“What in heaven’s name is Museology?” Perspectives of Museology through Publications

Abstract

ICOFOM (the International Committee for Museology/ICOM) focused on the search for and construction of a body of theory for this field of study, during the mid-1970s and 1980s. By researching specialized periodicals, such as MuWoP (Museological Working Papers) and ISS (Icofom Study Series) focusing on the circulation amongst peers of ideas regarding the founding of this science, and Museum (UNESCO) which targets the general public, it was confirmed that a range of topics contributed and continues to contribute to the scientific culture of Museology. Besides being a strategic means of disseminating information about the theory and of keeping its professionals up to date, these publications help to consolidate museological terminology (specialized lexicon), although in different ways. With reference to communication amongst peers, contrasts can be observed regarding the nature and object of study of Museology that highlight the lack of consensus about the field of study to be covered and the meaning of the words used, thereby influencing the conceptual construction of Museology. During the period studied, the intellectual exchanges focus on the “terminology problem”, associated with the search for and the desire to identify the object of study of museology, research that was instigated by the question: What in fact is Museology? With respect to publications targeting the general public, museum activities are the main focus of the topics discussed and the covers of the magazine, Museum, reinforce this idea by displaying well-known art images. Although these publications have different editorial philosophies, strategies, formats and ways of handling the subject matter, which affects the technical scientific vocabulary and specialized lexicon, they present possible approaches to Museology, and reaffirm the fact that this field of study has its own language of specialization.