Open Museum BlogAbout Us
"Heritage teaches about the past and informs the future."
Our Story
Heritance, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, works with selected partner museums to improve their exhibits and programs through the adoption of Open Museum practices. In 2009 OPEN MUSEUM will become the core program for Heritance and the focal point for Heritance workshops, consultations and technical support. Learn more about Heritance today at our Documents page, where you can read our Executive Summary, Highlights, Project Profiles, and more. Learn about Heritance past by visiting our Archive.
Our Vision
What is an Open Museum? Heritance developed the vision of the Open Museum to inspire museums to create captivating and compelling programs for wider and more diverse audiences. Heritance’s concept of the Open Museum is based on three core principles:
- Open Museography. All individuals and societies tell stories to explain who they are, where they have come from, and where they are going. Understanding others depends on listening to their stories and seeing things from their point of view. Open museums display objects and organize exhibits that tell engaging stories from multiple and contrasting perspectives.
- Open Governance. Heritance believes that only museums that practice transparent, inclusive, and open governance can consistently and reliably represent the diversity of their subject matter and respond to the diversity of their audience. Moreover, open museums model the governance practices essential to peaceful coexistence.
- Open Access. Open museums create an environment that is welcoming and accessible to the entire range of museum stakeholders. This means bringing the museum to the people through traveling exhibits, school outreach, performances, celebrations, and the internet.
If you would like more information, please contact us.