FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 15, 2017
ARLINGTON, VA ─ The American Alliance of Museums (AAM), an organization representing the entire scope of the museum community, and the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), an organization representing 243 directors of North America’s leading art museums, issued the following statement in response to the December 15 Cambridge rally by Save the Art – Save the Museum:
“We’re encouraged to see grassroots efforts such as Save the Art – Save the Museum supporting the standards of the museum field. We agree that museum collections are held in the public trust and must not be treated as disposable financial assets. And we remain willing and available to work with the Berkshire Museum to identify and support the implementation of alternatives to the sale of collections that they are currently pursuing.”
“We sympathize with museums across the US facing financial challenges. This is why our December 14-15 workshop is focused on finding practical solutions to help museums avoid financial crises. We’re hopeful that the ideas that come from this convening, and others like it in the future, can help our field create an ‘early warning system’ to detect potential crises and help museums find alternatives to address their financial needs in ways that uphold the ethics and standards of the field.”
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About AAMD:
The Association of Art Museum Directors advances the profession by cultivating leadership capabilities of directors, advocating for the field, and fostering excellence in art museums. An agile, issues-driven organization, AAMD has three desired outcomes: engagement, leadership, and shared learning. Further information about AAMD’s professional practice guidelines and position papers is available atwww.aamd.org.
About AAM:
The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. Representing more than 35,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community. For more information, visit www.aam-us.org.
Press contacts:
Joseph Klem
American Alliance of Museums
202-218-7670
jklem@aam-us.org
Christine Anagnos / Alison Wade
Association of Art Museum Directors
212-754-8084
canagnos@aamd.org
awade@aamd.org
