Starting today, more than 4,000 museum professionals from 55 countries will be arriving in Atlanta for the 2015 American Alliance of Museums (AAM)’s annual meeting. The High Museum of Art is one of the conference hosts, and we are delighted to welcome our peers to the region.
As we gather together to learn from each other’s best practices and to share ideas, it is only fitting to talk about the important roles that museums play in Atlanta’s community. My colleagues are often surprised to learn that Atlanta is among the top two regions in the country for creative industry jobs. Whether through television and film production, the music industry, digital animation and video game development, or design, publishing, and the performing and visual arts, Atlanta has a thriving creative community that contributes to the overall vitality of our city. According to the Atlanta Regional Commission, more than 90,000 people are employed by Atlanta businesses in the creative industries. Furthermore, our 1,740 cultural non-profit organizations, including museums, generate $502 million in revenue annually.
Museums form a continuum between past and current generations. We preserve history, and yet we also make it come alive and demonstrate how today’s art, events and issues are informed by what has come before us. For those who work in creative fields, seeking out stimulating experiences is essential. They, along with many artists working today, will tell you how they have been inspired by the work of artists who have preceded them.
One cannot fully appreciate a work of art without understanding the context within which it was created. Picasso’s famed Guernica painting is a testament to the artist’s talent, but the work is equally powerful because it was made in the middle of war as a reaction to the bombing of the Spanish town after which it is named. Museums also help us understand our world—in Atlanta we are fortunate to have the Atlanta History Center, the Center for Civil and Human Rights, and the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum which, together, provide in-depth access to critical periods in our country’s history and development.
Museums are also educational resources accessible to the entire community. I believe that art is an essential part of a K-12 education, and the AAM’s members across our country work with educators and school districts to complement and extend the existing curriculum. Even in today’s Internet age when you can access almost anything online, nothing can compare to experiencing the High’s newly acquired self-portrait by Romare Bearden or our Giacometti sculpture, Annette IV, in its full three-dimensional glory. That is why we started our Art Access program, which offers free admission and transportation for students from Georgia’s underserved public schools. We remove the economic barriers that prevent many students from visiting the museum. Since its inception in 2004, Art Access has enabled more than 220,000 students to visit the High free of charge.
This week, my colleagues and I will talk about the evolving role of museums in our communities. In Atlanta, it is clear that museums are essential engines fueling our creative economy. They tie us to the history of our city, our country, and our world.
Museums educate and enthrall everyone from kids to adults, and they also celebrate our achievements. I encourage you to visit one of this city’s many great museums, perhaps one that you haven’t been to before. You never know, you just might find something that will spark your imagination, or even your career.
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