#1 – Welsh concludes that all three domains, materiality, engagement and representation, are independent of one another but cannot be thought of individually without the consideration of the other two elements. (105) Welsh considers materiality to be more than just objects but the elements which compose the relationships between people. This also includes the relationship between people and spaces. It is not just the material object but the physical space in which conceptual work concerning the object is done and the framework built up around the process and ethics of “deterioration and conservation.” Chinavine might not house material objects, but it does house descriptions of the process of creating objects and information about the object’s historical and contemporary uses and meanings. Images and videos, as well as descriptions from fieldworkers and information from the artisans, contribute to building the process of interpretation that surrounds the object. The physical space in which the material objects are created is interpreted by fieldworkers. Although there is no collection of material objects, the space in which the objects are interpreted and collected with video equipment and field research is a space of material interpretation. Conservation not only applies to the object itself but also to a visual documentation of an artisan creating the object which demonstrates the importance of the object in a cultural setting and not just as an object. As there are large collections of material objects which exist in the physical spaces museums occupy, the documentation of the performance of culture (the creation of the objects) might be more responsible in certain settings. What are the ethical implications of experiencing a festival documented on the website (like the Mountain Ramp festival) through the website instead of physically traveling to visit the festival in person? I think the definition of materiality can be expanded beyond just the physical object based on this definition. Representation is not just the process that occurs within the physical space of the museum, but also the mission statement of the whole institution. In this sense, representation can be extended to board member meetings, merchandise sold in the museum store and other realms in which the museum presents its mission. Representation occurs on the Chinavine website and material is interpreted through the pathways the website presents for visitors to navigate. Chinavine’s mission is clearly stated in the “Our Mission” tab on the website. The mission is presented in the material displayed on the website and also in the physical actions of the fieldworkers who are collecting the information when they are in the field and associated with the project. There is a physical presence of representation online which is purely visual, but if we use Welsh’s extension of representation, the efforts used to collect the materials presented online can also be thought of as representations of Chinavine’s mission. Engagement relates to museums relationship to a large group of individuals. This includes visitors and educators and other groups with a vested interested in the materials being presented in the museum. Welsh notes that what each group expects might not be compatible with the needs of other members of the “publics” who have conflicting needs. (106) These relationships extend beyond the most apparent connections to the materials in a museum’s collection. An artist whose work is held in a museum might have family members with a vested interest in how the work is shown, even though they may not have a direct connection to contributing the art work to the museum. Chinavine represents itself to visitors who specifically choose to visit the website for educational purposes or because they come across it while navigating through the Internet. There is also a “share” button on the website, where a visitor can share the website through Google, twitter or a number of other options. Just as a museum’s responsibility extends beyond visitors who walk through the front door, how do the responsibilities for representation on Chinavine differ because it is so easily shared and accessed? Someone who posts the website to twitter might not necessarily control who will be viewing the website. As materials become more accessible online this also extends to museums who have physical locations who have been putting material online and creating exhibits specifically intended to be viewed online. (For example: http://library.metmuseum.org/screens/opacmenu.html, the museum’s online catalog) Representation extends beyond the pathways contained within the website to the pathways materials take outside the boundaries of Chinavine’s site which the creators of the site might not always control.

#2 Welsh is very clear about the unfixed nature of the circits discussed. (106) The dynamic nature of each one means they can exist in contrast or direct relationship with one another and there is a high degree of possible flux worked in to each definition. The nature of the circuits and the nature of the domains of materiality, engagement and representation create the nine configurations which are in constant dialogue with one another.
Repositories Museums have been repositories for what is considered to be an authentic object or is a “museum quality” representation of a certain medium. These definitions and categorizations are created in contrast to the material goods which interpret and commodify these “authentic” pieces of material culture. (A plastic sculpture of the thinker vs one of Rodin’s casts of the thinker) The physical location of the museum defines the boundaries of what is authentic and the notion of who owns the property rights to certain objects. Chinavine challenges the hegemony of the physical location of a museum which stores and validates an objects authenticity. The object’s importance is placed in the context of culture and the value is not determined by its presence in a museum collection.
Educational The educational goals of a museum, as it is described in this section, would consider there to be a universal goal or truth every visitor should walk away from a museum experience with. My experience with Chinavine when I first visited did not necessarily indicate to me, the visitor, that there was a single end truth I should take from the material. The presentation of material in different formats, especially the videos, leaves interpretation open to the visitor. Even the text based information that is factual or presents a historical background always has a visual component for the visitor to interpret that has not been interpreted for the visitor.
Celebratory Museums can express their value to the community by presenting exhibitions that celebrate the importance of the community or the value a certain community interprets from certain objects. Since this is online material, the sense of community is much different in this setting. Although there is work that certainly identifies that communities, and entities that have some elements but not all elements of real-time communities, exist online (reference the work of Robert Glenn Howard), there is not the same sense that all material presented online has a duty to represent or be accessible to all parties that could possibly have access to it. The website presents the beneficial aspects of folk arts but does not have the same relationship with a specific community the physical space of a brick and mortar museum does although this relationship can vary greatly based on the museums location.
Stewards Welsh states that stewardship means “respecting the rights of individuals outside the institution and outside of institutional culture in order to affect decisions about preservation.” (113) This interpretation can lead to the expansion of groups with vested interest in the material and an open dialogue about the material which is contributing to an organizations mission. Chinavine might benefit from a comment section where visitors can leave their interpretations. This would open the dialogue to more visitors who are outside of institutional culture and see what they are looking for from online educational resources.
Learning Centers Learning can focus on presenting information which does not adhere specifically to strict educational guidelines.
Welsh does note that this shift does coincide with museums growing conflict with other forms of leisure activity and the need for museums to be attractive to visitors. Chinavine is an educational site but it does not present specific goals for what the visitor must leave the site knowing. Also because of the framework of the site, a visitor might not access all the material. This is not a negative aspect of the site but means that every visitor might not walk away with the same interpretations.
Collaborative A presentation of the actual narrative of a person contributing to a museum’s exhibit allows for a subjective but less contested narrative to be presented. We must consider that any presentation of videos or a written account even if they are a contributors voice might still have value judgments attached to them. The framing of a video or artistic choices during the shooting of a video might influence the viewers interpretations. What does a video focus on? The artisan or the object and what does any given visitor expect the video to focus on? How does this influence their interpretations?
Conceptual The meaning of an object which enters into a collection has been created by what the object was before it entered the collection. Welsh does make the important point that this does not release the museum from the interpretive process by making the museum a neutral entity. (116) Chinavine does not present itself as neutral and states its goal is the collaborative preservation of Chinese folk arts. However, an object’s meaning is not confined to its physical presence as a display object to a visitor. The presentation of different elements (historical, the process of creating the object etc.) always for an open ended interpretation which continues beyond the objects meaning before entering the museum. The visitor can imagine the object’s meaning is continuing through the production process which is displayed in the videos and images. This section specifically made me think of the video of the needle and thread box artisans.
Reflexive Welsh states there is a challenge to revealing “contradictions to visitors without becoming repellently reflexive.” (117) I appreciate the example of Museum of Jurassic Technology in Culver City mentioned in this section. This museum and the neighboring Center for Land Use Interpretation challenge the visitors preconceptions of what a museum or a center for display should be. The CLUI sponsors field trips to specific areas of the I5 corridor and the Museum of Jurassic technology now houses a space devoted to the Los Angeles based string figure association’s collection. Presenting programing outside of the space of physical structure allows a museum to enter into a different type of dialogue with visitors. Also, presenting the collection of another association alongside a museum’s own collection influences how the visitor will interpret both sets of resources. The same is true of online resources. There is an increased ability of reflexive interpretation which is influenced by visitors outside of the value-laden boundaries of museum spaces.
Complicitous Visitors are encouraged to engage in meaning making in most museum spaces. Welsh uses an example of an exhibit that inadvertently encourage visitors to engage in consumer activities the exhibit was questioning. Presentations must always be analyzing what meaning they are creating by soliciting feedback from viewers. This is another section which made me think of the benefits a comment section might have for the website because this would give a clear understanding of how the information being presented is influencing the visitors to the site.