A study of the risk management from museum’s loan: Taking the exhibition entitled “ Treasures of the Sons of Heaven: the Imperial Collections from the National Palace Museum, Taipei ” as an example

• Main Authors: SHEN, Guei-Ming, 沈貴明
• Other Authors: 葉貴玉
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2005
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/29679001282753998793

碩士 === 臺南藝術學院 === 博物館學研究所 === 93 === ABSTRACT A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in the service of society. Open to the public at large, it aims to promote social development by way of research, education, and recreation. Traditionally, the museum is charged with the responsibilities of acquiring, studying, conserving, and exhibiting the material evidence of man and his environment. However, with the rapidly changing pace of scientific and technical advancements and the emergence of a global digital network, the museum is entering into a horizon never before seen. To stay in tune with the new social currents, the museum’s raison d'être, mission, and orientation, as well as the very concept of “museum” itself, must therefore be re-adapted. The total collection of a nation’s artifacts is a minimized representation of her culture; it is also a manifestation of the spirit of her people. For a long time, the museum has been a repository of artifacts of all sorts, and the collecting, organizing, cataloging, registering, and authenticating, as well as the studying, exhibiting, and publishing of such artifacts are generally considered its core functions. Yet, with international exchanges becoming more and more popular in the cultural arena, the museum is switching from an institution for “historical preservation and interpretation” to one that is for the “promotion and dissemination of knowledge.” This new museum power is, to be sure, gradually transforming man’s rather limited material civilization into what may be called “an infinite spiritual feast.” To any institution of cultural artifacts, the task of managing and making the optimal use of the collection is a challenge in its own right. It is even more so when the task involves the shipping of objects d’art for loan exhibitions. The focus of the present research is on the “security” aspect of international museum cooperation, and it specifically attempts to answer the following three questions: First, what is the standard practice employed by museums of other countries to ensure the security of their artifacts on loan? Second, do museums in Taiwan have any standard measure of risk management when loaning artifacts? If so, how does that measure differ from those of other international museums? Third, what is it that makes the National Palace Museum’s scheme for risk management so special? The purpose of the research is to explore the possibility of developing from previous experiences of international cultural cooperation a set of standard, professional procedures that will effectively regulate the loaning of collections for Taiwan’s museums. When working on loan exhibitions, the lending institution would usually spell out the conditions that must be met to minimize risk. It would also require facility reports from the borrowing institutions, so that the risk indexes of the venues may be analyzed. These facility reports normally outline certain performance parameters, such as security, temperature, and relative humidity. This paper will offer an overview of some of these conditions, along with a discussion of appropriate approaches to meeting the conditions. As what has been addressed so far not only relates to the security of objects d’art on loan, but also involves museum collection management, it is suggested that (1) an official organization be established to review loan projects, (2) the insurance of the artifacts be made more detailed and precise, (3) the content of the loan agreement be rendered more comprehensive and explicit, (4) the facility and condition reports be put into more effective use, and (5) the authority of couriers be increased. Other factors of direct pertinence to these suggestions, such as language proficiency, communication methods, training of professionals and the form internationalize, will be examined as well. The launching of international cultural projects is effective in enlightening the audiences and broadening their perspectives; it is also effective in realizing multi-faceted cultural interpretation that truly transcends national and disciplinary boundaries. Insofar as museum management is concerned, it will also help promote the image of the museum and raise security awareness on the part of the museum professionals. Keywords: Risk Management, Loan Exhibition, Museum.