Museums Australia
| Founded | 6 June 1992 (incorporation) |
|---|---|
| Type | peak council; central profession body; incorporated association |
| ABN 83 048 139 955 | |
| Registration no. | A02074 (Associations Incorporation Act 1991 (Australian Capital Territory)) |
| Location |
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| Origins | merger of Council of Australian Museums Associations, Museums Association of Australia, Art Museums Association of Australia, and Museum Education Association of Australia |
|
Area served
|
Australia |
| Website | www |
|
Former names
|
Museum National (1992 – 2003) |
|---|---|
| Discipline | museum administration |
| Language | English |
| Publication details | |
| Publisher |
Museums Australia (Australia)
|
|
Publication history
|
2003 – |
| Indexing | |
| ISSN |
1038-1694 |
| OCLC no. | 54366605 |
Museums Australia is the central professional organisation and peak council for museums and public art galleries in Australia. It advocates for the sector, provides a range of professional services to its members at a national, State and interest group level, including professional development and training opportunities, newsletters, advocacy and representation. It was established in 1994 by national amalgamation of a number of museums associations.
In 1993, the executive officer of the Council of Australian Museum Associations, Greg Marginson, authored "Amalgamation : unity and diversity : the path towards a united museums' association for Australia" which estimated that there were around 1,900 museums in Australia but that their professional wants and needs were represented by at least 22 different organisations. He reported that Commonwealth and State government funding bodies were confused and frustrated by the lack of a central point of contact with the museum sector and profession.
In 1937, the Art Galleries' and Museums' Association of Australia and New Zealand held its inaugural meeting in Auckland. This single organisation represented not-for-profit art galleries and museums in Australia and New Zealand. In 1948, the art galleries dissociated and the resultant Museums Association of Australia covered only science and history museums.
Failed attempts to create a single national body were made in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1981, the Council of Australian Museum Associations (CAMA) was formed to foster amalgamation but CAMA was under-resourced for that task until the 1990s. At that time there were three major museums organisations in Australia: the Art Museums Association, the Museums Association and CAMA.
The pooling of meagre resources was one impetus towards amalgamation but there was also a pressing need to set uniform standards for museums in relation to artists' moral rights, museum ethics, cultural heritage export restrictions and conservation.
In 1993 there were 12 programs training museum professionals and CAMA saw a need for a single national body to ensure uniform museum studies curriculums and accreditation.
On 1 January 1994, Museums Australia was formed by the amalgamation of the Council of Australian Museums Associations, Museums Association of Australia, Art Museums Association of Australia, and Museum Education Association of Australia.
Museums Australia publishes a magazine: from 1992 to 2003, titled Museum National, now titled MuseumsAustralia magazine (sometimes referred to as Museums Australia Magazine) and self-described as:"Australian museums and galleries – issues-news-views".
The proceedings of the annual/biennial conference are also published by Museums Australia.
They various state branches and national networks (formerly called special interest groups) also produce newsletters, conference proceedings and other publications.
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