Open Access? Traveling Exhibitions in the Age of (Anti-)Inclusivity

Exhibition planning today is more fraught and complex than ever. Noble goals abound: supporting the underserved and differently-abled, amplifying new voices, and engaging in ecoactivism to name a few. However, “best practices” across these arenas often remain ill-defined or mutually conflictive. Beyond ‘attack dog’ governmental policies, the real-world implementation of our ideal, value-inclusive shows is further complicated by supply chain interruptions, inflation, and chronic understaffing.

This panel focuses specifically on traveling exhibitions as case studies for vital yet loaded issues facing the art world today. How can we afford to host touring shows, both economically and morally? How might organizers and venues sustain long-running exhibitions in times of great political divisiveness and uncertainty? What does true museum accessibility mean in nation plagued by increasingly ‘anti-woke’ political mandates?

Submitters are encouraged to focus on policies, advocacy groups, forthcoming exhibitions, or past shows that inform current thinking. Papers may, for example, address DEIA exhibition-making at federally-funded institutions, the viability of carbon offsets, the democratization and multilingual translation of didactic materials, or collaborative outreach initiatives with national and local social justice organizations. Comparison between standards among U.S. and international institutions is welcome.