BABY BOOMER MUSEUM

image via pbs.org

The take away from a Baby Boomer Museum is awareness.

A visit to a big museum should make you ask, “How do they decide what to keep?”

It’s the same question you’ll ask later, wondering why you bought anything in the gift store.

Unless you say, “I needed another tea towel,” you need a better answer.

Objects and artifacts work to drive the narrative of museums, garages, and closets.

A Baby Boomer Museum would be no different.

What if it was your museum?

A Baby Boomer Museum would be a history museum.

The only history question worth asking is a simple, “What happened?”

Who doesn’t laugh at the saying, “If you remember the 60’s, you probably weren’t there?”

Listen carefully.

Once you agree on what happened, break down the timeline into manageable pieces.

Ignore this task and the artifacts turn into a pile of stuff, like what’s jammed into your garage.

Instead, you’ve got an idea for a baby boomer museum and an outline.

Next, make an open call for a one day donation. Clear enough room for storage and processing, to tag and bag

To remind the people this isn’t a Goodwill run, start at 10 am and end at 2 pm.

Post forms online to help donors transfer ownership of their stuff to your museum. It’s also a weeding tool.

If they write it down before delivering, it’s not a dump run.

The stuff that shows up answers ‘what happened.’ Next question?

“What is it?”

The ‘what is it’ question dives into the nomenclature specific to museums in general. For the Baby Boomer Museum, as in all decent museums, it gives names to groups of objects, then gets down to specific details.

A Baby Boomer Museum needs organization.

Your staff tags and bags the pieces and files the paper. The paper will have a section to explain where things came from and why it’s important.

Call it provenance, provenience, or wtf. If it’s a custom piece, who made it?

What’s it made of?

For metal, the next question is ferrous or non-ferrous. A magnet makes the call.

If it’s something made of wood the first question is always hardwood or soft.

Finding good stuff is the thrill of every museum in the world. It’s the same thrill patrons want when they line up to view the Mona Lisa.

Those who complain about Mona being so small don’t get it.

What would you include in a Baby Boomer Museum?

What would you turn away?