ICOM or the International Council of Museums is a non-profit organization that is concerned with the activities of the museum profession and its website is relevant for this case study as it is concerned with advancing a code of ethics for museums internationally. Section 1.10 of ICOM’s code of ethics states, “regardless of funding source, museums should maintain control of the content and integrity of their programmes, exhibitions and activities.” This is one of the more general statements of ICOM’s code of ethics concerning a museum’s conduct in relation to sponsorship influence. ICOM’s code of ethics, which is outlined in full on its homepage, is relevant for this case study in regards to providing guidelines on how museums can retain a certain level of autonomy as corporate and private funding of the arts increases. Furthermore, the ICOM code of ethics addresses specific concerns about financial transactions between the sponsor and the museum which calls for a greater transparency so that the potential for wrongful acting on behalf of the museum staff and the sponsor is minimised.
The usefulness of ICOM’s website mainly lies in its helpful guidance for further research reference; the website is well structured and user friendly, allowing a browser to easily locate relevant links and information. Furthermore, the website contains a bibliographical list of recommended articles, journals and literature in its ‘Museum Autonomy’ section which is very useful for my research as these recommended articles discuss strategies employed by museum curators and directors on how they retain a certain degree of autonomy in regards to sponsorship demands. Most sources are supplemented with the exact content of these links which makes searching for the relevant information fast and accessible. Useful journals which were recommended include journals such as Museum International, Journal of Arts Management, Law, and Society and Journal of Cultural Economics.
http://icom.museum/
International Code of Ethics for museums.