Bio

Suse Anderson (she/hers) is Assistant Professor, Museum Studies at George Washington University, and host of Museopunks – the podcast for the progressive museum. For more than a decade, her work focused on the intersection of museums and technology, culminating in the 2020 publication of The Digital Future of Museums: Conversations and Provocations, co-authored with Dr. Keir Winesmith. More recently, Anderson has become concerned with investigating contemporary ethical dilemmas confronting the field, and is currently on the Board of ICOM's IC-Ethics Committee. Since moving to Baltimore in 2014, Anderson has fallen in love with the city she now calls home. You should visit her there one day. 

Current Research

My current research is focused on my twin interests of digital technologies and museum ethics. There is significant work to be done in developing ethics related to technology within museums, as well as other areas of practice. I plan to continue to develop my research in these areas, in large part because the deep complexity of the 22nd century demands institutions and a profession that are ethical, accountable and prepared to meet the current moment. Additionally, I am in the early stages of a longer project that will consider how the tensions and frictions inherent in museum work create the conditions for many of the sector’s core ethical dilemmas.

Publications

Books

Winesmith, Keir, and Suse Anderson. 2020. The Digital Future of Museums: Conversations and Provocations. First. Abingdon, OX & Burlington, MA.: Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/The-Digital-Future-of-Museums-Conversations-and-Provocations/Winesmith-Anderson/p/book/9781138589544

Book Chapters

Anderson, Susan. 2019. “Visitor and Audience Research in Museums.” In The Routledge Handbook of Museums, Media and Communication, edited by Kirsten Drotner, Vince Dziekan, Ross Parry, and Kim Christian Schrøder, 1st ed., 80–95. Abingdon, OX: Routledge.

Peer Review Articles

• Anderson, Suse. 2022. “‘We Felt Unsafe.’ Rethinking Risk, Harm, and Safety in Museums.” Museums & Social Issues, June, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1080/15596893.2022.2074639.
• Anderson, Suse. 2022. “On the Importance of Possibility and Hope in Museum Studies.” Viewfinder, no. 15 (April). https://medium.com/@NAEAMuseEd/on-the-importance-of-possibility-and-hope-in-museum-studies-9d430a­32f5ea.
• Cairns, Susan. 2013. “Mutualizing Museum Knowledge: Folksonomies and the Changing Shape of Expertise.” Curator: The Museum Journal 56 (1): 107–19.

Conference Proceedings

Cairns, Susan, and Danny Birchall. 2013. “Curating the Digital World: Past Preconceptions, Present Problems, Possible Futures.” In Museums and the Web 2013, edited by Nancy Proctor and Rich Cherry. Portland, OR: Museums and the Web.

Edited Publications

• Anderson, Suse, Isabella Bruno, Hannah Hethmon, Seema D. Rao, Ed Rodley, and Rachel Ropeik, eds. 2019. Humanizing the Digital : Unproceedings from the MCN 2018 Conference. Ad Hoc Museum Collective. https://am­azon.com/Humanizing-Digital-Unproceedings-2018-Conference/dp/1091360332.
   
• Rodley, Ed, Robert J. Stein, and Suse Anderson, eds. 2015. Code|Words : Technology and Theory in the Museum. Edinburgh and Boston: Museum iD. https://museumsetc.com/products/code-words.

Student Publications

• Anderson, Suse, Ashley Chen, Montana Coward, Erin Dietrick, Maura Dunn, Saskia Giramma, Claire Griffin, et al. 2021. The State of Museum Digital Practice | 2021: A Collection of Graduate Essays and Responses. Edited by Suse Anderson. Washington, D.C.: Ad Hoc Museum Collective.
• Anderson, Suse, Corrie Brady, Rebecca Brockette, Laura Dickson, Jonathan Edelman, Melissa Garcia, Cristin Guinan-Wiley, et al. 2019. The State of Museum Digital Practice in 2019. Edited by Suse Anderson. Washington, D.C.: Ad Hoc Museum Collective. https://ad-hoc-museum-collective.github.io/GWU-museum-digital-prac­tice-2019/.

Media Contributions/Interviews

• Reyburn, Scott. “Museums Are Cashing In on NFTs.” The New York Times, March 25, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/25/arts/design/museums-nfts.html.
• Ulaby, Neda. “The Louvre Has Digitized 482,000 Works — Wander The Museum Online, For Free.” NPR Morning Edition, March 30, 2021. https://www.npr.org/2021/03/30/982258972/not-heading-to-paris-this-summer-the-louvre-has-digitized-482-000-artworks.
• Varner, Greg. “Museum World Undergoes Big Changes.” GW Today | The George Washington University, March 23, 2022. https://gwtoday.gwu.edu/museum-world-undergoes-big-changes.

Presented at national and international conferences, including plenary or keynote sessions at:

• The UNESCO High Level Forum on Museums
• American Alliance of Museums Conference
• Museums and the Web
• Museums Australia
• MCN (Museum Computer Network) conference
• Visitor Experience Conference
• PA Museums Association
• Texas Museums Association

Education

BA (Communication-Journalism), Charles Sturt University, Australia
BFA (Hons) 1st class, Faculty Medal, The University of Newcastle, Australia
PhD (Fine Arts), The University of Newcastle, Australia

Classes Taught

Museum Ethics and Values
Museums and Digital Technology
Critical Visitor Experience
Museum History and Theory 

Professional Organizations

Current: Member, International Council of Museums’ IC-Ethics Committee

Previous:

• 2021: Vice-Chair, Congresswoman Eleanor Norton's Congressional Art Competition Committee
• Program Committee for the Museum Computer Group (UK)
• 2018-2019: Visiting Technologist at the Pew Center for Arts and Heritage (Philadelphia)
• 2018: President, MCN (Museum Computer Network), on the MCN Board since 2015
• 2015 - 2016: Program Co-Chair for the annual MCN conference
• 2014 - 2015: Jury Chair for the AAM Muse Awards in the categories of Digital Communities (2014), and Podcasts and Audio Tours (2015)
• 2012 - 2015: Served on the Advisory Board for the NMC Horizon Report–Museum Edition
• Served on multiple Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Review Boards
• Served on Advisory Board of the Open Knowledge Foundation Network Australia