Displaying and Celebrating the "Other": A Study of the Mission, Scope, and Roles of Ethnic

Museums in Los Angeles

Author(s): Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris and Carl Grodach
Source: The Public Historian, Vol. 26, No. 4 (Autumn, 2004), pp. 49-71
Published by: University of California Press
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National Narratives in Maritime
and Ethnic Museums

Displaying and Celebrating the

"Other": A Study of ie Mission,
Scope, and Roles of Ethnic
Museums in Los Angeles

andCARL GRODACH
ANASTASIALOUKAITOU-SIDERIS

In the lastthirtyyears,ethnicmuseumshavemushroomed in Americancities.Although

thisis certainlya nationalphenomenon,it hasbeenparticularly evidentin LosAngeles.
In thispaperwe examinethe genesisandevolutionof these emerginginstitutions. We
surveythe mission,scope,androleof ethnicmuseumsin LosAngeles,andwe contrast
themwiththe statedmissionandscopeof"mainstream" museumsin the city.We fur-
therpresentcasestudiesof threeLosAngelesethnicmuseums.Themuseumsvarycon-
siderablyin the waystheyperceivetheirrolein the community,the city,andthe nation
andin thepreservation anddisplayof ethnicculture.Attheirbest,ethnicmuseumsserve
to makenewartandhistoriesmoreaccessibleandvisibleandprovidea forumin which
to debatecontemporary issuesof politicsandidentity.Thepaperhighlightssomeof the
tensionsfacedby ethnicmuseumsas they seek to definetheiraudienceandrole(s)in
multi-ethnic,twenty-firstcenturyLosAngeles.

IN RECENT YEARS, museumshavebecomean increasingly visibleand

significant
featurein citiesaroundtheworld.Intheircapacity
to stimulate
a
ANASTASIALOUKAITOU-SIDERISis professorin the Departmentof UrbanPlanningat
UCLA.Herresearchandwritingsexaminetheformandusesofpublicspacesinthemulti-cultural
city. She is the co-authorof Urban Design Downtown: Poetics and Politics ofForm (Berkeley:
Universityof California Press,1998).
49

The P?blic H2storian,Vol.26, No. 4, pp. 49-71 (Fall2004).ISSN:0272-3433,

electronicISSN 1533-8576.
C)2004bythe Regentsof the Universityof Californiaandthe
NationalCouncilon PublicHistory.Allrightsreserved.
Pleasedirectallrequestsforpermissionto photocopyor reproduce
articlecontentthroughthe Universityof CaliforniaPress'sRightsand
Permissionswebsite:atwww.uepress.edu/journals/rights.htm.
50 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

culturaleconomy andtocreatea moreattractive imagethatenablescitiesto

competeregionally andgloballyfortourists, businesses, andnewresidents,
somemuseums havebecomeimportant components of urban redevelopment
andcitymarketing Witness,
strategies.] forexample, therebirth ofthesleepy
Basque portofBilbao atownfacingnotonlyeconomic declinebutalsoeth-
nicconflict afterthebuilding oftheGuggenheim Museum.
Asmanymuseums havesoughtnewstrategies to finance theirexpanding
urbanrole,theyhavebeenforcedtopursuealternative funding sources.They
haveoftenembraced corporatesponsorship oftheirexhibitions, constructed
elaboraterenovations andbranchmuseums, andaddedmuseumstoresand
restaurantsto attracta broaderpayingaudience.2 Intheprocess,museums
havebecomepopular attractionsandintegral partsof anexpanding leisure
industry.Thus,manymuseums todayarenotonlydepositories of highart
andculture, butalsohavepursued a morepopulist, entertainment-oriented
role.
Asmuseums havegainedmoreprominence in thepubliceye,theyhave
emerged ascentral battlegroundsinthe"culture andhistory wars."Questions
of theappropriate representationof thepastorwhatconstitutes arthavein-
citedcontroversy andhavegenerated debateoverlarger issuesofnationalself-
andgroup
definition Themission,
values.3 scope,andmandate ofmuseums have
comeunderincreased Furiermore,asurbanplaceshavebecome
scrutiny.
hometomorediverse channels
traditional
populations, ofrepresentationdonot
seemadequate to capturethecomplexity andmultiplicity oftheneedsof dif-
ferentpublics.4Thus,whereas museums mayhaveonceservedassitesofcol-
lectiveremembering, firmlyvestedinthenation-state, theirmandate todayis
challengedin"aworldinwhichtheborders bywhichsocieties arekeptapart
areincreasingly byever-speeding
criss-crossed flowsof images,information,
ideas,andpeople....Theseflowsgeneratenewhybridcultures whichare
largely
unremembered withinexistinginstitutional
representationsofthepast.''5

CARLGRODACHis a doctoralstudent in the Departmentof UrbanPlanningat UCLA. His re-

cent publications include "ReconstitutingIdentity and History in Post-WarMostar, Bosnia-
Herzegovina,"published in the journalCity.
This studywas partlyfunded by a grant from the UCLA Institute of AmericanCultures.
1. Elizabeth Strom, "ConvertingPork into Porcelain:CulturalInstitutionsand Downtown
Development,"UrbanAffairsReview 38, no. 1 (2002): 3-21.
2. Mark Rectanus, Culture Incorporated:Museums,Artists, and Corporate Sponsorship
(Minneapolis:Universityof MinnesotaPress, 2002); Chin-TaoWu, PrivatizingCulture:Corpo-
rate Art Interuentionsince the 1980's (London and New York:Verso, 2002).
3. GaryNash, CharlotteCrabtree,and Ross Dunn, History on Tnal: CultureWarsand the
Teachingofthe Past (New York:AlfredA. Knopf,1997);EdwardLinenthaland Tom Engelhardt,
eds., History Wars:The Enola Gay and Other Battlesfor the AmericanPast (New York:Henry
Holt and Company,1996).
4. JanLinn, "Globalizationand the Revalorizationof Ethnic Places in ImmigrationGateway
Cities," UrbanA#airs Revtew34, no. 2 (1998): 313-340; SharonZukin,The Culturesof Cities
(Cambridge,Mass:BlackwellPublishers,1995).
5. JohnUrry,"HowSocieties Rememberthe Past,"in TheorizingMuseunxs,ed. SharonMac-
donald and GordonFyfe (Oxford:BlackwellPublishers,1996), 46.
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 51

Sincethe1960smanyhave becomeskeptical ofthemuseum's fundamental

principles andtechniquesof representation thatprivileged "national" and
"elite"cultureover"ethnic" and"popular" culture,andhaveactivelysought
to reorganize theinstitution.Criticscharged that,astemplesofhighculture,
mainstream museums havefailedtopresentthe"other" voicesinthecityor
havecontinued to exhibitthemundercategories of"primitive" or"exotic.'>
In response,somemainstream museumshavegradually recognizedthe
needs,values,andhistories of multiplepublicsandhaveexperimented with
newandself-critical modesofdisplay.6 Well-known museums liketheSmith-
sonianhaveaddedspecialcollections andexhibitsthatrepresentmultiple
perspectives, givingvoicesto publicspreviously "spokenfor"or ignored.7
Atthesametime,manyethnicandminority groups haveresponded totheir
perceived andoftenrealexclusion andthegrowing interestintheirowncul-
tureandheritage bycreating distinctinstitutionstodocument, interpret,and
exhibittheart,culture,andhistoryof theircommunities andcultures.8 The
lastthirtyyearshavethuswitnessedan explosion of ethnicandculturally
specificmuseums. Although thisiscertainly anational phenomenon, Itispar-
evidentin LosAngeles,wherein thelastdecademanyethnicmu-
ticularly
seumshaveopenedtheirdoorsto thepublic.Thelistincludeslocalefforts
byAfrican, Chinese,Italian,Japanese, Jewish,Korean, Latino,andUkranian
American museums.
Although theliteratureon ethnicmuseums andtheiranticipated rolesis
growing, fewstudieshaveattempted to evaluate theirroleandactualimpact
onethniccommunities andcitiesatlarge.Rarelydoestheliterature address
empirically theroleof suchmuseums indefining cultural representation and
community Furthermore,
participation. although increasing discussion hasfo-
cusedonthecommercialization ofmuseums, sufficientattention hasnotbeen
paidtothegenesisandevolution ofmorespecialized culturalinstitutionssuch
asethnicmuseums. Thispaperwillstartaddressing theseissues.
In the firstsection,we provideanoverview of theprominent issuesand
debatesthatsurround thehistoryanddevelopment of themuseumasanin-
Inthesecondsection,wehighlight
stitution. theemergence of ethnicmuse-
umsandtheirdivergence frommainstream institutions. In thelastsection,

6. Anita Herle, "TorresStraitIslanders:Storiesfrom an Exhibition,"Ethnos 65, no. 2 (2000):

253-74; Henrietta Riegel, "Into the Heart of Irony: Ethnographic Exhibitionsand the Politics
of Difference," in TheorizingMuseums;Susan Vogel, "AlwaysTrue to the Object, in Our Fash-
ion,"in ExhibitingCultures:ThePoeticsand Politicsof MuseumDisplay, ed. IvanKarpand Steven
Lavine (Washington:SmithsonianInstitution Press, 1991), 191-204.
7. Sharon Macdonald, "Theorizing Museums: An Introduction," in Theorizing Museums
ed. Sharon Macdonaldand Gordon Fyfe (Oxford:Blackwell Publishers, 1996), 1-18.
8. James Clifford, "Museums as Contact Zones," in Routes: Travel and Translationin the
Late TwentiethCentury (Cambridge,Mass:HarvardUniversityPress, 1997), 188-219; Edmund
Barry Gaither. "'Hey That's Mine': Thoughts on Pluralismand American Museums,"in Muse-
of
ums and Communities:The Politics Public Culture, ed. Ivan Karp, Christine Kreamer, and
Steven Lavine (Washington:SmithsonianInstitution Press, 1992), 56-64; Moira Simpson, Mak-
ing Representations:Museumsin the Post-ColonialEra (London: Routledge, 1996).
52 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

wesurvey thescope,role,andmission
ofethnicmuseumsinLosAngeles,and
discusscasestudiesof threeLosAngelesethnicmuseums
thatrangeinsize,
mission,andhistory.

andForums:TheEvolvingRoleofMainstream
Temples Museums

Historically,
museums havebeendeeplyinvolved intheformation andin-
terpretationof identityandhistory.However, ratherthanserving asa dem-
ocratic
forumtodebateandexchange ideasontherepresentation ofidentity
andhistory, theearlymuseumfunctioned moreasa civictemple-a space
thatauthenticated andconsecrated thevaluesofthebourgeoisie andnation-
stateasanobjective realityforallto emulate.9Astemple,themuseum con-
tributedto reinforcing thevaluesof a selectsegmentof society,whileoften
subordinating competing viewsandagendas. Suchmuseums servednotonly
asrepositories of elitecultureandnational heritage,butalsoasspacesthat
categonzed cultural differences alonga hierarchyof raceandclass.l°
Aspublicmuseums, theseinstitutions wereopento everyone7 buttheir
emphasis onthedisplay of eliteculturepractically
servedto excludea large
segment ofthepublic.Inthisway,earlypublic museums created theirpublics
by providing a definitive space,the artmuseum,whichwasdevotedto a
specificactivity:
thecultivation ofartappreciation asa markofeliteculture.
Museum userswerepassiveobservers of displays
andeffiibitsthatwerese-
lectedby museumboardmembers, whoset the standards of taste.More-
over,museum exhibits largely servedtonaturalizehierarchiesofculturaldif-
ferences,visuallydistinguishing betweenthe museum's publicandthe
4'other."
Earlypublicmuseums arranged objectsalonga sequenceof pro-
gressivestagesimplying thatasobjectswereincreasingly moresophisticated
andtechnical, sowerethepeoplewhocreatedthem.Museum anthropolo-
gistsandeffiibition curators froze"primitive cultures"in thepastthrough
theconstruction ofevolutionary narratives
ofhumanity andconstructed racial
difference throughmuseumexhibitions.ll In otherwords,anthropologists
andmuseumprofessionals, whoactually arguedforsocialequality, helped
toconstruct racialinequality withinthepurportedly democratic publicspace

9. Michael Ames, CannibalToursand Gluss Boxes: The Anthropologyof Museums(Van-

couver:UBC Press, 1991);TonyBennett. The Birth of the Museum(London:Routledge, 1995);
Steven Lavineand IvanKarp,"Introduction:Museumsand Multiculturalism,>' in ExhibitingCul-
tures, 1-9.
10. On museums and nationalheritage, see Carol Duncan, "ArtMuseumsand the Ritualof
Citizenshipn'}
in ExhibitingCultures;88-103. On the categorizationof culturaldifferences, see
BarbaraKirshenblatt-Gimblett,Destination Culture:Tounsm,Museums,and Heritage (Berke-
ley: Universityof CaliforniaPress, 1998).
11. Nelia Dias, "The Visibilityof Difference: Nineteenth-CenturyFrench Anthropological
Collections,"in ThePoliticsof Display:Museums,Science,Culture,ed. SharonMacdonald(Lon-
don: Routledge, 1998), 36-52; Flora Kaplaned., Museumsand the Makingof"Ourselves": The
Role ofObjectsin National Identity (Leicester:Leicester UniversityPress, 1994).
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 53

of the museum.Museums, then,contributed to embedding of

hierarchies
racialandcultural differencewithintheirconceptions public.
of a universal
Today, however, although manymuseums retaintheirstatusasprestigious
templesof artorscience,manyalsoaspireto serveasforumsfortherepre-
sentation of diverseidentitiesandpointsof view.Thus,theyaddressissues,
andprovideforcommunities
effiibitcollections, onceconsidered peripheral
to themainstream museum.Suchmuseums havebecomevehiclesto affirm
andarticulate newformsofidentityandcommunity, butalsositesofconflict
andcontest,wheredifferentgroupsbattleoverappropriate and
definitions
representations.l2
Sincethe 1960stherehasbeena risingtensionbetweenthe roleof the
museumas a templeor asa forum.Voicesof dissenttowardthetraditional
roleandthemodesofdisplay uponwhichmainstream museums havehistor-
icallyreliedhaveemerged from the American civil movement,
rights femi-
nistandminority groups,minority artists,and museum and
scholars profes-
sionals.Criticshavequestioned the traditionalmuseum's tendencytowards
Eurocentric practices of representation, elite,andits
its focuson a cultural
failureto provideequalopportunities forminorities.13
Intheprocess,somemainstream museums haveattempted to restructure
Oneoften-cited
theireffiibits. attempt tore-present history
cultural isthe1992
exhibition Fluffsand FeathersattheRoyal Ontario Museum inCanada.l4 The
curators
effiibit's employed ironicdisplays to demonstrate thewaysthattyp-
icalexhibition techniques reflectanddefineNativeculture.Similarly, Anita
Herle'sexhibition of theTorresStraight Islanders in theUniversityof Cam-
bridgeMuseum putondisplay notonlythesocialrelations andbeliefsystems
of the Islanders, butalsothoseof the anthropologists whostudiedthem.l5

Emergenceand Divergence of EthrzicMuseums

Asmanymainstream museums totransform

havestruggled fromexclusive
templestoinclusivepublicforums, newtypesofmuseums havealsoemerged.
Overthelastthreedecades,therehasbeenatremendous riseintheU.S.and
Canadaof ethnicmuseums-institutions formedby membersof ethnic
groupsto collect,exhibit,andinterpretthehistory,art,andcultureof their
communities.l6Accordingto a report
research publishedbytheAmexican As-
of Museums,
sociation 26 percentof the new museums scheduled to open

12. Steven Dubin, Displaysof Power:MemoryandAmnesia in theAmericanMuseum(New

York:New YorkUniversity Press, 1999); Edward Linenthal and Tom Engelhardt,HistoryWars.
13. Moira Simpson, MakingRepresentations.
14. Henrietta Riegel, "Intothe Heart of Irony."
15. Anita Herle, "TorresStraitIslanders."
16. KarenMaryDavalos,"ExhibitingMestizaje:The Poetics and Experienceof MexicanFine
Arts Center Museum,"in Latinosin Museums: A HeritageReclaimed,ed. A. Rios Bustamante
and C. Marin(Malabar,Fla.:KreigerPublishers,1998); MoiraSimpson,Making Representatzons.
54 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

between1998and2000weremuseums onspecializedtopicssuchasethnic
orculturalffiemes.17
Theethnicmuseum hasbeenhailedbyadvocates asanalternativesiteof
culturalproduction andasa promoter
andexhibition of ethniccultureand
According
identity. to E. BarryGaither, of theMuseum
director of theNa-
tioIlalCenterofAfrican
AmericanArtists,
Culturallyspecificmuseumshavea uniqueroleto playin forginga newAmer-
ica.Grounded withparticular
inhistoricheritagesassociated they
communities,
provideintimatemodelsforthepartnership anddialoguewhichmuseumsand
theircommunities maydevelop.Responding to social,cultural,andeducational
needs7thesemuseumsparficipate simultaneouslyto afBrrn ie wori andcon-
tributionsof minoritypeoples.l8
Although theethnicmuseum is seenbymanyasa keeperof ethnicandcul-
turaltraditions-asa meansforrecalling whathasbeenlostandretaining a
senseof culturalidentitythatis differentfromthe mainstream-critics
chargethattheethnicmuseum toooftenassumes anauthoritativestanceto-
wardscultural authenticitythatleavesnoroomforchange.18 Whereas oppo-
nentshavelamented thethreatof cultural balkanizationandfragmentation
acrossracial,ethnic,orclasslines,20advocates haveseentheethnicmuseum
asamediator betweentheethniccommunity andthelarger Bymak-
public.21
ingethnicculturesorhistories visibleto a largeraudience,theethnicmu-
seumis educating thelargercityaudienceandbnngingto themainstream
thecultureit represents. Importantly7 byestablishing somethingasperma-
nentandvisibleasa museum7 theethniccultureis conveying themessage of
comingof age;it is givinganevidenceof itspermanence andstability.
Another reasonfortheflourishing ofethnicmuseums hasbeenthewide-
spread sentiment amongethniccommunities thatmainstream museums have
marginalized andexcluded '<othercultures. KarenDavalos poignantlysum-
marizes thisfeeling:"Thepublicmuseum doesnotcollectourhistonesand
particularly
e2mperiences, notourart.Itdoesnotcategorize ourcultural
prod-
uctsas'American7 butmarginalizes them,evenplacingtheminthehallways
andothermakeshift galleries."22
Thepreponderance of ethnicmuseums canalsobe partlyattributedto
theproliferationof cultural andethnictouxism. Thus,aswe willsee in the
casestudies,someeffinicmuseums anincreasing
alsoaspireto attract flow
oftounstswhoseektodiscover howtheirdiaspora havefaredintheforeign

17 Citedin ReubenDe Leon,"Cultural in EthnicLosAngelesNeighborhoods"

Institutions
(unpublishedpaper,UCLADepartment of UrbanPlanning,1999).
18. Gaither,quotedin Moi}aSimpson,Making 75.
Representations,
19. GuillermoGomez-Pena. "TheOtherVanguard," in MuseumsandCommanities,65-75.
20. JohnHigham,"TheEthnicHistoncalSocietyin Changing ofAmerican
Times,"Journal
EthnicHistory,13,no.4 (Winter,1994):31-44.
21. LarryGordon,aAsMinorities Thrive,So I)o EthnicMuseums," LosAngelesTimes,
4
May,1998.
Mestizaje,"
22. KarenDavalos,'sExhibiting 40.
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 55

land,butalsoto get a flavorof the earlytwenty-first centurymulticultural

city.
Despitethetransnational tiesthatsomeethnicmuseumsmaybe ableto
buildandtheglobalaspirations thatthelargerof themmayhave,themajor-
ityof ethnicmuseums areprimarily grounded in localcommunities. Ethnic
museums existwithina localcontext,atthesametimethattheyareexpected
to promoteandcreatea specificcultural context.Theyareoftenvestedwith
alargerrolethanthatofpurveyors ofethnicculture.Ascommunity-based in-
theyarefrequently
stitutions, expectedto contribute to community building
andsustainability.Theirmissionis oftendescribed and
associal,educational,
inaddition
political, tocultural.Attimes,ethnicmuseums areevendescribed
as "advocates forethniccommunities, oftenbecomingdirectlyinvolvedin
community development, politicalaction,andprotest.'23 Thus,ethnicmu-
seums are expectedto provide a new form of community space,atthesame
timethattheyareassuming a greater variety of functions thanmainstream
museums.
Although ethnicmuseums emergedpartlyin reaction to themisrepresen-
tationandexclusion ofmainstream museums7 thereality isoftenmoreblurred,
withmainstream museums oftenstriving to incorporate multiplevoicesand
ethnicmuseums sometimes exercising top-down planning anddecisionmak-
ing.Asourcasestudieswillindicate, ethnicmuseums varyconsiderablyinsize,
scope,andfinancial status.Theirroleoftenspansbothmodelsoftempleand
forum,andatthesametime,encompasses entirelynewresponsibilities.
Inthenextsectionwewillexplorethevariedattributes ofethnicmuseums
in LosAngelesandtheprocesses bywhichtheydefineandpreserveethnic
cultureandidentityandengender community involvement.

Ethnic Museumsin Los Angeles

TheLosAngelesregionis hometo literally hundreds institu-

of cultural
tions,whichpursuea diversearrayof activitiesandagendas.24 Ofthesemany
wehaveidentified
institutions, twentythatoperateasethnicmuseums (Table
of a museumas "ethnic'wasbasedon the museums
1). Ourclassification
statedmissionandpracticeto represent, exhibit,andinterpret the history,
artvandcultureof a specificsubpopulation in thecity,distinguishablefrom
the restof the American societyby its ethnicity(e.g.Italian-,Ukrainian-,
Japanese-,Chinese-,Korean-, Filipino-American), race(e.g.African Amer-
ican,Latino,Asian,American Indian) orreligion(e.g.Jewish).25

23. Ibid.,41.
24. See SusanCiccoti."HighArtin L.A.:A Previewof AAM'sAnnualMeetingCity,"in Mu-
seum News (January/February,1998)andthe GreaterLos AngelesArts ResourceDirectory (4th
ed.) (LosAngeles:ArtsResourcesandTechnicalServices,Inc, 1999).
25. Weshouldnotethat"whiteness'7 or ratherlackthereofwasnot a determiningfactorin
Ascanbe seen in Tablel, someof theseinstitutions
of a museumas "ethnic."
ourclassification
56 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

Acarefulexamination ofthemission, scope,andfacilities ofthesetwenty

museums revealsthattheperception of theethnicmuseumas a homoge-
neousconstruct is a myth.Although allethnicmuseums aspireto highlight
anddisplay elementsofoneormoreethniccultures, theyvaryconsiderably
in thewaystheyperceivetheirrolein thecommunity, thecity,oreventhe
nation.Thesemuseums rangeextensively insizeandfacilities aswell.Some
aremodestinstitutions, occupying neighborhood storefronts andstruggling
to survive.
Othersarewell-established museums withconsiderable budgets
andfacilities.Ethnicmuseum visitorsalsorangefrommembers ofthelocal
neighborhood andsurrounding community to a nationalandevenglobal
audience.
Tobetterunderstand theaforementioned differences,wewillfirsthigh-
lighthowthetwentyethnicmuseums describe theirmission, scope,androle.
Wecontrast theirmissionstatements withthoseof the sixmostrenowned
mainstream museums in LosAngeles: theJ. PaulGettyMuseum, the Los
AngelesCountyMuseum- of Art(LACMA), the National HistoryMuseum
of LosAngelesCounty,the Museumof Contemporary Art(MOCA), the
Huntington Library andArtCollection, andtheAutryMuseum ofWestern
Heritage.Inthenextsectionwepresenttheresultsof a contentanalysis of
thewrittenmissionstatements ofthesemuseums. Following this,wereport
onthreeparticular casestudiesofethnicmuseums asindicative oftheirrange
andscope.
Forthecontentanalysis we generated aninventory of thetwentyethnic
museums, drawing fromtheGreaterLos AngelesArts Reso?4rceDirectory.26
Frommuseum websites,contact withtheinstitutions themselves, andsitevis-
its,wecompiled eachinstitution's missionstatement andexpressed function
andscope(typeof activities, roles),andmeansof representation andexhibi-
tion.Thecontentanalysis allowed ustocontrast andcompare thescope,goals,
functions,
androlesandintendedimpactof ethnicmuseums vis-a-visother
ethnicandmainstream museums. Theshortcoming of thisanalysis wasthat
it wasbasedontheperspectives of museum founders, curators, andboards,
anddidnotrevealtheperceptions ofthevisitors. Assuch,thecontentanaly-
siswasnotableto measure theimpactandeffectiveness ofthemuseum mis-
siononthecommunity. However, although mission statements areoftenex-
pressionsof institutionalideals,writteninpartto satisfyprospective donors,
theiranalysis doesprovidea windowintothegoalsandambitions of these
institutions.
Togainmoredetailedinformation aboutthespectrum of rolesandfunc-
tionsofethnicmuseums, wefocusedonthreeparticular museums inLosAn-
geles:TheMuseum inBlackinLeimert Park, theJapanese American National

representandcelebratethecultureandhistoryof specificwhitegroups,whicharedistinguished
fromthe whiteAnglo-Saxon populationby theirethnicbackground (e.g.Italian,Ukrainian)
or
religion(Jewish).
26. GreaterLos AngelesArts ResourceDirectory.
 ACTIVITIES,
OF FUNCTIONS)
TABLE1. SURVEY O
ANDMODESOF REPRESENTATIO

Functions

Commanity Entertairzn?en
Museum Service/ Education Research and
Institution Display Center Prograrns Center Perforrnance

AfricanAmerican
FirefighterMuseum x
BlackInventions
MuseumInc. x
California
Afncan
AmericanMuseum x x x x x
ChineseAmencan
MuseuminLosAngeles x x x x
ItalianCultural
Institute x x x x
JapaneseAmerican
NationalMuseum x x x x x
KoreanAmerican
Museum x x x
LatinoMuseum
of History,ArtandCulture x x
LosAngeles
Museumof the Holocaust x x
Table1 continued
Museum in
Black x x x
Museum of
AfricanAmericanArt x
Museum of
Latin Amencan Art x x x
Museum of
Tolerance x x x
PacificAsia Museum x x x
PhilippineAmexican
National Museum x x x x
Pico RiveraCenter
for the Arts x
Skirball
CulturalCenter x x x x
Southwest Museum:
Native Cultures
oftheAmericas x x x
UkrainianArt
Center x x x x
WattsTowersArtCtr. x x x x
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANCELES . 59

Museum in LittleTokyo, andtheMuseum of LatinAmerican ArtintheEast

VillageArtsDistnctof LongBeach.Eachcasestudyexamines themotivesof
curators,theirdefinition oftheirpublicoraudienceX themission andperceived
roleof themuseumin thepreservation anddisplayof ethniccultureandin
theproduction of cultural identity,andtheperceived roleof theethnicmu-
seumascommunity institution.
Thecasestudiesaddresssomeof theshort-
comingsof thecontentanalysis andaddanempirical dimension to illustrate
morefullythevariousformsthatethnicmuseums takeandthediverseman-
datesthateachseeksto fulfill.Wecarriedouteachof thecasestudiesbased
onsitevisits,interviews withmuseumpersonnel) anda surveyof documents
suchas newspaper articles,museumpressreleases) exhibition reviews,and
themuseum's annuakreports.
Acarefulreading andanalysis ofthemissionstatements ofthetwentyeth-
nicmuseums in LosAngelesclearlyrevealsthattheirperceived rolecannot
be simplyclassified inoneofthetwopolarcategories of"temple" or"forum."
AsTable2 indicates, we haveidentifiedfiverolesthatthe ethnicmuseum
mightprepareitselfto playas (1)advocate of a particularculture,(2)inter-
preterof thecultureandhistoryof theethnicgroup,(3)zoneof contactbe-
tweenthe ethniccultureandthecultureof others,(4)keeperof ethnictra-
ditions,and(5)siteofcontest.Theserolesarenotmutually exclusive, asethnic
museums oftenaspireto oraredrawnto playmorethanonerole.
Thecontentanalysis showsthatmostethnicmuseums perceive themselves
as advocates fortheirculture,placesto promote, celebrate,andrecognize a
particularcultural heritage.Theirgoalistoinstillprtdeinthemembers ofthe
ethnicgroup.Sothe Museum in Blackwantsto <'teach theyoungerAfrican-
Americans tobeproudofwhoyouareX whereyouarefrom,andwhatyouare
about." Additionally, ethnicmuseums feelresponsible to developa senseof
appreciation in the generalpublicforthe ethnicgroup's achievements and
contribution to society.Forexample,theCalifornia African AmencanMu-
seumwishesto "enhance the public's
knowledge of theAfrican American's
contribution to society." ThePhilippine American NationalMuseumseeks
"toappreciate FilipinoAmericans' contributionsasanintegral partofourna-
tions heritage." The ChineseAmerican Museumwantsto celebrate<'the
achievements of thesepeoplewhohavecontnbuted to thedynamic anddi-
versecommunity in Southern California."
Ina societythathasprivileged the
achievements of a majority culture,suchdescriptions revealtheneedfeltby
ethniccommunities to establishthesignificanceof theirachievements, cele-
bratetheirhentageandshowthewaysthatit shouldbeintegrated inhistory
andsociety.
Anethnicmuseumoftenplaystheroleoftheinterpreter of a specificcul-
tureandhistory.Itseekstoinformandeducatea largerpublicaboutthecul-
ture,developitsawareness aboutmatters of ethnicheritage andhistory,and
interpret andtranslate ffiecultureandhistoryto outsiders. Forexample, the
African-American Firefighter Museum"extends aninvitation" to thepublic
"tolearnmoreaboutthe courageand dedication" of African-American
60 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

TABLE2. CONTENTANALYSIS
OF MISSIONSTATEMENTS
OFTWENTY
ETHNICMUSEUMS
IN LOSANGELES27

Verbs Nouns MuseumRole

Promote 5 Contribution 6
Celebrate 2 Appreciation 3
Recognize 1 Achievement 2 Museumas advocate
Advance 1 Pride 1 of ethnicculture
Occurrences 9 12 21
Understand 5 Education 6
Interpret 3 Awareness 1 Museumasintepreter
Inform 1 of cultureandhistory
Occurrences 9 7 16
Share 2 Diversity 3
Exchange 1 Forum/publicarena 3
Bridge 1 Interaction 2
Outreach 1
Understanding Museumas zone
betweencultures 1 of contact
Occurrences 4 10 14
Preserve 5 Heritage 7 Museumaskeeper
Remember 1 Tradition 1 of ethnictraditions
Occurrences 6 8 14
Challenge 2 Prejudice 1
Confront 1 Bias 1 Museumassite
Racism 1 of contest
Occurrences 3 3 6

firefighters.The CaliforniaAfncanAmericanMuseum"tellsthe storyof

AfncanAmericancontnbutionsto worldhistoryandculture."The Chinese
AmericanMuseum"definesandinterprets theChineseAmericans' roleines-
tablishingthe California
community."
Themissionstatementsof manyethnicmuseumsrevealthattheyperceive
ieir roleaszonesof contactthatshareandexchange informationabouttheir
ownandothercultures,br7dge diversepublics,anddevelap anunderstarlding
between cultures.Theydisplaytheirculturalheritageas a meansof recogniz-
ingtheevustingculturaldiversity,
andrepresenttheexperiences oftheirgroup
asone of manyforcesiat shapebothlocalandglobalculture.So the Korean
AmericanMuseumaspiresto "serveasa dynamicforcein bndgingthewidest
arrayof generationalaudiencesaswellasethniccommunities.>' TheJapanese

27. Numbersindicatethe numberof missionstatements

thatcontainedtheword.
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 61

American National Museum strivestoprovide "avoiceforJapanese Americans

anda forumthatenablesallpeopletoewloretheirownheritage andculture.>'
Ethnicmuseums alsoappear askeepers offfieirtraditionandheritage, feel-
ingresponsible to preserve7 document, andkeepalivetheart,history,expe-
riences,andcultureof theirgroups.Asinstitutions, theyarethereto recall
andrepresent buriedhistories, thusfillingthesilencespeIpetuated bymain-
streammuseums.In doingso, ethnicmuseumsaresometimes presenting
themselves assitesof contest,whereprejudice, biB,bigotry,andracismare
exposed,confronted, andchallenged. Ethnicmuseumeffiibitsoftenforcea
forgetfulpublicto remernber painfulinjustices encroached upontheethnic
group.According to its missionstatement, theJapanese American National
Museum"believes in theimportance of remembering ourhistoryto better
guardagainst theprejudice thatthreatens libertyandequality inademocratic
society.7'
TheMuseum oftheHolocaust wants"history to comealiveformu-
seumvisitors" so thatsocietydoesnotforgettheeventsthatledto andfol-
lowedtheunbearable tragedy oftheHolocaust. SImilarly,theChineseAmer-
icanMuseum seeks'<to bringtolifethechallenges'> encountered bytheearly
ChineseAmericans, whilethe Museumin Blackremindsitsvisitorsof the
harshinjustices of slaveryandthehorrorof Iynching.
Asimilar contentanalysis ofthemissionstatements ofsixmainstream mu-
seumsin LosAngelesshowedsomedistinctdifferences intheirroles(Table
3).Themostprominent rolesthatthesemuseums perceive themselves asplay-
ingareaskeepersandenhancers of knowledge andintexpreters of artand
history.Likeethnicmuseums7 mainstream museums alsoseethemselves as
advocates. fIowever, whereas ethnicmuseums seektopromote andcelebrate
a specificethnicculture,mainstream museums asserttheirexpertise andau-
thorityin broadareasof art,history,andscholarship. Forinstance,MC)CA
"identifiesandsupports themostsignificant andchallenpng artof itstime."
TheGettystrivesto <'educate a diversepublicthrough. . . worksofartofthe
highestquality." The Huntington LibraryandArtCollectiondrawson its
legacyofrenowned
<< collections"andoffers<'its extraordinary resources tothe
public."Indeed,mainstream museums expectto attract "thewidestpossible
audience toenjoyandvalue" theirresources (Natural HistoryMuseum). The
missionstatements of thesixmuseums includea numberof references to a
broad,homogenized, andgeneralized public.Oneencounters references to
the"interwoven contributions ofmanycultures'> (Huntington Library andArt
Collection) orthe'<interwoven historiesandmythsoftheAmerican Westand
itsdiversepeople7' (AutryMuseum). Finally,themissionstatements ofmain-
streammuseums(presumably reflecting thesentiments of theirboards)did
notincludespecificreferences tocontroversy ordispute,despitethefactthat
someof thesemuseumshavein thepastbeensitesof contestation by sup-
portingeffiibitsandartwhichchallengeconventionalcanonsandnorms.
Asexpected,thecontentanalysisshowedthatthebiggestdifferencebetween
mainstreamand ethnicmuseumsis that the latterare firmlyrootedwithin
specificethniccommunities.Althoughoulyfourmuseums(KoreanAmerican
62 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

TABLE3. CONTENTANALYSISOF MISSIONSTATEMENTSOF SIX

MAINSTREAMMUSEUMSIN LOS ANGELES

Verbs Nouns MuseumRole

Preserve 4 1
Repository(ofknowledge)
Educate 3 Learninglaboratory 1
Reveal 2 Forumforideas 1
Enhance 1 Exchangeof ideas 1 Museumas keeper
Enrich 1 Discovery 1 andenhancer
Explore 1 Investigation 1 of knowledge
Occurrences 12 6 18
InteIpret 1 Interpretation 4 Museumas interpreter
Understand 1 Understanding 3 of artandhistory
Occurrences 2 7 9
Support 2 Haven
Protect 1 (forscholarship) 1
Foster 1
Promote 1 Museumas advocate
Encourage 1 of art/history/scholarship
Occurrences 6 1 7
Inspire 3
Delight 1 Museumas site
Enjoy 1 anddelight
of inspiration
Occurrences 5 5
Engage 2 Connection 1 Museumas site of contact
Link 1 between(1)pastandpresent,
Connect 1 and(2) artistsandpublic
Occurrences 4 1 5

Museum,Museumin Black,Ukrainian ArtCenter,andWattsTowersArtCen-

identifythemselvesascommunity
ter)explicitly centers,manyothersstriveto
be focalpointsforthe communityandalsoprovidecommunityservicessuch
asmeetingspacesandeducational programs.Ofthefourinstitutionsmentioned
above,twohaveemergeddirectlyoutof thephysicalneighborhoods in which
theyarelocated.Museumin Blackoccupiesa smallstorefront alongthe main
streetin thepredominantly AfricanAmericanneighborhood of LeimertPark,
whereastheWattsTowersArtCenter,foundedin 1956byneighborhood res-
idents,organizes"artsexhibitionsandperformances of specialinterestto the
Wattscommunity." The Ukrainian ArtCenterorganizestheatricalperform-
ances,arteducation,andcraftfairs,in additionto displayingUkrainian arts
andcrafts.In additionto its promotionof KoreanandKoreanAmericanart
andculture,theKoreanAmericanMuseumassumesa strongcommunity ser-
vicerole,offeringadvocacy, health,andfamilyservices,andyouthprograms.
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 63

Manyethnicmuseums consider education asa centralcomponent oftheir

mission.Fifteenmuseums offereducational programs fortheyouth,aswell
ascoursesonvisualandperforming arts,language, cooking, andcrafts.28 Some
museums, suchastheJapanese American National Museum andtheMuseum
in Black,offerguidedtoursof LosAngelesthatemphasize ethnicplacesand
history.Additionally) ninemuseums containresearch centersandarchives.
Manyofferlecturesonethnichistoryandculture,andatleasttwomuseums,
theJapanese American National Museum andtheChinese American Museum
in LosAngeles,haveongoingoralhistoryprojects.
Ethnicmuseums notonlyseektoeducate,butalsotoentertain. Sevenmu-
seumsofferentertainment programs that share ethnic culture through mu-
sic,dance,andtheater.Stillothers,suchasthe Museum of LatinAmerican
Art,offerintroductions to popularethnicculturesuchastangolessonsand
tequilatasting.Entertainment programs areoftenconsidered to contextual-
ize museumdisplays, suchasattheMuseum of LatinAmerican Art,"where
visitorscanenjoyprograms andentertainment thatstimulates thesenses,in-
spiresthe intellect,andgivesthe arta culturalcontext." Of course,enter-
tainment programs aremorethanjustmeansto promotecultural awareness
andappreciation, butalsoawayto raisemoneyfortheseoften-struggling in-
stitutions.Infact,tenmuseums alsoattainsomecommercial function, often
intheformof a museumstore,giftshop,orrestaurant. A fewmuseums also
sellorrentsomeof theobjectson display.
Despitetheimportance of programs andservices,a primary functionfor
ethnicmuseums is thedisplayandinterpretation of ethnicart,history,and
culture.Unlikethemainstream museum,however,art,history,andculture
areofteninseparable isnethnicmuseumdisplays. Fourteen oftheethnicmu-
seumscollectanddisplay cultural Museum
artifacts. exhibits address bothhis-
toricalandcontemporary aspectsof theethniccultureandaresituatedatall
geographic levelsfromtheneighborhood tothenationandaround theglobe.
Curators organize exhibits utilizingcultural andmemorabilia
artifacts inava-
rietyof mediums including sculpture, painting,andporcelain; cultural prac-
ticesfromFengshuito tango;music;cuisine;andarchitecture anddesign.
Cultural displays area meansto promoteawareness and,moreimportantly,
revealcultural adaptation orinvention. Thus,theSkirball Cultural Centerof-
fersvisitorsa chanceto "discover howtheJewsmetthechallenges of disper-
sionand adapted to different cultures [and]how ancestral visions and values
havebeenretainedand transformed in America." Complementing cultural
exhibits,thedisplayof grouphistoryandheritageis perhapsa centralthrust
ofthemajority ofthemuseums. Fourteenmuseums display culturalheritage
usinga varietyof historical documents, photographs, material culture, oral
histories,andfamilyartifacts. Exhibits explore a range of subjects including
occupational historiesandindividual andgroupaccomplishments.
Finally,fifteenmuseums displaythe workofethnicartiststhrough exhibi-

28. See Table1.

64 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

tionsof bothexperimental andtraditionalsubjects including painting,

pho-
tography, andavariety ofothermedia.Exhibits highlightbothoriginal pieces
andcontemporary reproductions oftraditionalartsandcrafts. Thefocusmay
beonlocalartists, suchasatthePicoRivera CenterfortheArts,oronanin-
ternational context, suchasattheMuseum ofLatinAmerican Art.Manyeth-
nicmuseums perceive artasa "communicator ofculture" (Korean American
Museum) anda medium to displaygrouphistoryandculture.
Wepurposefully selectedthreeinstitutions thatillustratetherangeofeth-
nicmuseums intheLosAngelesarea.Thethreemuseums theMuseum in
Black,theJapanese American National Museum (JANM), andtheMuseum
ofLatinAmerican Art(MoLAA)display aspectsofethnicculturebymem-
bersof theirrespective community, butvarywidelyin theirmission,func-
tionsnandroles.Theyalsovaryconsiderably intermsofscale(bothinthesize
oftheirresources andoccupied space),
ranging fromsmall(Museum inBlack),
to medium(MoLAA), to large(JANM). Twoof themuseums (Museum in
BlackandJANM) aresituated withinethnicneighborhoods, butthelocation
of thethird(MoLAA) is notparticularlyassociated withtheethniccommu-
nityit is representing.
Museumin Black. Fornearly twentyyears,theMuseum in Blackhasex-
hibitedAfrican andAfrican American art,history,andculturefroma small
two-room storefront intheLosAngelesneighborhood of Leimert Park.The
museum is theproductof theworkof oneman,BrianBreye,knowninfor-
mallyasthe"Mayor of LeimertPark," whohasdedicated hislifeto thecol-
lectionanddisplay of African andAfrican American artandmemorabilia. A
few milessouthwest of downtown, the Museumin Blackhaswitnessed
LeimertPark's neighborhood commercial district
evolveintoanAfrocentric
cultural centerthatincludesa primebluesspot,artgalleries, performance
spaces,giftshops,andrestaurants. Neighborhood andcityresidents comprise
themainaudience of themuseum, whichalsoattracts visitorsfromaround
theworld.Primarily a localinstitution,
themuseum hasalsosenttemporary
exhibits toothermuseums inCalifornia,
Louisiana, Texas,andPennsylvania.
Reminiscent oftheearly"cabinets ofcuriosity,"29themuseum exposesvis-
itorsto a largecollection of objects.Underglass,overhead, andunderfoot,
thefrontroomcontains ceremonial African masks, shrines,woodsculptures,
andcostumes. Thewallsarelinedwithoddweapons andfarmtools.Rusted
andwornslaveshackles andotherparaphernalia usedtodetain,control, and
torture produce ajarring contrastwiththereligious artifactsandworksofart.
Atthecenterof thisapparent disorderis a spacewithchairsclearedfordis-
cussion.In thebackroom,almosthiddenfromsight,is possibly oneof the

29. The"cabinets of curiosity"

housedthe treasurescollectedby the nobilityandscholars
of the latesixteenthandseventeenthcenturies.Objectshaphazardly coveredeveryinchof the
roomandwerechosento capturethe knownworldin miniature. See OliverImpeyandArthur
MacGregor, eds.,The Origins of Museums:The Cabinetof Curiositiesin Sixteenthand Seven-
teenth Century Europe (Oxford: OxfordUniversity
Press,1985).
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 65

largestandmostdiversecollections ofblackmemorabiliain thecountry. Iron-

icallycontrasting thecabinets' display oftrophies fromexoticlands,theroom
usesmaterial cultureto portray a dismalsideof American history.Ranging
fromJimCrowto thepresent,a startling arrayof artifacts is on displayin-
cludingproducts,advertisements) dolls,andfigurinesthatdepictAfrican
Americans indemeaning andracistways.Photographs ofIynchings standside
bysidestereotypical commercial mascots suchasAuntJemima andUncleBen.
Thisdisturbing andoverwhelming collectionisjuxtaposed tohistorical figures
andAmerican heroesfromFrederick Douglass to Martin LutherKing,Jr.In
addition,placards explain inventions fromtherefrigerated railcartothepen-
cilsharpener patentedbyAfrican Americans.
TheMuseum in Blackfulfillsa numberof functions listedinTable1. For
example, themuseumoperatesasaninformal community centerandserves
asa spaceforspecialevents.Itprovides toursto students, academics, church
andtouristgroups,andevenpoliceofficers. Additionally,themuseum hasan
educational function.Usingtheblackmemorabilia didactically, themuseum
attempts toteachofficershowhistory informs contemporary racerelations and
provides potential toolsto improve police/community interaction. Itscentral
educational technique isto allowthevisitorcloseinspection ofitsartistic and
historical objects,thuspurposefully puttingthe historyof racismandex-
ploitation in thevisitor7sface.In ourinterview, Breyeexplained that"when
youcomehereyoucansmellthe art,youcantouchtheart,youcangetup
close.Whenyou go to mostmuseumsyou canhavea tendencyto look
through. . . plexi-glassyoucan?t touFch it,youcan'tfeelit,youcan'tsmellit."30
According to Breye,themissionofthemuseum istoeducateandinformboth
the localcommunity anda widerpublicof American historyandculture
through thepreservation anddisplay ofAfrican American cultureandhistory.
Aboveall,themuseum considers itselftobe"alearningtool . . . complimentary
to peoplewhowantto understand otherpeople.''3l
Themuseum alsoplaystheroleofan"advocate" promoting African Amer-
icancultural heritageandseekingto instilla senseof appreciation initsvisi-
torsof the artisticandpoliticalcontributions andachievements of African
Americans throughits displayof blackinventors, abolitionists, civilrights
figures,andAfncanart.In addition, themuseumcontainsa commercial as-
pectatypicalto mostmuseums manyof itsAfricanartpiecesareforsale
andarecontinually rentedforusein moviesandcommercials.
TheMuseum in Blackcanbeviewedasan"interpreter ofcultureandhis-
tory"aswellasa "siteofcontest." Artifacts ofabjectionfortheAfrican Amer-
icancommunity aredisplayed fordidactic purposes. According to Breye:
Americanshavea tendencyto hide certainthings.Whatwe need to do is ex-
posethemandlet the peoplesee andunderstandwherethe historyis, whatit's

30. Brian Breye, Museum in Black,interviewby the authors,Los Angeles, Calif. 30 January
2002.
31. Ibid.
66 * THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

about,howit cameabout,whobroughtit. Weneed to understand thateven

thoughit'snotpleasant,it'snotglamorous, it is a sadchapterin Amencanhis-
tory,butit needsto be seen,it needsto be spokenabout,it needsto be putout
to the youngerpeopleso thattheycanunderstand, maybeperhapswhattheir
grandparents, theirgreat-grandparentsandtheirparentshavegonethroughto
makeit necessaryfor themto obtainthe education,andffie moneysandthe
gratuitiesin life.32
TheMuseum inBlackis animportant cultural institution
in LosAngeles, yet
likemanyethnicmuseums, itisconstantlyplagued byfinancial
difficulties
and
hasreceived littlefinancialsupportfromthecityorstate.Financial woesand
inability
to payitsrentforcedthemuseum to closeitsdoorstemporarily in
July2002.Itwasabletoreopenthanks toaprivate $20,000donation. During
its briefclosure,an editorialin the Los Angeles Times summedup the
significance
androleofthemuseum forthecity:"TheMuseum inBlackfunc-
tionedasa community livingroom.... Thisis notjusta museum, notjusta
store,butanirreplaceable andcriticallyimportant spacethatshouldbemain-
tainedatanycost."33
Japanese American National Museum. Located downtown in the Little
Tolyohistoric district,
theJapanese American National Museum (JANM) is
theonlymuseum intheU.S.thatexplicitlyfocuses ontheexperiences ofJapa-
neseAmericans. It housesthelargestcollection of JapaneseAmencan arti-
factsintheworld.TheJANM, whichopeneditsdoorsin 1992,is theresult
ofanunlikely coalitionbetweenaLittleTokyo realestatedeveloper andJapa-
neseAmerican World WarIIveterans. Ofalltheethnicmuseums inLosAn-
geles,JANMis byfarthemostprominent andcomprehensive inscope.The
museum hasthelargestbudgetaswell,receiving generousgrantsfromthe
CityofLosAngeles, theNational Endowment fortheHumanities, theSmith-
sonianInstitute, SonyCorporation, andtheU.S.Department of Defenseto
raise$65millionforitsrecently completed expansion.
Whereas the Museum in Blackutilizesjusttworooms,JANMoccupies
100,000squarefeetandtwobuildings. Someexhibitions chronicle thehis-
toryof Japanese Americans suchas"Common Ground: TheHeartof Com-
munity," whichfeatures Isseiartifacts
anda fullyrestored barracks,fromthe
HeartMountain concentration campin Wyoming. Otherexhibitions docu-
mentlocal,interethnic historyorneighborhood life,suchas"Fora Greener
Tomorrow," whichhighlights Japanese American andothergardeners in
Southern California,and"Boyle Heights:ThePowerofPlace"whichtraces
themulti-ethnic rootsofa LosAngelesneighborhood.
JANM provides avariety ofeducation andentertainment programs, offers
lecturesonethnichistoryandculture7 andsponsors walkingtoursoftheLit-
tleTokyo neighborhood. Themuseum alsooffersavariety ofclassesandwork-
shopsonJapanese craftsandmusicandsponsors traditional
ceremonial per-

32. Ibid.
33. "Museumin BlackFalls into Red,"Los Angeles Times,S July2002.
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES * 67

formances andactivities.Themuseum maintains anexpansive archiveandhas

a research library,theater,gardens, andmuseumstore.JANMpursuescol-
laborations andjointeffiibitions withotherinstitutions. Thescopeofthemu-
seum is national,but its reach is also as
international, it sponsorsprograms,
events,andexhibitions around the world.
JANM's missionstatement locatesthemuseumin mostof thecategories
outlinedinTable2.Themuseum functionsasa"keeper oftradition"through
its manyexhibitions thatchronicle theJapanese American experience from
concentration camplifeto gardening, to participationin amateur andpro-
fessional sportsleagues.It is alsoan"advocate" asit seeksto highlight Japa-
neseAmerican contributions toAmerican history.Usingitsvastcollectionof
Japanese American histoncal artifacts, andphotographs,
oralhistories, themu-
seumnotonlycapturesandpreserves hiddenhistories, butalsocelebrates
JapaneseAmerican culture.According to Directorof Community Affairs
NancyAraki,the museum"affirms andreeducates [visitors] aswellaspro-
videsa vehiclefor[thepublic]to say'Ohyeah,thatis American."'34
Initsmissionstatement, themuseum emphasizes thatitpreserves anddis-
playsthe art,culture,andhistoryof Japanese Americans to fosterdiversity
anda sharedunderstanding amongethnicgroups.Although itsfoundersini-
tiallyconceived ofJANMasaplaceto preserve Japanese American heritage,
the museumquicklyevolvedintoa sitethatnotonlyexploresthechanging
identityof Japanese Americans, butalsopromotes anunderstanding among
cultures. Thus,JANMalsoservesasa "contact zone,"a factthatis reflected
in the composition of its visitors(60percentarenotJapanese Americans).
JANM, through itsmanyprograms buildsbridgesamongeth-
andeffiibitions,
niccommunities andpromotesa visionof a multicultural LosAngeles.Ac-
cordingto Araki,
Whatwe'retellingis anAmerican storyandJapanese Americans don'tlivein
So,muchofourprogram
isolation. triestopointoutthepointsofin-
. . . always
betweenallpeople.That's
tersection different mu-
frombeinganethnic-specific
seumwhichcelebrates onlytheirthing.... Itisn'tabouthaving someone come
andlookatart,theJapanese American ina microscope
experience andthenin-
terpretingforus.... Itisn'tussaying, theJapanese
'<well, American experience
is thiswayandhowdoyoufitinthat."No . . . it'sdeveloping anunderstanding
of usbeingpeople.35
boaststhatit is the
MoLAA
The Museum of LatirlAmertcanArt(MoLAA).
onlymuseumin the WesternUnitedStatesthatexclusively presentscon-
temporaryLatinAmerican art.
Opened in 1996,themuseum is locatedinthe
newlyestablishedEastVillageArts of
District LongBeach. The museum's
skating
arehousedin a formerroller
andrestaurant
threegalleries rink,and

34. Nancy Araki, Director of Community Affairs, Japanese American National Museum,
interview by the authors, Los Angeles, Calif., 6 February 2002.
35. Ibid.
68 . THEPUBLICHISTORIAN

itsconference roomandeventsballroom occupya formersilentmoviestu-

dio. Mostof MoLAA's artwork comesfromthe privatecollectionof its
founder,Dr.RobertGumbiner. Unlikethemajority of ethnicmuseums in
thestudy,thefounder of themuseum doesnotcomefromtheethnicback-
ground thatisthefocusofthemuseum. Dr.Gumbiner isnotLatino; themu-
seumis,however, operated largelybyLatinos.
Themuseum's permanent "Latin
collection, American Artists:AContem-
poraryJourney," containsover140worksorganized according to country,
demonstrating thediversity ofartisticstylesandtraditions ofLatinAmerican
art,andreflecting diverse Inaddition,
Latinidentities. themuseum maintains
tworoomsfortemporary exhibitions.Recentdisplays haveincluded a series
of sketchesby Diego Riverarenderedin the 1920sand'<EIPoderde
Humanidad/ ThePowerof Humanity," anexhibition ofcontemporary Mex-
inavariety
icanartists ofmediums. Proceeds fromticketsalesfrom"ElPoder'?
willsupport theMexican RedCross.
Likemanyethnicmuseums, MoLAA operatesasa cultural center.The
museumalsosponsors a seriesof educational programs andevents.It reg-
ularlyconducts toursforstudentsandprovides work.shops inthevisualand
performing artsforadultsandchildren. Othereducational include
activities
children'ssummer artcampsandSpanish language courses. Themajonty of
MoLAA's educational programs complement its specialeventsandenter-
tainmentcalendar.For instance,the museumofferstangolessonsand
classesintequilatastlng andLatinAmerican cooking andhasheldLatinfash-
ionshows.Lecturesaregearedtowardpopularaspectsof LatirlAmerican
culturesuchasthehistoryof thePanama hat.Themuseumevenincludes
itsowncultural tourism department, MoLAATraveler,whichhasorganized
toursto sitesin LatinAmerica. MoLAA's restaurant) Viva, features Latin
American cuisine;its storecarriesa varietyof itemsfromfolkartto the
museum's owncoffee,<'MoLAA Blend."Appropriately, the MoLAA web-
sitepresents themuseum as"morethanjusta museum. Itis anexciting cul-
turalcenter. . . aplacewhere canenjoyprograms
visitors andentertainment
thatstimulates thesenses,inspirestheintellect,andgivesthearta cultural
context."
Through sucheventsandclasses,MoLAA appears asanupscalecultural
centergearedtowards thosewhoappreciate LatinAmerican artandculture,
ratherthantoLatinos specifically.Accordingto themuseum's directorofvis-
itorservices,themajority ofvisitorscomefromtheLongBeachandLosAn-
gelesareas.Roughly 50percentofitsvisitors arewhite,40percentareLatino,
and10percentareofotherracialbackgrounds.
MoLAAs statedmissionis "toeducatetheAmerican publicaboutcon-
temporary LatinAmerican artthrough theestablishment ofasignificantrep-
resentative permanent collectionandthepresentation of dynamic exhibi-
tions and relatedprograms.>7 The museumis especiallyinterestedin
promoting LatinAmerican artistswhomaybe wellknownin theirhome
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES * 69

country,butnotnecessarily in theU.S AsMoLAA MuseumDirectorGre-

gorioLukemaintains, "wespeakforthosewhohavenovoice,no biginsti-
tutionbehindthem.>>36 Thus,whereasthemuseumfitsintothecategoryof
<'interpreterof culture"it alsoassumestheroleof an'4advocate.>' Although
the museumprovidesarthistoryeducationthroughits exhibits,it doesso
notnecessarily to challengehistoriographiesorrevealhiddenhistories, but
to recognize thecontributions of LatinAmerican artiststothedevelopment
ofartmovements. Forinstance, speakingaboutarecentexhibition ofCuban
artists,Lukenotedthat'<presenting the showhasnothingto dowithpoli-
tics;its aout ourmission.I thinkit7S veryimportant to talkaboutthecul-
tureof Cuba.Youcan'tbe a LatinAmerican artmuseumtodaythatignores
someof the bestartproducedin the Americas. Cubanartdeservesto be
seen.'37MoLAA's education andentertainment programs arealsoinlinewith
theroleof4<advocate' astheycelebratethecultural diversity of LatinAmer-
icans,whilenot necessanlyventuringbeyondthe popularaspectsof the
culture.
MoLAA provides a spacefortheappreciation of LatinAmerican cultural
andartisticachievements. Somecurators areconcerned, however, thatthe
museum's selectionofdisplays isheavily
basedonitsfounder's personal tastes
andpreferences anddoesnotaccurately portrayLatinAmerican identity.A
curator we interviewed at MoLAA fearedthattheeffiibitionstell
averyconservative arthistory.... AndI don'tthinkit'stryingto getridof stereo-
types,I don'tthinkthereis anintentionto do so. I thinkthe opposite;it'sfeed-
ing those stereotypesthatall LatinAmericanartis supercolorfuland showy
and[onlydepicts]landscapesandsurrealism.... AndsometimesI believethat
if we continuedisplayingthe colorful,the figurative,
orthe surrealwe arefeed-
ing those stereotypes and we are diminishing the success and the level of pro-
fessionalismthat a lot of Latin AmericaIlartistsare achieving, not only in their
own countries but internationally.38

MoLAA's founderbeganhiscollection beforehe conceivedof the museum

andpurchased artwork according to hispersonaltasteandinvestment value,
ratherthanto represent LatinAmericans ln contemporaryart.Despitethe
museum's effortsto recognizethe diversityof LatinAmerican cultureand
identity)
thecollection is notwhollyrepresentativeof LatinAmerican artis-
ticproduction.Manyof thepiecesondisplayleanmoretowards touristim-
agesof LatinAmerica orromantic Latinscenesandavoidaddressing orde-
pictingsensitive
politicalissuessuchasimmigration orcontemporary Latino
stnlggles.
InthatsenseMoLAA avoidsassuming theroleofaplaceofcontest.

36. Gregorio Luke, cited in Suzanne Muchnic, '<Art,Bridging the Cuban Divide,'7Los Arz-
geles Times, 14 May 2000.
37. Ibid.
38. Anonymous curator, Museum of Latin AmericanArt, Long Beach, Calif., interview by
Carl Grodach, 11 March 2002.
-7^ 'rTTU T)TTT)T Tp ITTCwTfAT) T A XT
U * 111L 1 UVlJlt lllJlUlllA15

Conclusion

Thisstudywastriggered bytheobservation thatspecial-interest orethnic

museums constitute ahighproportion ofmuseums founded inrecentdecades.
Westartedourinvestigation undertheassumption thatthereis a cleardi-
chotomybetweensuchmuseums andmainstream museums. Although we
wereableto observedistinctdifferences in themissionstatements andas-
sumedrolesof thetwotypesof museums, wehavealsonoticedsimilarities.
Weconclude thatthestoryofethnicmuseums is morecomplex andnuanced
thanourinitialassumptions hadsuggested.
Wefoundthatethnicmuseums arenotmonolithic orhomogeneous enti-
tiesandthattheyoftentendtoprivilege different rolesandmissions. Although
allmuseums wanttobeperceived as"advocates," "keepers," and'<intexpreters'
ofculture,theydiffersignificantly inthetypesofadditional rolestheyassume,
inthewaystheyprivilege localorglobalaudiencest andintheirbottom-up or
top-down approach to decisionmaking.
Someethnicmuseums (usually thesmaller ones)arevestedin particular
neighborhoods andareprimarily localconstructs (e.g.Watts ArtCenter,Mu-
seuminBlack). Although thegeographic contextofsuchmuseums issmaller
thanthatofthemainstream orotherethnicmuseums, theirroleappears more
expansive,frequently assuming thecharacter ofcommunity andcultural cen-
terarldeducational facility.
Aswediscovered inourempincal study,theirfocus
hassometimes gazedawayfromthemasterpiece to encompass moremun-
danearticlesof the material cultureandeveryday lifeof theethnicneigh-
borhood. Oftenthesemuseums attempt to construct sitesof difference and
contest,wherethestatusquois questioned andchallenged. Suchmuseums
viewthemselves asantidotes to a cultural
hegemony thatprivileged national
or elitecultures.Theirdidacticandpolemical rolecansometimes be mis-
construed, however, aspromoting culturalbalkanization.
Otherethnicmuseums (usually thelargerones,suchasJANM,andthe
SkirballCultural Center)increasingly casttheirgazetothewholecityandto
globalaudiences. Indoingso,theyfindthemselves underthetensionofhav-
ingto reconcile thedifferent needsof localandglobalpublics.Oftenthese
museums trytopresentthemselves as"zones of contact," engaging indialog
thewiderangeof communities andcultures thatcomprise thecity7 thena-
tion,orglobe.Intheirattempt toreachalarger audience, theyresemble their
mainstream peers.InourcasestudyofMoLAA, wefoundthattheinstitution
hasattributesthatchallenge thedichotomy of"mainstream" vs."ethnic." How-
evernasitscurator indicates, MoLAA runstheriskofbeingperceived asslip-
pingintothe old-stylea "high-culture" mold,whichprivileges the tastesof
wealthy collectorsand"mainstream" audiences.
Ethnicmuseums alsotranscend thepolarity of "temple" vs.<'forum," al-
thoughtheyfrequently seemtodrawfromeitherorbothcategories. Thefor-
mat,focus,andmissionof ethnicmuseums areoften"upforgrabs>" asthey
strivetobeperceived asmoredemooratic thantheirtraditional "mainstream"
 ETHNICMUSEUMSIN LOSANGELES . 71

peers.39 Ethnicmuseums revealthedifficultyof escapingthehistoricfunc-

tionof the museumas WCtemple'' thatauthenticates specificrepresentations
andhistoriesandoperatesas a toolto legitimizegroupidentityandobtain
recognition,status,orpower.Atthesametime,however, someethnicmuse-
umscal intoquestion priorassumptionsofauniversal publicandformaspace
-

in whichto explorenewinterpretations of historyandto debatecontempo-

raryissuesofpoliticsandidentity.UltimatelyS it is in thiscapacity bothin-
dividuallyandcollectively-that ethnicmuseums canplaya significant role
in diversifying
citieslikeLosAngeles,wheretheincreasing numbers of non-
European racialandethnicgroupsarealternatively romanticized orvilified.
Inconclusion, we findthattheethnicmuseumis anevolving anddiverse
institution
whichhasexpanded bothin numbers andfunctions. Individually,
museumshaveto grapplewiththetensionof operating in anurbancontext
produced byglobalization andwiththequestions ofwhichrole(s)theywant
topursuewhichaudience theywant toprivilege,andwhich stories
theychoose
to tell.Collectively,
ethnicmuseums promotethemulticultural imageof the
earlytwenty-firstcenturycitybyexpanding therepertoire of artsandhisto-
ries whichdeserveto be visible.Increasingly, ethnicmuseumsbecome
influential
forcesinthecity.Consequently, theyshouldnotbe objectsof at-
tentiononlyof ethnicormuseumstudies,butdeserveto be studiedandun-
derstood byscholars of urbanstudiesatlarge.

39. Wethankan anonymous

reviewerforthispoint.