Religious leaders assembled precious objects to inspire awe and devotion. But today, art and other forms of cultural expression in many cases have changed from being mere ornaments of power to being manifestations of power themselves. Culture is a big industry, a major revenue source for many countries and an advance guard in economic globalization. As a showcase for culture, museums are in a class by themselves. Once stuffy and catering to a self-proclaimed cultural elite, they now strive to be part of their communities.
Municipalities look to museums to serve as rallying points for urban revitalization and tourism.
On a previously decaying waterfront in the United States city of Cleveland, a stunning pyramid designed by I.M. Pei housing the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame has put that city on the map for rock fans around the world. In Bilbao, Spain, a museum designed by Frank Gehry, which has been hailed as the building of the century, has raised spirits in an economically depressed and politically troubled region. Similarly, in Quito, Ecuador, the new city museum, housed in an impressively old and beautifully restored former hospital, has already become a focus of civic pride and popular education. In a country facing enormous economic problems, citizens can take justifiable pride in a project where teams of Ecuadorian planners, restorationists and museum staff, in just a year and a half, turned a crumbling ruin into a graceful showcase. Better yet, visit Quito and a few of the other Latin cities whose historic centers are being transformed by a phenomenon discussed in this issue of IDBAm rica.