About "Behind the Scenes" - What Are Museum Footnotes?
Behind the Scenes provides students,
educators and visitors to the Fairfield Museum the chance to learn about the
process of putting together Creating
Community: Exploring 375 Years of Our Past. Historians, curators,
educators, and designers created this exhibition, making choices about the
stories and objects to include and the kind of experiences visitors will
have. Behind the Scenes gives visitors an inside look into how history is
presented, making the exhibition design process more transparent by adding a
form of “footnotes.” As you explore the
exhibit you will find 14 Behind the Scenes
footnotes.
Each footnote has a QR code that you can scan with your phone. You can also pick up a packet of all the footnotes at the front desk and/or view them online. The footnotes encourage visitors to think critically about how the past is created and presented by museums and other organizations.
You will discover why a particular object was chosen, how visitor experiences were designed, and how issues such as finances, space, staff expertise, and the needs of visitors influenced all aspects of the exhibit. Each footnote also asks you to respond to questions or post comments. These responses will be read by the museum staff and are anonymous. If you are part of a group or a school, your teacher may ask you to also include your name in the comments.
Behind the Scenes is a partnership between the Fairfield Museum and History Center and The Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. A special thanks to the Connecticut Museum of Natural History for their financial contributions to this project.
Each footnote has a QR code that you can scan with your phone. You can also pick up a packet of all the footnotes at the front desk and/or view them online. The footnotes encourage visitors to think critically about how the past is created and presented by museums and other organizations.
You will discover why a particular object was chosen, how visitor experiences were designed, and how issues such as finances, space, staff expertise, and the needs of visitors influenced all aspects of the exhibit. Each footnote also asks you to respond to questions or post comments. These responses will be read by the museum staff and are anonymous. If you are part of a group or a school, your teacher may ask you to also include your name in the comments.
Behind the Scenes is a partnership between the Fairfield Museum and History Center and The Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. A special thanks to the Connecticut Museum of Natural History for their financial contributions to this project.