Private Collection, Personal Utopia: An Examination of Trends in Contemporary Private Museums in the United States
Open AccessThe 21st century has seen a rapid rise in the establishment of private museums – institutions which are open to the public, yet privately owned, operated, and funded, to showcase the founder’s vast collection of art. The streamlined organizational structure of private museums provides founders the ability to implement innovative display practices as well as make decisions faster than their publicly operated counterparts. This thesis argues that private museums provide a platform for their founders to wield immense influence over the contemporary cultural narrative and to create new museum models that reimagine the museum experience, including new ways of looking at, displaying, and talking about art.By examining historical precedents, the act of collecting, and comparing key aspects among three prominent private museums in the United States, common themes and trends emerge. Themes include wealth, self-definition, control, prestige, and legacy. The museums discussed include The Broad in Los Angeles, California, Glenstone Museum in Potomac, Maryland, and the Rubell Museum in Miami, Florida. Beginning in the Renaissance, wealthy art patrons (typically of nobility) began collecting and displaying art to represent their status and knowledge, as seen in the kunkstkammers of northern Europe. These forms of display became the precedent for museums as we know them today. Private museums of the 20th century were established to display the founders’ collection of art to the public and often had educational purposes as well. Contemporary private museums are influenced by the models set forth by their predecessors, yet they establish innovative collecting and display practices. Founders of contemporary private museums possess the influence and opportunity to create new models of museum experiences that may influence the future of museums.
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