Crispin Paine, a
We have active relationships with the
Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Cloisters
leading authority on
in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of
religious museums,
Art, and the University of Pennsylvania
humbly suggested
Museum. We have hosted scholars from
around the world. This past year we were one
that our goal of
of five museums selected by the University of
becoming a leader
Pennsylvania to participate in its prestigious
in the interpretation
curatorial fellowship program, through which
of religion is not a
it funds a doctoral internship. This places
Glencairn among the select company of the
dream, but is firmly
Barnes Foundation, The Philadelphia Museum
within our reach.
of Art and the Rosenbach Museum and Library.
He noted that this is
Last week we had the honor of hosting
Crispin Paine, a leading authority on the
the oldest existing
interpretation of religious objects in museums
museum of multiple
and historic sites, whose publications have
religions in the
framed the new global conversation on how
religious objects are treated in museums. It is
world, and that the
worth noting that Paine’s trip to the United
quality and depth
States was limited to Yale University, where he
of our collections
was invited to speak, and Glencairn Museum,
which he asked to visit.
far surpass that of
While here he gave a talk to museum
any other museum
staff, faculty, students and others. Speaking
attempting to interpret
to a recent trend in museums, he stated:
the phenomena of
“In the past, museums often changed the
meaning of icons or statues of deities from
religion today.
sacred to aesthetic, or used them to declare
the superiority of Western society, or simply
as cultural and historical evidence. The last generation has seen … curators
recognizing that objects can only be understood within their original religious
context. In recent years there has been an explosion of interest in the role
religion plays in museums, with major exhibitions highlighting the religious,
as well as the historical nature of objects.”
While it may be a new trend in museums to give religious meaning
back to religious objects, the Academy’s Museum, from its establishment,
has interpreted the objects in its collections as expressions of faith, used for
the very purpose of understanding their religious meaning in their religious
context.
The goal has