Alliance Blog

The Alliance blog provides the museum community with a place to share stories and insights, in their own voice, reaching thousands of people across the global museum field.

Explore all Publications from the Alliance.

Explore the AAM Resource Library by topic, and further filter by subtopic or resource types to find what matters most to you!

Toward a National Convening on Museums and Creative Aging

By Bill Tramposch

Here are a few facts, to put you in the frame of mind to think (hard) on the power of aging creatively and the rich opportunities we have in museums to redouble our efforts to engage older adults and grow from their contributions: Fact: …
The Memory Café: Creating a museum program for people with dementia

By Norman Burns

At Conner Prairie—a Smithsonian Affiliate living history museum in Fishers, Indiana—we recently debuted a program for people with Dementia and Alzheimer’s. In partnership with the Central Indiana Council on Aging (CICOA) and Dementia …
Seeing Paris—and the World—through Small Museums

By Josette Souza

A few months ago, a museum exhibition sparked a thought in my mind that I haven’t stopped thinking about ever since. I was walking aimlessly around Paris and had just wandered into Le Musée des Arts et Métiers. There I found rows and rows …
An International Experience at #AAM2019

By Angela Gala

After moving back to Europe from America in 2016, I had never been able to come visit until last month. That’s when I flew all the way to New Orleans to attend this year’s Annual Meeting of the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) and …
A Museum ‘Dating’ App Helps Visitors Fall in Love with Art

By Julia Forbes and Ivey Rucket

As the High Museum of Art prepared to completely reinstall its collection in the fall of 2018, we began talking about how we could use mobile technologies in new and innovative ways to engage the public with our newly installed galleries. …
An After-School Program Gives Refugee Children a Creative Boost

By Aimee Hunt

One of the many things that make Charlottesville, Virginia special is that it serves as a destination city for the International Rescue Committee, which helps refugees settle into their new countries. Since 1998, more than three thousand …
More Evidence for the Power of Creative Aging

By Bill Tramposch

One of the most fruitful areas of the creative aging movement is the one that explores the arts and aging. The evidence for the positive effects of arts on wellbeing is mounting rapidly and to such a degree that it has spawned a new …
Attracting Visitors with User-Generated Content

By Amrita Gurney

If I ever find myself with a few hours to spare, there’s no place I’d rather be than a museum. Visiting a new exhibit fills me with exhilaration, perspective, and knowledge. But in North America today, there are a large number of people …
How One Small Museum Approached Accreditation

By Ann H. Sievers

Accreditation helps museums focus their purpose, refine their practices, and build their futures. But some museums, particularly those with small staffs and budgets, might consider it challenging amid their other responsibilities and …
A Reading List on Creative Aging

By Bill Tramposch

I once had the privilege of interviewing Frank Oppenheimer, the founder of the Exploratorium in San Francisco. I asked him why he had created the museum, and he answered: “Both my brother Robert and I were struck with how, in our …