Wesleyan’s mummy might finally have a display if all goes according to plan. A program is currently in the works to create a University Museum that will serve as a protected home and interactive learning space for Wesleyan’s various collections of art and artifacts.
Although the timeline remains up in the air, conceptual drawings that would transform the recently emptied Squash court buildings into gallery, storage, lecture and classroom spaces were presented to the Board of Trustees in October 2004. The drawings resulted from the efforts of an advisory committee formed to represent various collections and interests. These multi-departmental meetings set out to create the most efficient possible space for the Museum’s many uses.
“Wesleyan has never had anything like this—it’s sort of a mind shift,” said Lily Milroy, Dean of Arts and Humanities. “It’s going to be an unusual place because it is going to have both art and artifacts. The challenge was to take the program developed by the advisory committee—with space for offices, galleries, classrooms and storage—and make that program fit it into the squash court building.”
The University Museum would not only allow for proper storage of collections, including those of the Archaeology Program, the Davison Art Center, the Music Department, and the Mansfield Center for East Asian Studies, but would also provide access to the materials for study and analysis.
“I think that these materials, whether they are old master prints or stone tools made by Native Americans, constitute cultural patrimony,” said Carla Antonaccio, Professor of Classical Studies and Archaeology Program. “We only have them in our care for a short period of time and they don’t belong to us, they belong to everyone for all time. We have a moral and ethical reason to take care of these. This also stands side by side with the educational reasons for building the museum and making the collections part of the University’s mission.”
Overall, the advisory committee feels that the need to protect and provide access to these materials is important to the University’s future on educational, ethical and competitive levels. Currently the collections are spread across campus, and stored improperly in many cases. For example, the archaeology collection is mostly in cardboard boxes and file cabinets, although work is currently being done to better protect it.
“Wesleyan has these untold wonderful collections with no secure place to put them up,” said Ellen D’Oench Curator of the Davison Art Center, Emerita. “What I deeply believe is that Wesleyan students are being shortchanged by not having a museum. It’s like not having a library or a laboratory.”
The history of this project dates back to the beginning of the Bennet Administration, when all University departments were asked to assess and prioritize needs. The result was an overwhelming concern for many of the University’s valuable and historical collections.
In 1997 the Collections Advisory Committee was formed to examine the University’s various materials and propose the possible directions. They worked with Architects Billy Chen and Todd Williams, who created the first set of concept drawings for a new structure on the lawn between the Health Center and the DAC.
According to Antonaccio the Administration’s commitment to “raising the bottom line” of the University resulted in funds going to renovating and reworking more pertinent problems, such as the University Center.
The new plans, which were created by the firm Atkin, Olshin and Lawson-Bell, during 2004, give the project a renewed hope. The proposed location of the Squash Courts building might speed up the process. According to Milroy the proximity of the University Museum to the new University Center could push the Administration to do one large construction project on that area of campus at once.
Despite an ongoing belief in the absolute necessity of this project, it has long languished in the planning stages.
“I’m frustrated—and I think all of us who have worked on it for a long time are frustrated that we can’t seem to get it off the ground […] at some level we don’t seem to be able to make it happen,” Antonaccio said. “At a liberal arts institution of our character and quality I don’t understand why we need to convince people of it. It would be a museum that would serve many of the departments, if not potentially all of them.”
The success of the University Museum, according to many parties involved, truly hinges upon fundraising.
“The major problem is finding funds among alumni or supporters who will have to put up large sums of money,” D’Oench said. “So far, we haven’t found donors who will do that. One single donor could spearhead the whole thing.”
Many directly involved with raising money for this project appeared hopeful.
“I believe through my work with some of the alumni and friends on these committees there is considerable interest in supporting the creation of a museum that would preserve our valuable collections,” said Barbara Jan Wilson, Vice President for University Relations. “We do know there are donors and foundations who exclusively support museums – whether they have enough financial resources to build a museum at Wesleyan is not clear. That will be the challenge for us in fundraising.”
Member of the Advisory Committee and University Consultant Midge Brown Bennet mentioned the specific appeal of such a project to alumni involved and trained in the arts.
“There are many Wesleyan alumni with high regard for Wesleyan’s traditions in the arts,” she said. “These are individuals who are eager for the prestige associated with other colleges and universities to be associated with Wesleyan as well. It will take some major, lead gifts to launch the building campaign, and so far we have not found those gifts.”
With all of the objects of material culture stored away waiting to be used, providing access and protection to these pieces is at the heart of the project.
“We have a Mummy!” Milroy said. “ And it’s actually been x-rayed and had an article in the Times and he’s a famous mummy. It’s about the mummy and if we say to people we are going to give the mummy a home I think we can raise the money.”
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