ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the Contemporary Art's identity crisis namely, the self-perception of the art museum as a site for such critical negotiation between society in general, the art world as a set of communities and practices. The popular polemic of museums as places 'where art goes to die points towards these issues: the idea of including an object in a museal collection and thus historicizing it inevitably contradicts the contemporary quality of an artistic project, depriving it of its potential to address current issues. The pure gallery space is not only pure aesthetically, but purified ethnically, religiously, class- and gender-specifically, so that it is largely works of art by Christian, European or North American men that people see in the museums. For the critical museum, it is very logistical and organizational issues can become relevant topics for art production, posing questions about the exclusion of people or practices, about working conditions or the financial structure issues at hand within the museum.
