Hello all! I will start out by saying that Virginia is inundated with Civil War everything—not just during the anniversary years, but all the time. That said, it is what brings people here, and I would be interested in an exhibit that explores the War from a new perspective…not something that has been overdone before. You might take a look at the American Civil War Center’s exhibits here in Richmond for ideas. I think they do a splendid job of highlighting elements of the war that most museums don’t.

So I think Virginia would be interested, and I don’t think it would need to open in 2011.

That said, please pray that our state’s humanities council (which helps us bring these exhibits to Virginia) will survive the upcoming budget bill. They are slated, along with our state commission for the arts, to be totally eliminated. This, of course, would make any future MOMS exhibit here impossible.

Jennifer

Jennifer Weiskotten Thomas

Program Director

Virginia Association of Museums

804-788-5823

From: Museum on Main Street [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Harsh, Carol
Sent: Monday, March 01, 2010 4:44 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: New MoMS exhibition ideas

Dear MoMS family and friends,

We are exploring some ideas for the next MoMS exhibition and want to get some quick feedback in preparation for a meeting on March 17 with some curators at the National Museum of American History and the National Portrait Gallery.

There was a lot of talk at the Federation Conference about the upcoming 150^th anniversary of the Civil War. We are exploring the possibility of developing an exhibition on the Civil War Homefront. This is something that we discussed with quite a few folks at the conference and heard resounding support. Since you have hosted MoMS exhibitions in the past you have a good feel for potential interest among the host communities, so we are interested in knowing your reaction to this idea, too.

So, I have three questions:

(1) Are you interested in a MoMS exhibition centered on the homefront during the Civil War?

(2) If we were to do such an exhibition is it crucial that it open in the anniversary year—2011; or could it open later, maybe Fall 2012 or Spring 2013?

(3) Do you think programs about the Civil War would only be popular in the anniversary years from 2011 to 2015, or is there generally an interest in the topic?

We have been hearing about a lot of programming planned around the anniversary year. Please let us know at your earliest convenience if you think your council would be interested in hosting a MoMS exhibition on the subject.

All the best,

Carol

Carol G. Harsh

Director, Museum on Main Street

Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service

P.O. Box 37012, MRC 941

Washington, DC 20013-7012

202-633-5333

202-465-5267 (cell)