Q&A with Nancy Noble, New President of the CMA Board of Directors | Entrevue avec Nancy Noble, nouvelle présidente du Conseil d’administration de l’AMC

The CMA is very pleased to welcome Nancy Noble who was elected to serve as President of the CMA Board of Directors at the CMA Annual General Meeting which took place on May 29, 2013 in Whitehorse, Yukon. Nancy has served as a member of the CMA board since 2008, most recently as Vice-President. We asked Nancy about her views on the Canadian museums community and how she feels about being involved with the CMA. 
(Le francais suit)  

What motivated you to get involved with the Canadian Museums Association?

I have been a member of the CMA since my days as a Master’s student in Museum Studies at the University of Leicester in England. I have always believed that one’s ability to succeed in any profession is directly related to how connected you are to others in your field and how much are willing to learn from them. The CMA has been an avenue for learning and networking for me. It is a respected organization that puts people and ideas together and over the years that has been very beneficial to me and to the organizations I have led. In fact, I don’t think I would be as engaged in my work or as successful without those connections. They have led to life-long colleagues and friends whose knowledge and counsel I rely on regularly. One of the reasons I have stayed in the field (because we all know it has its share of challenges) is the diversity of people who work in the field and their immense creativity and passion.

My decision to get involved in the governance of the organization came from an obligation to give something back to the Association and, even more importantly, to a community that has supported me throughout my career. It is an odd moment in your life when you realize you are no longer the “next generation” of leaders, but “this generation” of leaders. It was at that stage that I thought I should give something back. 

Sex Talk in the City exhibition: Q&A with Viviane Gosselin | L’exposition Sex Talk in the City : entrevue avec Viviane Gosselin

The following interview, conducted with Museum of Vancouver curator Viviane Gosselin, is intended to provide a behind-the-scenes look at Controversy and Condoms: Showing Sexuality in Canadian Museums, an article by Kierra Jones in the July/August 2013 edition of the CMA’s Muse magazine. The exhibition Sex Talk in the City is presented until September 2, 2013.
(Le francais suit)

How did this exhibition come about? Where did the idea come from?

From a confluence of events: Years ago I worked at a science centre on an exhibition exploring aspects of human biology. The segment on puberty and teens' sexuality provoked so many fun and challenging conversations on the part of museum staff and visitors that I promised myself I would one day work on an exhibition entirely dedicated to the topic of sexuality. Sex Talk in the City is the first project I proposed when I joined the curatorial team at the Museum of Vancouver (MOV) three years ago.