MUSEUMS IN A DANGEROUS TIME

I am honoured to be giving the Fellows Lecture for the Canadian Museums Association and I am very conscious of this privileged opportunity to speak to you today. Keynote addresses are intended to reinforce the conference theme – in this instance “Intention, Innovation and Invention.” I will address these themes, but I will not concern myself with what museums are already doing well – things like collections management, school programs, and retailing. I want to explain at the outset why I’m presenting this particular keynote, including the rather ominous title “Museums in a Dangerous Time.”