors encourage public support of preservation efforts and strengthen the relevancy of our historic collections?  What might we be losing if our audience views access to our collections or museum as primarily digital?  What happens if our face-to-face connections are lost?

 

Please join us for the Connecticut League of History Organizations Annual Conference in Meriden on June 1, 2015 to explore the many traditional and non-traditional ways that museums, historical societies, historic houses, and archives use their collections to establish relevance to their communities.  Be a part of our conversations examining what accessibility means today and how to encourage it while staying true to core missions and values. The conference program will include how-to practical presentations (e.g. collections management, digital preservation, reproduction sales, and insurance issues), inspirational sessions, and program models which will explore the various ways that heritage collections bridge the gap between past and present to truly connect audiences to our collective future.

 

KEYNOTE

 

The Poetry of Objects
Rainey Tisdale has spent years searching for the stories in objects. Her approach has been called divining, meaning-making, and poetry. She will deliver a wide-ranging meditation on the power of objects to move, inspire, and build community. She will talk about compelling objects, emotional objects, and how objects leave their mark on you. She’ll also talk about missed connections: the ways our current approach to museum collections often leads us to compose the opposite of object poetry: bureaucratic edicts, syllabi, lists, instruction manuals. She’ll ask hard questions, like “Why does your museum have these objects?” and “What are you doing with them that adds public value?” Her goal will be to help you create your own object poetry.

 

Rainey Tisdale is a museum professional specializing in city history. She is a lover of cities, stories, and city stories. After the Boston Marathon Bombing, she led a consortium of local museums, libraries, and archives in collecting and interpreting the horrific event, with emphasis on programming for the one-year anniversary in April 2014. For more information, visit bostonbetter.org. Recently, Ms. Tisdale curated "Dear Boston: Messages from the Marathon Memorial," an exhibition featuring objects from the Copley Square makeshift memorial. It received 52,000 visitors during its 35-day run at the Boston Public Library. Her most recent book, Creativity in Museum Practice, is co-authored with Linda Norris, and published by Left Coast Press.

 

REGISTRATION

 

CLHO tries to keep the cost of attending the Annual Conference as low as possible. This year's one-day registration fee of $50 Early Registration for Members ($60 non/members) includes morning light breakfast, sit-down lunch and afternoon coffee, as well as all conference sessions. Deadline for early registration is May 11. Between May 12 and May 30, Member registration is $60/person and non-member registration is $70/person. Day of registration is $75/person. This year, we are offering a Student Discount rate of $35/person. Please be prepared to show your student ID upon check-in.

 

FIRST TIME ATTENDEES

It can be daunting to walk into a large conference on your own! If you or your organization is new to the CLHO, please let us know when you register, or even when you sign in. We're happy to assign you a "buddy" who will make sure that you've met new colleagues and be there to answer any questions.

 

AFTER CONFERENCE ACTIVITY

The CLHO Annual Conference may be ending at 4:30 but the networking will be just beginning at Silver City Bar and Grill! Before hitting the road, join your museum colleagues for Drinking About Museums, a pay-your-own-way evening of happy hour drinks, snacks and museum chat. The gathering will be in the restaurant on the first floor of the conference hotel and is based on the successful Drinking About Museums networking groups being formed around the world. Brian Cofrancesco, co-founder of Drinking About Museums - Hartford, will be on-hand to talk about how you can start a DAM group in your part of Connecticut!

 

LOCATION

 

This year's conference will be held at the Four Points by Sheraton hotel, located at 275 Research Parkway in Meriden, CT. There is ample parking located on the premises.