Come Hell or High Water: Managing Disasters in Museums
When:
—
Venue:
Online
As museum professionals face the unprecedented challenge of caring for their collections during the global crisis of Covid-19, they possess one advantage – they often have previous experience of battling with disasters on a much smaller scale as part of their ordinary working life. Water leaks or pest infestations that might be unfortunate in a domestic setting can reach disastrous heights when applied to precious heritage collections and the fragile buildings that house them. Careful disaster planning can go some way to mitigate risk, but the unexpected can and does happen, often at the most inconvenient times. Times of crisis require very different styles of management to everyday museum life, and especially in smaller museums, curators and directors are required to develop new leadership skills under intense pressure. In this talk, Keeper of Medicine at the Science Museum Natasha McEnroe will share a personal reflection of her own working life in different museums, and the variety of disasters she has flinchingly faced, from rats to raw sewage.
Contact name:
Centre for Museum Cultures