A Companion to Museum Studies

List of Illustrations
 
Notes on Contributors
 
Acknowledgments
 
Bibliographical Note
 
Part I: Perspectives, Disciplines, Concepts
 
Part II. Histories, Heritage, Identities
 
Part III. Architecture, Space, Media
 
Part IV. Visitors, Learning, Interacting: Introduction
 
Part V. Globalization, Profession, Practice
 
Part VI. Culture Wars, Transformations, Futures
 
Index

Sharon Macdonald is Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Manchester. Her books include Theorizing Museums (edited with Gordon Fyfe, Blackwell 1996), Reimagining Culture (1997), The Politics of Display (ed., 1998), Behind the Scenes at the Science Museum (2002), and Exhibition Experiments (edited with Paul Basu, Blackwell 2007).

"This account captures a fresh, multi-disciplinary approach to the study of the development, roles, and significance of museums in our society. It expands museum studies and presents a wide range of theoretical perspectives. The essays examine the complexity of the museum from cultural, political governance, curatorial, historical, and representational perspectives, Sharon Macdonald is the author and Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Manchester." (Neopoprealism Journal, 24 November 2011)
 
"The collection is not primarily a compendium of the work of ethnographers. The group of scholars Macdonald brought together reflects the current makeup of museum studies as an interdisciplinary endeavor." (Museum Anthropology, April 2009)
 
"Required reading for museum professionals and scholars in museum studies, art and cultural history, sociology of art, and anthropology ... The text is rich in information and diverse in perspectives; it both introduces and complicates in an intriguing and necessary way what we 'know' about museums ... Essential." (Choice)
 
"This is a wonderfully comprehensive collection of essays, offering diverse perspectives, covering all aspects of the museum profession, and addressing contemporary and historical discourse ... It really is the best compendium I've read in years." (Museums Australia)