Art Sentry just released an extensive 26-page “Museum Grants 2023 Guide” that includes insights about grant writing and highlights many public and private grants for museums and cultural properties.
Our goal is to assist museums that are looking for ways to pay for projects like staff training, infrastructure updates, and new technology.
Museum Security Trends & News
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Guide Details Grant Opportunities for Museums, Cultural Properties
Promoting Social Justice in Museums and Cultural Institutions
Museums and Cultural Properties are uniquely positioned to play a meaningful role in promoting social justice and shifting their platform as one for combatting racism and promoting social justice issues.
Here are some of the best practices museums and their counterparts use today to fight racism and promote social justice.
The Growing Challenge of Protecting Museums from Artwork Vandalism
Earlier this month at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a group of climate activists threw paint on the case protecting Degas’ Little Dancer. Incidents like this have been on the rise worldwide over the last several years, and they represent just a small fraction of the growing list of challenges facing the teams tasked with protecting our world’s greatest cultural treasures and the many people who care for and visit them every day.
How to Create a More Inclusive and Equitable Environment for Museum Visitors
Museums, art, and cultural institutions often hold a history heavy in Western and Euro-centric views. Additionally, these cultural centers haven’t always been equally accessible to everyone within the greater community.
Taft Museum of Art Installs Art Sentry in Museum and Period Rooms
The Taft Museum of Art, a gem of a museum in Cincinnati, recently undertook a major renovation project that included their period rooms. The museum consists of a beautiful historic house (1830), once owned by the Taft family, half-brother to President Taft, and other notable people, and a more modern wing. The entire museum underwent a major renovation, including a new Security Command Center and other upgrades as well as an Art Sentry system installation.
Art Security and Museum Staffing Solutions
It is important museums maintain the staffing needed to remain open and provide numerous societal benefits. These benefits include education, enlightenment, and increasing the quality of life for their visitors. These staffing shortages have caused some museums to reduce the hours of operation and even close specific galleries to the public.
Grants for Museums - Funding Sources to Protect Art
When looking for ways to protect museum artwork, paying for the solutions can be challenging in light of other operational and capital priorities.
Essential Museum Security Measures
Museums go to great lengths to protect artwork from damage or thieves – whether the art is in a building or in transit.
The level of protection will vary greatly depending on the facility’s budget and the value of each piece. Typically, multiple measures should be in place, including alarm systems, personnel, visitor, and environmental policies. For example, climate control measures regulate temperatures and humidity which protect delicate artifacts.
Here is a closer look at some of the ways that museums and other cultural properties look after the artwork that they vigilantly safeguard 24/7.
Weaponizing Artwork for Social Causes
Recently, there have been several disturbing events occurring within museums and art galleries. Activists have attempted to draw attention to specific social/political causes by arriving, glue in hand, and proceeding to secure themselves to priceless masterpieces. Using high-profile historical objects and venues to create awareness for a political cause is nothing new. Protesters have long staged events at national landmarks to raise awareness for social justice and other causes. However, physically attaching themselves via superglue to artwork is a dramatic escalation of standard protests and this weaponization of the artwork requires an immediate response.
How to Protect Guards Against Perceived Bias Without Sacrificing Artwork Protection
Museums and other cultural properties offer immense value. They don’t just house priceless works of art. Mirrors of society, they sit squarely at the crossroads of history, ingenuity, and humanity.
Occasionally, something else happens within the walls of a gallery – confrontations that could be avoided.