Fall 2025: Accessing the Museum – Preview
VOL. 44 ISSUE 2
Take a deep dive into what it takes to create more accessible exhibitions in “Accessing the Museum,” the fall 2025 issue of Exhibition. On the 35th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, we celebrate the progress our institutions have made in adopting universal design, co-creating with members of the disability community, and developing multimodal interpretation strategies—while acknowledging that embedded ableist biases are still barriers we must overcome if we hope to become truly inclusive.
Exhibition is an AAM member benefit for Individual and Museum Tier 2, Tier 3, Ally, and Industry Members. Become a member for full access or purchase a PDF of this issue for $25. Preview select articles below.
In this issue:
Editor’s Letter
Exhibition’s Editor, Jeanne Normand Goswami, reflects on the 35th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, noting that while the ADA was secured through the courage of activists in the Capitol Crawl, museums must now “push inclusive practice beyond compliance to embrace equitable, autonomous, and joyful experiences for all.” This issue showcases institutions embedding accessibility into exhibitions through universal design, multimodal interpretation, and co-creation, demonstrating that “there is no one-size-fits-all solution to making your institution more accessible.”
» Read the full letter.
Witnessing Change: An Exhibition’s Enduring Impact on Museum Ethics and Practice
Feature | Free to Read
by Felix Berry, Matthew Cutler, and Lisa Quirion
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights, shaped by its complex colonial legacy and evolving practices, is redefining accountability with a partnership with the Witness Blanket, centering Indigenous ways of knowing and authentic relationships in an ethics of care.
Building Empathy by Developing an Ethically Sourced Materials Policy
Feature | Free to Read
by Douglas Flandro
Explores how museums can adopt ethically sourced materials by addressing forced labor, pollution affecting marginalized communities, and high embodied carbon—with practical steps and resources to guide more responsible and sustainable exhibition design.
Iconic and Ethical? Approaches to the Exhibition of Pop Culture
Feature | 🔒 Member Login
by Amalia Kozloff
Through three case studies and an ethical framework, learn how the Museum of Pop Culture (MOPOP) navigates the complex ethical challenges of curating rapidly evolving and often controversial pop culture content by prioritizing dialogue, representation, and responsible storytelling.
Beyond the IT Office: Solving for Ethical AI in Cultural Institutions
Feature | 🔒 Member Login
by Audrey S. Chang, PhD, and Brad MacDonald, MS
Museums are rapidly adopting generative artificial intelligence tools to support exhibition development and operations. Discover some of the questions to ask yourself or your team regarding the use of AI, and learn about the need for institutional policies to address ethical considerations in its implementation.
Political Exhibitionists: Ethical Considerations in the Display of Political Art
Feature | 🔒 Member Login
by Nicola Guy, PhD
When promoting politically engaged exhibitions, are museums also upholding the same values in internal practices? One museum’s controversial censorship decisions are a case study for the author on why true ethical alignment requires institutions to support political expression beyond curatorial decisions.
Ethics and Materiality: A Case Study in Adobe
Feature | 🔒 Member Login
by Gilda Posada
How do ethics inform and intersect with exhibition practices? The author gives a personal account of her recently curated exhibition and how she approached integrating an ethical framework more broadly into the museum where she worked. She discusses some of the successes and frictions that resulted from the approach.
Reflecting on Duty of Care: A New Floor, Not a Ceiling
Op-Ed | 🔒 Member Login
by Stephanie Mach, PhD
The revision of NAGPRA regulations in 2024 prompted a widespread removal of items from display and a reevaluation of practices, highlighting the need for consent and collaboration in the care and display of Native American cultural items and highlighting concerns about ethical stewardship.
Designing to Inspire: Translating Empathy into Action
Op-Ed | 🔒 Member Login
by Maggie Jacobstein Stern and Jha D Amazi
Explore two different projects that together illuminate how empathetic, participatory design in exhibitions can transform public memory into action. Learn strategies for fostering personal connection, inspiring sustained engagement, and positioning designers as long-term agents of social change.
Ethical Deliberation in Divisive Times: Q&A with Janet Marstine
Questions & Answers | 🔒 Member Login
interviewed by Exhibition Journal Editor Jeanne Normand Goswami
What do we mean by “ethics”? We think we agree on what ethical behavior is, but do we really? How can we continue to forge a more equitable future, especially amid this moment of intense division? Get insights into ethical exhibition-making from a leading scholar of museum ethics.
Exhibition Critique: A Celebration and a Reclamation
Exhibition Critique | 🔒 Member Login
by Deborah Parker
This critique of the exhibition, “Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian’s Legacy,” at the Morgan Library & Museum provides a thoughtful look into Greene’s groundbreaking career and complex identity, while also exploring themes of race, passing, and representation.
Review of Welcoming Museum Visitors with Unapparent Disabilities
Book Review | Free to Read
by Violet Rose Arma
This review carefully examines how the book broadens museum accessibility discussions with an empathetic approach and use of case studies, while highlighting the need for more inclusive exhibition design and attention in museums to mental health conditions.
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About Exhibition
Published twice a year, the journal offers 128 pages of thought-provoking articles, exhibition critiques and commentary, technical articles, and essays. Each issue is organized around a theme, such as the power of words, exhibitions and universal design, innovation and community relevance, and new media in exhibitions.
Two ways to get Exhibition:
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Coming Up
Fall 2025
Accessing The Museum: Reflecting On 35 Years Of ADA
Spring 2026
Present Tense
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Contribute to Exhibition
Calls for papers are posted twice each year (typically in November/December and April/May). While the editors welcome queries about contributions, please note that each issue is created around a specific theme.
New in 2025: Submit a Letter to the Editor. Submissions are due August 31 for the Fall 2025 issue.
Did you miss these issues?
Fall 2024
Active Disruption
Spring 2024
Alternative Realities
Spring 2023
Big Ideas on Small (or Smaller) Budgets