Introduction

          Most historic house museums are boring.  Static, unchanging treasures are displayed in lifeless rooms.  Preservation alone is not enough to justify saving a site; something is not worth saving unless others know of its existence.

            New audiences are influenced by the fast-paced, ever-changing world.  Individuals are no longer interested in “what was,” but are interested in “what was” in the context of “what is” today.  History cannot stand along—it must be interpreted by those who are enthusiastic about its inherent storyline, with connections bringing the past into the present.

            To stay relevant in modern times, historic sites must try new programming, exhibitions, and events. Few opportunites have introduced contemporary art into an historic site.  This new option, which opens the past to the present, was explored through the exhibition “Historic Interpretation: Contemporary Artists Interpret the Historic Collection,” held at the Peabody Historical Society and Museum in Peabody, Massachusetts, in 2009.  The exhibition, which is the basis of a case study on the convergence of contemporary art and historic sites, strives to bring new audiences into two of the Society’s historic house museums, the Gideon Foster and Osborne-Salata Houses.

Removing the curatorial role, “Historic Interpretation” invited artists to create a new artwork based on an artifact from the Society’s collection, with the contemporary work replacing traditional means of interpretation.  Contemporary artworks have been installed in conjunction with their historic inspiration, creating a conversation between the new and old.  Exhibition labeling has been limited to the tombstone format, removing the curatorial voice, making the artist’s work and their own words (if desired) the basis of interpretation for the objects, artifacts, and artworks throughout the house museum settings.

            “Historic Interpretation” will be used to explore the need for further such contemporary exhibitions within historic houses. Ways in which other historic sites have introduce contemporary art to revitalize their site will be discussed, emphasizing the potential of such introductions as a way to reach different audiences and create new opportunities through the juxtaposition of past and present. The author has challenged individuals involved with similar exhibitions held at other institutions, and  artists who have used museum collections as inspiration for their art, striving to determine the overall outcomes of contemporary art introductions at historic sites, and the overall implications for consideration by those in the museum field.