Council of Australian University Museums and Collections (CAUMAC) National
Network
Report to Museums Australia National Council & CAUMAC membership
For 2013 AGM
Title
CAUMAC, Activities Report 2013
Date
29/4/2013
Author
Andrew Simpson, President, CAUMAC
Introduction
The last Annual General Meeting of the CAUMAC National Network took place at the University of
Melbourne on the 30th September, 2010 during the Museums Australia National Conference. Notes
from this meeting will be distributed prior to our scheduled AGM for 2013 at the Museums Australia
National Conference in Canberra on 19th May, 2013.
This report represents a summary of activities in the intervening period. While CAUMAC has
contributed to discussions about the future of National Networks in Museums Australia for a, made
some progress in advocating for a better understanding of the university museum sector in Australia
and undertaken some research in support of that, we have not done an adequate job of keeping our
membership informed of these developments. No newsletters were produced in the period and there
was only sporadic and irregular email communication with members. Reviewing communications
with the membership should be a priority for the incoming executive of the network.
At the 2010 AGM it was agreed that some of CAUMAC’s accumulated resources from membership
should be deployed to develop a more comprehensive and contemporary perspective of the
collecting sector within Australian universities. As a result a sector wide survey was undertaken to
enable us to better understand our current and potential membership and collate information to
advocate that museums and collections can support the core business of Australian universities. A
database of Australian University Museums and Collections compiled by a consultant (Mr A. Reed)
and is reported below under the section on research.
At the time of reporting CAUMAC has 45 members, a reduction of 5 over the reporting period.
CAUMAC has combined financial assets of $7776.61 (at the end of 2012) held in a central account
on behalf of the network by Museums Australia National Office.
Research
At the 2010 meeting there has been a general sense that the nature of the higher education sector in
Australia has undergone profound changes over the last decade. The snapshot of the sector in the
1990s (Cinderella Collections Reports) can only be considered as of historical value.
Given our reasonable financial situation and minimal expenditure during the period as a MA Network,
and given the initiatives of the National Council of MA with the establishment of a Membership
Working Group it was felt that we needed to both reconnect with and identify the current status of our
constituency.
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A consultant was hired to undertake a new review of museums and collections in higher education
with the purpose of:1. Identifying potential new members
2. Identifying current trends in universities regarding collections
3. Investigating models of governance
This work identified over 400 collections and was published as a short report in the 2012 (vol 21 -2)
edition of Museums Australia Magazine. The research has also thrown open many issues regarding
the original definitions applied in the 1990s Cinderella Collections reports by identifying other
categories of collections such as those of digital objects and collections and archives held by
residential colleges, theological colleges and student organisations. This research improves our
knowledge of our potential constituency that should enable us to expand our own membership base
and dramatically improve the effectiveness of advocacy with peak bodies such as Universities
Australia.
In comparison with the 1990s data in the Cinderella Collections reports we have identified a much
greater number of manuscript and document collections (probably overlooked in earlier reports), a
much greater percentage of art collections that previously, a greater number of indigenous
collections (art and artefact), a reduction in the number of scientific collections in the sector and a
greater presence of multi-media, mixed media and digital collections than previously. This forms a
good baseline for further investigation and developing parameters for utilising this data should be a
task of the incoming executive. There has been interest in the collated data from external groups
such as Austage and the Performing Arts Heritage network.
Other research conducted during the reporting period included a project on university museum
governance, by Andrew Simpson, funded by an internal research development grant at Macquarie
University (reference below). This work proposed a series of four different governance models that
can be further subdivided into nine.
After a research on Australian University natural history museums in 2010 (presented at the
Museums Australia 2010 meeting) by Macquarie University Honours student, Morwenna Pearce,
there was contact from the Atlas of Living Australia project, data from a small number of university
natural history collections were added to the project in 2011.
The 2011 National Conference in Perth had no specific theme dedicated to University museums,
however the 2012 National Conference in Adelaide had the following papers of relevance to the
university museums sector, results (papers or powerpoint files) are available in the members area of
the Museums Australia website
2012 conference
 Rhonda Davis and Sara Symth-King: Reconnecting: the Art and Dementia Program at
Macquarie University Art Gallery
 Heather Gaunt: Connections across the curricula: engaging students at the Ian Potter
Museum of Art, University of Melbourne
 Jacqueline Healy: Highlights of the collection, Medical History Museum—connecting with its
community
 Andrew Jamieson: Object-based learning, curriculum engagement and the University of
Melbourne’s Classics and Archaeology Collection
 Leonard Janiszewski: The world is your oyster: exhibiting an interconnected, globalised,
transnational, transcultural world
 Elizabeth Pascale: Hub Heads: non-traditional art in a non-traditional space, engaging in new
ways to connect
 Andrew Simpson: Recent collection trends in the Australian higher education sector
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CAUMAC has provided two bursaries to help support attendance at each of the National
Conferences in recent years. They are available only to CAUMAC members (non-executive).
The following research papers about Australian University Museums and collections have been
published during the reporting period through the international subcommittee of ICOM:
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Estrada-Arevalo, S., Michael, V. & Simpson, A. 2011. Turning the museum inside out: The
biological sciences at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. University Museums and
Collections Journal 4: 57-63.
Halliwell, A. & Simpson, A. 2010. Visitor profiling for, and promotion of the biological and
earth sciences museums, Macquarie University. University Museums and Collections
Journal. 3: 149-158.
Hammond, G. Van Dyke, K., & Simpson, A. 2012. Adding value: Universities and their
museums. University Museums and Collections Journal 5: 7-16.
Pearce, M. & Simpson, A. 2010. The exhibition of scientific principles: a case study from the
Biological Sciences Museum at Macquarie University. University Museums and Collections
Journal. 3: 163-174.
Simpson, A. & Hammond, G. 2012. University collections and object-based pedagogies.
University Museums and Collections Journal 5: 75-82.
In 2012 a two volume publication by MuseumsEtc had the following Australian contributions:
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Arnoldi, H. 2012. A mutually beneficial exchange: The University of Melbourne’s Cultural
Collections Projects Program. In Jandl, S. & Gold, M. (Eds) A Handbook for Academic
Museums: Exhibitions and Education. MuseumsEtc: 512-527.
Chandler, L. 2012. Small, New and Regional: Meeting the Challenges of a Young University
Art Museum. In Jandl, S. & Gold, M. (Eds) A Handbook for Academic Museums: Beyond
Exhibitions and Education. MuseumsEtc: 306-337.
Simpson, A. 2012. Modelling governance structures for university museums and collections.
In Jandl, S. & Gold, M. (Eds) A Handbook for Academic Museums: Beyond Exhibitions and
Education. MuseumsEtc: 178-218.
Advocacy
In February 2011 CAUMAC wrote to the Acting Vice-Chancellor of the University of Queensland to
extend sympathy after the flooding and closure of the campus, and to inquire about any damage to
collections and offer assistance. Only damage reported in return correspondence was to older
publications of the UQ Art Collection held in storage at the St Lucia campus.
There were discussions with the National Office about the possibility of producing an issue of
Museums Australia magazine a thematic issue on university museums. While this did not occur, the
following articles helped raise awareness of university museums.
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Philp, J. 2013. Re-examining the insides and attitudes of animal specimens: The Macleay
Museums Victorian taxidermy project. Museums Australia Magazine 21 (3)
Simpson, A. 2012 Cinderella Collections: 15 years after the ball. Museums Australia
Magazine 21 (2)
Garnut, C. & Collins, J. 2012. The Architecture Museum, School of Art, Architecture and
Design, University of South Australia. Museums Australia Magazine 20 (4)
Nemec, B. 2011. Let the genius be presented whole, as life made and moulded him: The
Grainger Museum at the University of Melbourne. Museums Australia Magazine 19 (4)
In January 2012 CAUMAC was contacted by the Commercial Galleries Association seeking
information on the number of Art collections and Art Museums in the University sector. A nonCAUMAC 2013 Report
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aligned organisation, the Association of Australian University Art Museum Directors was informed via
CAUMAC’s Vice President.
In April 2012 CAUMAC wrote to the Vice-Chancellor of Edith Cowan University about a change
management proposal to reduce the level of professional staffing supporting the Edith Cowan Art
Collection. The Vice-Chancellor, Kerry Cox was also contacted by the Association of Australian
University Art Museums. Professor Cox responded noting that despite the reduction in staffing
support there would be no reduction in the quality of service offered.
In September 2012 the Australian Financial Review contacted CAUMAC seeking input for a feature
article on university museums, Chris MacAuliffe from the University of Melbourne was also
interviewed. The story entitled “Counting Treasure” was published on September 24, 2012 and
made the point that Universities are sitting on a mountain of irreplaceable treasures tracing the
history and culture of not only Australia, but other parts of the world, and questioned whether there
was a uniform approach to management across the sector.
International
In October, 2012, Catherine Giltrap, Curator of Art and Heritage at Trinity College Dublin, visited
universities in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney and made a number of presentations at some.
CAUMAC has recently made contact with the Association of Academic Museums and Galleries. This
is a group based in the United States with over 1000 members. They offer regular professional
development, active campaigns for membership and advocacy (“Great Universities and Colleges
have Great Museums and Galleries campaign”). They have a linkedin group that anyone can join
with lots of conversations about museums and collections in a university setting.
Communications
CAUMAC regularly receives notifications about events and exhibitions in the university museum
sector. This includes QUT Precincts communications, RMIT Design Archives Journal, enews from
Sydney University Museums, events at the Museum of Human Disease UNSW and posted material
from the Universities of Melbourne and Queensland, Deakin and La Trobe. This material has, in the
past, been the basis of content for our newsletter. Production of a regular newsletter hasn’t been
possible in recent years. CAUMAC established a group on Museums Australia’s MANexus site as a
means of distributing communications more effectively, but few members have opted to join the site.
A priority for the incoming executive should be to establish more effective communication with
members.
MAGNA Awards
University museums have featured in these recently established national awards.
The University of New England Heritage Centre was “Highly Commended” in the Exhibition category
of the 2011 MAGNA Awards.
The Grainger Museum (University of Melbourne) was a finalist in the Permanent Exhibition category
of the 2012 MAGNA Awards.
The Samstag Museum of Art (University of South Australia) was a finalist in the Temporary Exhibition
category of the 2012 MAGNA Awards.
The Monash University Museum of Art was a joint winner in the Temporary Exhibition category (level
2) of the 2012 MAGNA Awards.
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