NOT YOUR FATHER’S MUSEUM
KitchenerWaterloo’s THEMUSEUM reinvents the museum
“Museums have to work hard to stay relevant in today’s world,” says David Marskell, CEO of a unique museum in Kitchener-Waterloo: THEMUSEUM. There was a time when people who wanted to find out about a certain shoe, canoe or mummy had to go to a museum. “Now they can Google it and get any information they want,” Marskell points out. As a consequence, museums had to find ways to reinvent themselves, and THEMUSEUM has been at the forefront of that new thinking. THEMUSEUM celebrates its 15th anniversary this year, though the museum has no permanent collection. Rather, it relies on travelling exhibitions or customized shows together with the help of guest curators. “We are a unique emerging type of museum,” says Marskell. “Our mission statement begins with the words ‘To scan the globe for fresh cultural content.’”
Shows at THEMUSEUM have run the gamut: from a display of artifacts from the Titanic to exhibits on quantum mechanics, Chinese rock carvings, robot dinosaurs and the art of Andy Warhol, Yoko Ono and Tom Thomson. In 2015, an exhibition of nudes from The Canada Council Art Bank titled Getting Naked culminated in a single night when visitors could pay to wander the show in their birthday suits. “We had 96 people pay $20 to come here that night and go through the exhibition naked,” says Marskell. “We do take risks. We’re not your father’s museum.”
Marskell and his team have done their best to add vitality and interactivity to their exhibits. “We’re in a technologybased region, so having things that are interactive is very important,” Marskell says. A new MakerSpace, for example, offers tools for a range of activities, including 3D printing, sewing, carpentry and circuit-building. “Most weekends, people can just arrive and there will be some activity they can explore,” says Marskell. “We offer workshops where adults, seniors or children can explore a specific maker skill such as 3D Printing or soldering.” Kids, he says, love the Creation Station where they can fashion picture frames, snowflakes or a magic wand, depending on the day.
Another of the museum’s popular initiatives is Museum After Dark (MAD) Thursdays, which pair a visit to THEMUSEUM with special events themed to its INTERACTION exhibition, from “toy hacking” (turning broken toys into weird and wonderful new creations) to a clothing swap. The series runs until March 29, and drinks are sold on site (so no kids allowed). Ditto THEMUSEUM’s popular Beer series, which pairs the bubbly beverage with everything from ukulele to colouring and Beyoncé. Small wonder that attendance at the museum has risen steadily to almost 100,000 annually.
Still, Marskell believes that this year’s exhibition, Digital Dynamic 2018 — which runs at THEMUSEUM until May 13 — may be its most innovative. It includes a display of interactive multimedia art (INTERACTION) and an exhibition of computers and video games through the ages as well as game creation and research (INTERPLAY).
In part through the unique donation from Marskell and his family, the vision of THEMUSEUM is now tangible. After a church his parents built in 1939 closed, Marskell approached his brother and the Trustees to shepherd the almost $1 million proceeds to THEMUSEUM. “It invigorated the board, allowing us to do this really great exhibition,” says Marskell. “We wanted to invest the money wisely long term, through an endowment fund, and also bring in an exhibition that you would normally see in New York City, Paris or Toronto.” The tech scene in Kitchener-Waterloo has brought with it a host of “young, culture-craving urbanites that we need to satisfy,” says Marskell. He believes his tenure at THEMUSEUM offers him a wonderful opportunity — if not a duty —“to make sure Kitchener becomes known for amazing arts and culture as well as for tech companies.”