196th Museum Council Meeting

Thursday, September 10, 2020, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Location: Museum House

Present on site: Ólafur Kvaran, chairman, Haraldur Þór Egilsson, Helga Lára Þorsteinsdóttir, Sigríður Björk Jónsdóttir, Harpa Þórsdóttir, Margrét Hallgrímsdóttir and Þóra Björk Ólafsdóttir, managing director. Anna Sigríður Kristjánsdóttir and Hilmar Malmquist announced their absence.

1. Presentation case

  1. Summary of activities since the last meeting.
  2. Application for museum recognitionAn application for museum recognition was received from one museum. The director reported on the application, which will be formally considered at the next meetings of the museum council.
  3. Annual Report of Accredited Museums 2020. Planned changes to the annual report of recognized museums were presented, including issues concerning the collection of data that will be submitted to Statistics Iceland.
  4. Museum Board working day. The planned Museum Board work day, scheduled for Friday, October 9, was discussed.
  5. This item was moved to a matter for decision, item 2.4.
  6. Main changes to the Museum Council's budget for 2019. Introducing the main changes that have occurred, including the postponement of projects due to COVID-19

2. Matters for decision

  1. Museum Council Annual Report 2019. The Museum Council Annual Report 2019 was presented, and a conclusion has been reached on the final status of the museum fund in 2019. The report will be approved between meetings.
  2. Report submitted – "The impact of COVID-19 on museum work in Iceland". The results of a survey conducted this summer by the Museum Council, ICOM in Iceland and the Association of Icelandic Museums and Collectors on the impact of the coronavirus were compiled in a report. The report can be found on the Museum Council's website: https://safnarad.is/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/C19-sk%C3%BDrsla-LOK.pdf The authors of the report are Guðný Dóra Gestsdóttir, Chair of ICOM in Iceland, Helga Maureen Gylfadóttir, Chair of the Association of Icelandic Museums and Collectors, and Þóra Björk Ólafsdóttir, Director of the Museums Council.
  3. Request for a change in funding. This item was dropped.
  4. The second additional allocation. It was agreed to allocate up to 15 million ISK in the second additional allocation of the museum fund. Continuing education grants will be advertised as in previous years, but in addition, grants will be offered to be used for digital promotion of the museums' activities. This category will be better presented as it gets closer. The application process will start in early October, with a deadline in early November.
    It was also agreed that the Museum Council will fund a course that accredited museums can attend on the use of social media to promote museums.

3. Other issues

No other issues discussed.

Meeting adjourned 12:50 / ÞBÓ