The Art of Relevance

by Nina Simon

This online book is related to the museum field, but contains ideas and methodologies which can be used within the living history field as historical interpreters.

About The Art of Relevance
Preface by Jon Moscone
Introduction: Unlocking Relevance

PART 1: WHAT IS RELEVANCE?
A Walk on the Beach
Meaning, Effort, Bacon
Something Old, Something New
Two Delusions about Relevance
A Note on Irrelevance

PART 2: OUTSIDE IN
People Who Don’t Normally Show Up
Start at the Front Door
Some Doors Are Invisible
Dumbing it Down
Whose Room is This?
The People in the Room
Go Outside
Inside-Outsiders
Otherizing Outsiders
Outsider Guides
Outside Institutions
Making Room

PART 3: RELEVANCE AND COMMUNITY
How Do You Define Community?
Finding Your People
Wants and Needs
Needs and Assets
Community-First Program Design
Relevance for One
Relevance for Everyone
Build a Door or Change the Room?
Building a Bigger Room

PART 4: RELEVANCE AND MISSION
Steady in the Storm
A Hunt for Relevance
Relevance is a Moving Target for Institutions
Relevance is a Moving Target for Content
You Can Make Boring Things Relevant
The Ugliest Painting on the Block
Proactive Relevance
Content Versus Form
Old Plays, New Forms, New Audiences
Co-Creating Relevance
Getting Past the Pretty Fish
One Core, Many Doors

PART 5: THE HEART OF RELEVANCE
Part Ex-Con, Part Farmer, Part Queen
Measuring Relevance
Transformative Relevance
Empathetic Evangelists
A Great Treasure
Acknowledgements
About the Author

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