What is Wisconsin Museums Week? What is International Museum Day?

• Since 1977, International Museum Day, May 18 has provided a nucleus for museums' creative aspirations and efforts and a focus for international attention on work done by museums.
• Since 2006, Wisconsin Museums Week, a program sponsored by the Wisconsin Federation of Museums (WFM), has been held in conjunction with International Museum Day and has provided Wisconsin museums an opportunity to promote their institutions.
• Wisconsin Museums Week and International Museum Day are springboards for initiatives that promote the work of our institutions to the public, draw attention of supervisory bodies and governments to the role and needs of museums, and foster dialogue between professionals and across disciplines.
• Wisconsin Museums Week and International Museum Day focus on a different theme each year. The theme for 2012 is "Museums in a Changing World. New Challenges, New Inspirations" Today the world is changing faster than ever. New technology delivers new ideas, gigabytes of information, news of an increasingly unstable climate. Wisconsin Museums Week will allow visitors to wonder about the role of museums in our new society, in the era of new media, and to discover and rediscover how museums are looking to the future in terms of sustainable development.
• Wisconsin Museums Week and International Museum Day will be an occasion for visitors to discover and rediscover individual and collective memory.
• Wisconsin Museums Week and International Museum Day is your institution's chance to participate in a statewide celebration of Wisconsin museums by either creating or incorporating existing programs into the week of May 12 through May 20. WFM will distribute printed materials (posters and bookmarks) to participating museums and promote Museum Week activities through its website and communications.

In short, Wisconsin Museums Week is your institution's chance to join with other museums and historical societies from around the state to SHOWCASE WISCONSIN'S COLLECTIONS AND THE STORIES THEY TELL!

Should my institution participate?
Yes! All cultural institutions in Wisconsin are welcome to participate. Wisconsin Museums Week is a free opportunity to promote your institution to the public as well as to supervisory bodies. It is a unique opportunity for Wisconsin's museums to work together and demonstrate the importance of museums to the state of Wisconsin as well as local communities. Last year more than 45 Wisconsin museums participated, and WFM would love to have more than 60 institutions participate in 2012.

Is there an opportunity for my institution be spotlighted on the Wisconsin Museums Week poster and bookmark?
Yes! Check back in January for more details.

How does my institution register?
Please complete the attached registration form and return it by Friday, March 30, 2012.

Questions about Wisconsin Museums Week and International Museum Day?
Contact Wisconsin Museums Week Coordinator, Elisabeth Engel, Curator of Collections and Exhibits, Waukesha County Historical Society & Museum, at eengel@wchsm.org or 262-521-2859 x225.

Click here to find a listing of 2011 Wisconsin Museums Week's participants along with details of their special activities, programs and events.

Download the official registration form here.