Small town museum, big time impact

*Appeared in the Laurel Leader-Call newspaper

Last Friday night, I enjoyed what my sister-in-law dubbed the most “quintessential summertime Southern event” on the lawn of the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art: 2021’s Blues Bash.  Filled with bluesy tunes, messy barbeque, and the picturesque backdrop of LRMA’s front porch at twilight, my Friday night could not have been more pleasant. 

It made me grateful to be from a town like Laurel, where the convergence of small-town charm and big city amenities is on full display.  You won’t be surprised to know, however, that it also got me to thinking about the cultural and economic impacts of venues like our own Lauren Rogers Museum of Art.  

If you’ve read my columns before, you probably recognize I’m a bit of a policy wonk who loves any sort of economic analysis.  Turns out, the American Alliance of Museums conducted one a few years ago regarding the so-called “museum effect.”  Let’s dive in, shall we?

One observation from the report is that museums “play an essential role in cultural and social life across the US.  They tell our stories, preserve our heritage, interpret the past, and explore the future.” 

I couldn’t have said it better myself.  The Museum is home to many of my favorite childhood memories.  As a kid, I stared with wonder at the miniature Choctaw woven basket that was so tiny it had to be viewed through a microscope (or that’s what I recall).  When I was a senior in high school, I visited the Museum and fell in love with William Dunlap’s works (one of his mixed media collections was on display at the time).  

Today I am the proud owner of Mr. Dunlap’s “Green Hills of Africa” (an artist proof pigment print with hand coloring), which resides over my fireplace…all because of an art exhibit I saw when I was eighteen years old.

In my professional life, I’ve used the Museum as a venue for work (for example, I coordinated an event at LRMA when former Gov. Haley Barbour released his memoirs on Katrina, “America’s Great Storm”).  From childhood to my professional career, the Museum has certainly made an impact on me. 

But the beauty lies in this:  My experience isn’t isolated.  So many individuals in Laurel have been introduced to artists, culture, and other educational activities through the work of the Museum.  It’s a jewel not only for the City Beautiful, but for the entire state of Mississippi.

Beyond the cultural impact of museums, they also positively impact bottom lines.  From the report: “…the museum sector is also essential to the national economy – generating GDP, stimulating jobs, and contributing taxes.”  Oxford Economics, which conducted the analysis on behalf of the American Alliance for Museums, found that more than 850 million visits are made to U.S. museums annually, resulting in a total economic contribution of more than $50 billion in GDP (gross domestic product), 726,200 jobs, and $12 billion in taxes to local, state, and federal governments. 

My own personal observation is that the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art outpunches its weight in comparison to other museums across the state.  (What can I say? I’m admittedly a bit biased.) That’s why I suggest you visit the Museum “early and often,” as they say, and consider signing up for museum membership.  It’s simple – go to www.lrma.org and click on “support.”

There are so many reasons to love Laurel – the live oak trees, the history, the people… but few city attributes are quite as meaningful to the culture of place as the Museum.