statement of
purpose | editorial policy | a
joint project
Statement of purpose
The Open Museum Journal (OMJ) publishes scholarly and applied research
and commentary on museums. It is intended as a space where issues of
interpretation, the politics of representation and the practices of
collecting, exhibition development and public programs can be discussed.
OMJ's brief is to provide an opportunity for dialogue between those
with an interest in researching museums and those working in them. It's
purpose is to provide a platform for stimulating dialogues across the
theory/practice divide. The journal complements Museum
National which also publishes items of interest to OMJ readers
within a magazine format.
OMJ provides space for fully developed, referenced and refereed articles.
Editorial policy
The OMJ is a scholarly refereed journal intended for both academics
with a research interest in museological questions and for museum professionals.
The journal is an initiative of the Research Institute for Cultural
Heritage at Curtin University of Technology in collaboration with the
Australian Museums and Galleries OnLine (AMOL).
The journal is aimed at bringing discussion in and around museums,
art galleries and historical sites together onto the one site. This
discussion might take place around museological practices, issues of
representation, institutional policies, interpretation, exhibition design,
collecting policies and management issues. The journal is interdisciplinary
in its orientation, and welcomes contributions from all kinds of museums,
galleries and historic sites. The journal welcomes contributions from
all sectors of museum-related work - curatorial, design, conservation
and public programs/education. On the academic side we welcome contributions
from scholars with an interest in any of these areas and working from
the disciplines of cultural studies, art history/theory, communication
and media studies, cultural policy, museum studies, archaeology, anthropology
and history.
The OMJ aims to encourage reflection and critique as an important intellectual
activity which is central to our working lives - whether in academia
or in the museum and art gallery sector. We also believe that this is
an activity which is at its most valuable when shared with others. The
OMJ aims to provide a forum in which such sharing can take place.
The journal is published twice a year. Each issue has a theme, although
articles not on the set theme are also welcome, as are short articles
for the 'Show and tell' museum practice section which are not peer-reviewed..
A joint project
The OMJ is a joint project of the Research
Institute for Cultural Heritage, Curtin
University of Technology, Western Australia and Australian
Museums and Galleries OnLine (AMOL). The Research Institute for
Cultural Heritage is an interdisciplinary research centre, with a charter
to teach, engage in consultancy and to foster research in the area of
cultural heritage. This is an area that encompasses museology as well
as the interpretation of heritage sites more broadly conceived.
The development of this space as part of the AMOL project extends both
the scholarship and knowledge base of this web site as a platform for
museum professionals, and an access point for the public for participating
in relevant cultural debates.
