HABITUS PRZED USTAWĄ UWAGI O KSIĄŻCE DOKUMENTUJĄCEJ I KONGRES MUZEALNIKÓW POLSKICH

The volume constitutes a summary of the First Congress of Polish Museologists (the Congress) which was held in Łódź on 23–25 April 2015. The Congress aimed at raising key issues for Polish museology, on one hand reflecting on its essence and functions, and on the other trying to indicate particular solutions in order to fix the museum system. The publication includes conference papers, minutes of plenary sessions, as well as resolutions adopted during the Congress. The whole was complemented with an index of persons and numerous photographs. While trying to focus on some of the main subjects in the programme of the Congress (and thus, of the book), it is impossible to forget that the change in the law regarding museums should be preceded by a comprehensive discussion on the professional identity of museum professionals, and on the condition of the institutions where they work. We should therefore devise an actual museum habitus, not avoiding key questions such as who should be considered as a museum professional and which unique features make an object become a museum exhibit. The need for discussion and to specify the terms we use was mentioned by many participants in the meeting in Łódź, including outside experts. Museums are specific institutions whose sense of existence, as well as an important feature of their activity, is social service understood as the dissemination of knowledge. The decisions jointly taken during the Congress will facilitate our reform of our institutions’ internal organisation. They will also enable us to build ties with organisers of museum institutions aiming at maintaining such museums’ autonomy, so they can fully achieve their mission.