Museum Consulting Services

With over 25 years experience as a Director and Founding Director of museums located both in the United States and Europe, Dr. Michael DeMarsche is uniquely qualified to tackle a range of issues that museums face in today’s challenging environment. He can help your museum to accomplish the following:

Strategic Planning

Development/Fundraising

  • Identify, cultivate and solicit patrons for major gifts

  • Develop strategies for approaching a donor and making a successful request for a major gift

  • Understand the importance of special events such as exhibition openings and annual galas

  • Gain familiarity with tax laws that must be communicated to prospective donors

  • Establish or augment management systems to track and cultivate major gifts, insuring that private donors continue to support your museum well into the future

  • Write and design effective publications including Case Statements that introduce major projects and initiatives to your donors

  • Establish or improve your membership program—an essential tool for identifying major donors

  • Understand the power of matching and challenge gifts

  • Recruit and hire effective development professionals

  • Acquire a vision for your institution’s programs and exhibitions centered on your “core” mission.

  • Create excitement for your future and attract private sponsorships to your operations

  • Communicate effectively your organization’s vision and strategic plan for the future

  • Perform a feasibility study that answers important questions surrounding your vision

  • Develop the values within your board that will direct your institution into the future

Governance

  • Organize a recruitment plan that can attract members to your Board of Directors

  • Recruit individuals to your board that are skilled at museum governance and are personally committed to attaining your museum’s vision

  • Develop a clear understanding within your board of its role and fiduciary responsibilities

  • Build consensus within your Board of Directors for any major project your museum might undertake

  • Review and update the bylaws of your museum, providing a comprehensive set of guidelines that can direct all areas of your museum

Staff Development

  • Train the museum staff to become the “face” and “character” of your museum

  • Understand the critical importance of “hello and welcome”

  • Discover the mission of the three “E’’s” and the importance of their success

  • Set your staff up for success with every visitor

  • Discover how visitors experience your museum

  • Identify the strengths of your museum personal

The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn University

The Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center

The Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center

The Cafesjian Center for the Arts, Yerevan, Armenia

Fine Art for Acquisition

We assist private individuals, corporations and museums in acquiring contemporary as well as historical works of art. Although we locate and purchase works for our clients, we are not a gallery. We often deal directly with artists. This allows our clients to acquire works at a considerable discount. Whether you represent a museum collection or are a collector interested in acquiring a single work, we provide the expert advice you need when making any purchase of art.

Artists often face a range of questions that center on everything from the tensions involved in creative expression to the commercial viability of their work. They often ask: Is my work good enough for a gallery? Is my gallery the right one for me? How do I have an exhibition of my work? Should I explore a different direction in my work? Is my work as strong as it can be?

Arriving at answers to these questions and many more is often frustratingly difficult. Unfortunately, artists are engaged in an extraordinarily solitary pursuit. We conduct private counseling sessions with artists that are absolutely confidential. Many artists like a regularly scheduled one-hour appointment. Contact us, and we’ll be happy to describe the process we follow and answer any questions you might have.

For Artists