Telling a Story with Things

Do all exhibitions “tell a story with things”? Discuss.

In my podcast interview with Carol Bossert, she mentions the excellent Museum on Main Street (MOMS) program of Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES).

I found my copy of the MOMS “Exhibition Planning Guide”, a great free download. The guide is maybe 5 years old now.

Thought exercise: would we all still agree now with the definition of exhibitions that MOMS used in that guide (p. 5)?

Here it is:

The main business of exhibitions is to tell a story with things. Whether artifacts, images, or original documents, there is an intrinsic power in seeing the real thing. There is also great appeal in seeing something rare, an artifact or photograph that you cannot see anywhere else. The selection of things you display is very important. The objects and images help tell the story.

Not bad at all. But I’m curious about that word “things”.

Here’s the, er, thing:
Do all exhibitions “tell a story with things”? Or is that not a must? What would your definition be?

Hit REPLY and let me know!

Warmly,
Jonathan