Friend
or Foe?
Museums Journal
In our relationships with our friends we all know that there's
a certain amount of give and take needed. We try hard to be
charmed rather than irritated by their particular quirks and
enthusiasms and learn to be tactful when they call for a chat
when we're busy.
The relationship between museums and their Friends groups is
no different and most rub along harmoniously but, as with all
friendships, when fall outs come they can be very painful.
In April, National Museums of Liverpool withdrew privileges
from its independent Friends group and launched an in-house
membership scheme. Long standing tensions between the two parties
had culminated in the Friends' refusal to support the new International
Slavery Museum, citing fears that its content would not be sufficiently
balanced.
NML director David Fleming says the rift pre-dated his arrival
in 2001. He stresses the vast majority of the 1,700 former Friends
would be very welcome in the new group and claims the problems
stemmed from a faction who seemed to think they had "been appointed
to advise the management of the museum".
He adds: "I'm a member of Leeds United Supporters' Club, it
gives me an advantage to get tickets, not a right to influence
team selection. I'll have a view, certainly...but I don't
think that the manager is beholden to listen to me. I think
people do get a bit confused."
According to Norah Dunbar, chairman of the British Association
of Friends of Museums, fallings out between museums and their
Friends are very rare but she says boundaries need to be clear:
"Friends are there to support the museum, they can't go off
on a tangent of their own, having their own agenda."
The emphasis of Friends' work varies from museum to museum depending
on the size of the institution and how it is funded. In general,
their role will include fundraising to some degree and volunteering
time for events or even regular staffing. They will also act
as advocates for the museum, enticing more visitors. Sometimes
Friends will be called upon to lobby when a museum is threatened
with cuts or closure.
Friends groups are either independent or, less commonly, run
in-house. The in-house option may be favoured by those who want
greater control over their Friends or are less reliant on their
activities, particularly bigger institutions. The British Museum
is among famous names to have internal Friends.
Dunbar says that for most museums an independent group is more
advantageous: "If a lobby role is necessary, that's where your
independent group is better placed. If you've got a separate
unit the friends can really be more useful, they can speak on
behalf of the visitors of the museum," she explains.
Dunbar believes no matter how beholden a museum is to its Friends
for money or staffing, the balance of power should never change.
Liz Mackenzie, a BAFM vice chairman and former chairman, agrees:
"You're there to support, not to be a damn nuisance," she says.
"I've heard of a situations where Friends have thought
it was their business to run the museum... another where
they thought they could dictate what could be bought, which
was extremely annoying for the new director."
The Friends of Gwynedd Museum & Art Gallery in Bangor has
an amicable relationship with museum staff, but chairman Alan
Dyer has witnessed some Friends groups acting like they own
the museums they support. He says: "We do go to visit other
museums and sometimes when we are being shown round we are painfully
aware of the tensions between the curator and the Friends and
the Friends have been remarkably tactless in one or two situations."
He's frank about what he sees as the root of the problem: "Some
Friends societies are run by elderly, retired busy-bodies...
we're just elderly and retired."
Mackenzie believes the most common flashpoints between museums
and their Friends could be avoided if Friends groups heeded
three golden rules: "You do not dictate policy, you do not buy
things for the museum they do not need and you do not treat
it as a form of personal playground," she says.
Of course for many museums their Friends groups can prove invaluable.
When Gwynedd Museum & Art Gallery recently learned its local
authority was planning to axe its share of funding it faced
closure. Dyer and his fellow Friends rallied to harness public
support, organising petitions, writing letters and contacting
the press.
Gwynedd is currently awaiting confirmation of a proposed package
that would secure its future for the next three years. "They
provided an essential voice for us at a difficult time," the
museum's curator Esther Roberts says of the Friends. She adds
that over the years the group has also matched grant funding
for individual pieces, financially supported exhibitions and
helped organise lectures. With previous curators and an archaeology
specialist among its membership, Roberts points out the Friends
is also useful as a "pool of expertise to quiz".
The Friends of Dulwich Picture Gallery was founded 54 years
ago with the humble aim of buying lights for the building. Not
only is the independent Friends group now one of the longest
running in the country, it is also one of the most widely praised,
not least by the gallery's director Ian Dejardin.
"I
have encountered Friends acting slightly as a police force that
are watching [their institution's] back" he says. "Our Friends
just keep giving us money. They are full of enthusiasm. What
they do is mind-boggling."
Lectures, fashions shows, film shows and treasure hunts are
just some of a myriad of events the 6,000 strong Dulwich Friends
organise at the gallery. "It makes it a very vibrant place,"
says chairman of Friends Jill Alexander.
She thinks the group's greatest success has been in boosting
gallery attendance. The age range of visitors and Friends has
also widened thanks to numerous events for families and a new
community web magazine partly run by Friends members. On top
of this, the Friends raise around £200,000 a year for
the gallery.
"We literally couldn't do without their
support in every single aspect of our programme," says Dejardin.
Louise de Winter, director of National Campaign for the Arts,
believes the work of Friends groups will increase in importance
as central and local government funding declines. She cites
the most recent report from Arts & Business which showed
private investment in culture had reached record levels.
de Winter points out Friends can boost funds not just by raising
cash directly but by inviting influential people and potential
benefactors to previews and exhibitions. She says: "It's a fact
that individuals - and not just Friends groups - are a
strong force in the arts world in terms of where the money comes
from."
She adds: "What Friends groups want from their institution is
a bit more support and attention. It's a two way thing".
The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in Coventry is due to fully
reopen in October following a major redevelopment. It is currently
in the process of setting up a new Friends group, its previous
one having folded some years ago.
City Arts and Heritage manager Roger Vaughan says fundraising
will be a key role for the Friends and the museum is keen to
involve community leaders in order to "establish a network of
relationships from the very beginning and make sure the Friends
are as broad-based as possible".
Cross-community involvement is a good foundation according to
BAFM, which produces a Handbook for Friends including a model
constitution. Another point of advice is to change the Friends'
chairman every three years. This can help keep positive relations
between Friends and museums, as any change of leadership on
either side is a good opportunity to reassess parameters.
So, with the right framework in place what else can Friends
and museums do to keep each other sweet?
"Communication,
communication, communication," says Mackenzie. In her experience
the inevitable 'bees in the bonnets' of individual Friends
(she admits her own is the standard of lavatories) can be managed
with tact and humour when museum staff and Friends are comfortable
conversing.
It's a line Dulwich Picture Gallery director Dejardin follows.
"We have to manage that relationship," he says. "I meet the
chairman of Friends every fortnight for quite an informal meeting;
we usually go down to the café for a coffee. Some directors
would think it's beneath their dignity, I think they are mistaken."
Gwynedd's Dyer believes mutual respect is the key to a good
working relationship. The museum's curator attends Friend's
committee meetings but, "she's careful not to tell us what to
do and we're very careful not to tell her what to do," Dyer
says. "We respect the staff's expertise and they appreciate
what we do."
Back at Liverpool, NML's Fleming says he and his colleagues
and the former Friends did try to resolve their differences
but increased communication came far too late to salvage the
situation. He advises museums and Friends to "keep the rules
of engagement clear" and talk through matters of tension as
soon as they arise.
"It's not unusual for members of
the Friends to have an opinion and 99% of the time that's not
a problem, you talk your way through," he says. "We have a schism
and I regret that and I wish I'd acted sooner."
He remains enthusiastic about Friends groups in general, however.
"Some Friends are really, really valuable members of the team
and anybody who has ever managed a museum is always thinking
of how to engage people," he says. "You just can't end up with
the tail wagging the dog."
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