Debate Over Exhibit Design and Education of History
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum quickly became one of the most talked about, studied, and debated new projects within the museum design profession. The museum has received great attention from within the field of museum design and historians for its use of modern technology, theatrics, and high-fidelity figures to tell the Lincoln story, generating larger than expected attendance, enthusiastic visitors and a sharp boost to the regional economy, including increased attendance at surrounding historical attractions. But museum traditionalists have disapproved of this departure from a static display of glass-encased artifacts. Traditionalists such as Southern Illinois University historian John Y. Simon have said the popular approach, borrowing presentation technologies from entertainment, trivializes the subject matter. Simon calls the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum a "Lincolnland."
Other academics applaud the Lincoln Museum's revolutionary approach. John R. Decker in the Journal of American History sees benefits in using 21st century communication methods to capture the public's imagination, drawing audiences to educational subjects. He writes:
"Like any other modern collection (the Lincoln Presidential museum) has an audience base that extends far beyond specialists and academics. Rather than merely pandering to the public or dumbing down history, the ALPLM intelligently and compellingly uses visual culture to meet its mission as a public pedagogical institution. The museum addresses complex historical material and opens the historical discourse to a wider audience than would be possible through more conventional means."
The scholarship behind the content and design for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum was a collaboration between international exhibit designers, BRC Imagination Arts, the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency (IHPA), and a content team assembled by state historian Dr. Thomas H. Schwartz. This content team included the world's leading Lincoln scholars, Pulitzer Prize winning historians, and Illinois school teachers representing the fourth, seventh and eleventh grades. A key goal of this collective was that exhibits promote a greater level of personal interest in Abraham Lincoln. Museum visitors wanting to continue learning about Lincoln are reflected in the record sales of history books in the museum's gift shop. Some books have sold faster than the publisher can reprint. Overall sales in the gift shop hit $1 million within three months of the museum's opening to the public.
Read more about this topic: Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library And Museum
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