[BCMA] Museums Promotion Opportunity - We the Humanities

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.]

PRESS RELEASE



*BEN FAST JOINS WE THE HUMANITIES PLATFORM AS CURATOR*



*November 12, Victoria, BC, Canada —Ben Fast, museum worker and Master of
Arts in Tourism Management student, will be joining the international
humanities Twitter account, We the Humanities, as curator during the week
of November 24.*



@wethehumanities <http://www.twitter.com/wethehumanities> is a
rotation-curation account which offers a central platform for discussion
and news of the humanities in all its forms.  It is open to anyone working
in or with the humanities in any form, and hopes to follow the success
achieved by the science platform, @realscientists.



Ben is a tourism management master’s student at Royal Roads University in
Victoria, BC on Canada’s west coast.  He has worked in front line positions
with museums in Canada (Craigdarroch Castle) and France (Juno Beach Centre)
as well as being an events coordinator at the Art Gallery of Greater
Victoria.  His past studies in history at the University of Victoria led
him to archival work and two years as the founding editor of *The Corvette*,
UVic’s undergraduate peer-reviewed history journal.  He currently
volunteers as a “community champion” for events and social media with the
Royal BC Museum while starting a thesis on how museums engage their
audiences and other cultural institutions.



During his week with We the Humanities, Ben will lead discussions in all
things museums.  Topics will range from exhibitions to outreach, education
to internships, branding to publishing, and everything else in between.  As
the first We the Humanities curator from Canada, a lot of discussion will
involve Canadian museums and how they relate and compare to museums in
other countries.  Come join Ben as he explores the modern museum and builds
bridges between Canadian museums and others around the world.



Co-founder Jessica Sage comments: “Our aim is to engage with people from
around the world, exposing them to research, experience and ideas they
perhaps didn’t know existed, and to reiterate the place of the humanities
in our cultures. We really look forward to Ben running the account from
November 24, and in particular his take on museum work.”



Each week a new tweeter curates the account and tweets about what they do
within the field and what their interests are, encouraging conversations
with an audience that covers everyone from the lifetime specialists to the
mildly curious. The account is also backed up by a blog, available at
http://wethehumanities.wordpress.com, in order to allow further discussion,
and Ben will provide daily blogs at his site:
http://benfast.ca/category/we-the-humanities/.



Kristina West, co-founder of We the Humanities, adds: “We encourage anyone
working within the humanities who might be interested in curating the
account to get in touch. We aim to create a vibrant, international
community to raise awareness of the diversity, relevance and challenges
that encompass what is called the humanities.”


If BC museums are interested in sponsoring this project by providing
giveaway prizes (must be able to send them internationally) or gift
certificates for online stores (gift shop must be able to send
internationally), Ben will feature the museums on Twitter throughout the
day, on the recap blog post for the day, and in a final blog post on the We
the Humanities page.  Interested organizations can contact Ben directly at
ben at benfast.ca.


Museum workers are also invited to take part in Ben's informal museum
survey, the results of which will help guide discussion and provide a
inside look into the museum industry in Canada.  The survey can be found
here: http://benfast.ca/2014/11/17/wth-museum-worker-survey/



~ends~



*Contact details:*



Jessica Sage, We the Humanities: tel and e-mail:
j.a.m.sage at pgr.reading.ac.uk

Kristina West, We the Humanities: tel: 07525 009744, email:
k.j.west at pgr.reading.ac.uk

Ben Fast, guest curator: email: ben at benfast.ca, Twitter: @benfaster



*About We The Humanities:*

A rotation curation Twitter account showcasing the creativity and diversity
of the humanities and reiterating the fact that the humanities are more
widely important than current public funding suggests.



*Disclaimer: The views expressed at the @wethehumanities Twitter account
are those of the weekly guest editor and not those of the administrator or
previous/subsequent curators. The views expressed on the blog are the views
of named posters and not those of the administrators.  *
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