NAAM Annual conference
NAAM Annual Conference
Beyond the Garage: Driving Automotive Museums Forward
April 1-5, 2025 – Petersen Automotive Museum
Join us for the 2025 NAAM Conference hosted by Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California, April 1st through 5th, 2025. The conference theme will be Beyond the Garage: Driving Automotive Museums Forward where topics pertinent to museum excellence and the scholarly study of the automobile will be discussed. Further details, including host hotels, suggested transportation options, schedule, and registration costs will be released in the coming weeks as they are finalized.
Conference Preview:
Automobiles are more than transportation. They are high profile representations of humankind’s material culture that offer an infinite array of interpretive possibilities and are as worthy of collecting, preserving, and interpreting as any other consequential category of artifact. Because they are fundamentally populist, automobiles have not always been considered worthy of scholarly study.
Although automobiles have been an integral part of our material culture for more than a century, professionals at many of the most prestigious museums and cultural institutions around the world are at a loss when it comes to deciding what vehicles to collect—or even if they should—let alone how to preserve and interpret them. Yet the importance of automobiles and their worthiness of scholarly study looms so great that UNESCO now counts select automobiles among its Heritage Objects.
Seizing its goal to promote academic and scholarly excellence in all aspects of automotive/automobile museum endeavor, the National Association of Automobile Museums is uniquely positioned to encourage member organizations to operate according to the most rigorous professional guidelines regardless of their current institutional standards even as they enhance public awareness of automobile museums as valuable cultural institutions with ambitions that transcend time.
Early Bird Registration Closes:
March 10, 2025
NOT A MEMBER YET?
2025 Conference Schedule & Speaker Bios
Tuesday April 1, 2025
6:00 PM Welcome Reception
8:00 - 9:00 PM Board Shuttles to Hotels
Location: Phillip Sarofim Porte Cochere | 1st Floor Parking Structure
Board shuttles to return to hotels. Shuttles will run to each of the host hotels starting at 8:00 PM until 9:00 PM.
Wednesday April 2, 2025
7:45 AM Board Shuttles Host Hotels to PAM
8:00 AM Continental Breakfast
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Continental breakfast provided.
9:15 AM Welcome from NAAM & PAM
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
PAM Executive Director, Terry L. Karges, PAM Chief Historian, Leslie Kendall, and NAAM President Brandon Anderson welcome attendees to the Annual NAAM Conference, Beyond the Garage: Driving Automotive Museums Forward.
9:45 AM Break
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Break
10:00 AM SONAX Demonstration & Vault Tours
SONAX Demonstration Location: Tom Malloy Workshop
Vault Tour Location: The Vault
Attendees will be split into two groups, A & B.
Group A: 10:00 AM – SONAX Demonstration, 10:20 AM – Vault Tour
Group B: 10:00 AM – Vault Tour, 10:20 AM – SONAX Demonstration
11:00 AM Explore Museum & Vault Unguided
Opportunity to explore Petersen Automotive Museum’s 3 levels of exhibits and The Vault on your own.
11:45 AM Lunch
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Lunch provided.
1:00 PM Outside the (Gear) Box: Driving New Audiences through Collaborative and Authentic Interpretation
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Panel Discussion
Summary: This panel will examine strategies on how to appeal to new or underserved audiences through innovative exhibitions designed in collaboration with external partners and community stakeholders. Specifically, panelists will explore methods how to curate and interpret mission-driven, “authentic” exhibitions that center the voices, experiences, and talents of traditionally underrepresented groups in American culture—and automobile culture—including African Americans, women, and neurodiverse individuals (among other groups). Panelists will also explain how these exhibits and related public programs helped drive new audiences to their respective museums—especially families—and provided an avenue to promote awareness of the important work done by partnering non-profit organizations. Panelists will share examples from three specific exhibitions: The Photography of Anthony Schmidt at the Studebaker National Museum, Women in Motorsports at the Savoy Automobile Museum, and one additional example from a panelist and organization to be named. Special attention will be paid to the exhibit planning process, outcomes, visitor takeaways, and how these partnerships helped strengthen community bonds and opened new avenues for potential future collaborations.
The panel will also include a breakout session where attendees will work in small groups for 10 minutes to think about ways that their respective museums can drive new audiences by working with community partners and non-profit organizations who work with underrepresented groups. For the last 10-15 minutes, the larger group will come back together to share out some of their strategies and ideas.
Panelists:
• Kyle Sater, Curator at the Studebaker National Museum (South Bend, IN)
• Tom Shinall, Director of Development at Savoy Automobile Museum (Cartersville, GA)
• Sarah Cook, Executive Director, Automotive Hall of Fame (Dearborn, MI)
• Moderator: Andrew Beckman, Archivist at the Studebaker National Museum (South Bend, IN)
2:00 PM Break
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Break
2:15 PM Balancing Conservation and Restoration: Developing Treatment Plans for Automotive Artifacts
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Case Study
This session will challenge traditional conservation versus restoration discussions by focusing on the scholarly approach required to make informed decisions about whether to conserve, restore, or merge both processes in the preservation of significant automotive artifacts. Rather than delving into specific treatment methods or techniques, the presentation will explore the critical decision-making framework used to determine the appropriate approach for each artifact’s historical integrity and interpretive value. Through the examination of three distinct case studies, the presenter will highlight the unique stories behind each artifact and the treatment choices made to align with their exhibition goals. These examples include the conservation of the Scripps-Booth Cycle Car at the Henry Ford Museum, the restoration of the 1962 Sinkhole Corvette at the National Corvette Museum, and the ongoing conservation-restoration hybrid treatment of the Sir Vival Safety Car at the Lane Motor Museum. Each case offers valuable insight into how scholarly considerations shape preservation strategies and ensure that automotive artifacts continue to tell their important histories to future generations.
Presentor: Derek E. Moore, Curator of Collections, Lane Motor Museum (Nashville, TN)
3:15 PM Break
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Break
3:30 PM Introduction to Special Collections and Archives Care
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Panel Discussion
Summary: Coming Soon.
Panelists:
- Ronel Namde, Getty Research Institute
- Morgan Yates, AAA Archives
- Moderator: Laura Fisher, Archivist at Petersen Automotive Museum
4:45 PM Board Shuttles to Hotels
Location: Phillip Sarofim Porte Cochere | 1st Floor Parking Structure
Free Evening - Dinner on Your Own
Thursday April 3, 2025
7:45 AM Board Shuttles Host Hotels to PAM
8:00 AM Bagel Breakfast & The Platonic Ideal of a Sports Car: James Bond's Aston Martin DB5
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Bagel breakfast provided.
Presentation: The Platonic Ideal of a Sports Car: James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5
True crime, twisted provenance, pop culture, philosophy, folklore, museums, movie-making, mythbusting, and an unsolved mystery figure into this session in which exhibit developer Mary Seelhorst and documentary filmmaker Matthew Millan explore the making of an automotive icon that’s endured and grown over 60 years since the car was introduced in Goldfinger.
Mary will address the role museums played in the perceived authenticity and value of the original movie cars, their slippery provenance, and the DB5’s resurrection in movies, real life, and the collective imagination. Matthew will reveal previously unknown facts and fresh insights gained in his role as lead investigator for Snow Shadow, a forthcoming documentary on the 1997 disappearance of the Goldfinger “star car.”
NAAM members seeking insight into the meaning of automobiles in modern culture—as elusive and confounding as it often is—will find food for thought in this fast-paced case study.
Presentors:
Mary Seelhorst is an independent exhibit developer and award-winning writer with a personal role in the story of the stolen Goldfinger car, which will be revealed in the presentation. Her work focuses on the history of technology and popular culture and, since 2008, has increasingly centered on automotive exhibits, including the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Driving America at The Henry Ford, the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant Museum in Detroit, and the Brumos Collection in Jacksonville, Florida.
Matthew Millan is a documentary filmmaker who has investigated a wide array of challenging topics, from the 2011 Arab Spring to the extremist movements of the Sahel. His films have featured in nearly 100 film festivals around the world, and have garnered numerous awards. In 2022, he was brought on by the Snow Shadow production team to investigate the 1997 disappearance of the Goldfinger Aston Martin DB5.
9:00 AM LA County Tour 1
Details coming soon.
Lunch
Lunch TBA
LA County Tour 2
Details coming soon.
4:45 PM Board Shuttles to Hotels
Location: Phillip Sarofim Porte Cochere | 1st Floor Parking Structure
Free Evening - Dinner on Your Own
Friday April 4, 2025
7:45 AM Board Shuttles Host Hotels to PAM
8:00 AM Continental Breakfast
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Continental breakfast provided.
9:00 AM Option 1: Revving up Engagement: Developing Dynamic Educational Programming for Automobile Museums Workshop
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Workshop
Summary: This interactive workshop will focus on innovative educational programming and educational engagement initiatives tailored to the needs and ability of participants’ automobile museums. Participants will learn strategies for developing engaging exhibits, historical and STEAM curriculum, and outreach initiatives that attract diverse audiences, including families, schools, and car enthusiasts.
Relevance:
To give automotive museums the means to properly showcase and document the automobile as a true cultural and artistic treasure, effective educational programming is essential for engaging visitors and enhancing their experience. With the rise of interactive and immersive learning, museums must adapt their offerings to meet the expectations of modern audiences. This workshop will provide museum professionals with the tools and knowledge needed to create compelling programs that foster community engagement, drive attendance, and promote lifelong learning.
Presentor: Katie Weber, Klairmont Kollections, Chicago, IL
9:00 AM Option 2: Library & Archives Tour
Location: Robert E. Petersen Library and Research Center | Meet in 1st Floor Lobby
Description coming soon.
Presentor: Laura Fisher, Chief Archivist at the Petersen Automotive Museum
9:00 AM Option 3: Photography Demostration
Location: Petersen Photo Cove | Meet in 1st Floor Lobby
10:15 AM Break
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Break
10:30 AM Option1: AI in Motion: Transforming Automotive Museum
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session:
Summary: AI in Motion: Transforming Automotive Museums
Presentor: Wim Van Roy
10:30 AM Option 2: Library & Archives Tour
Location: Robert E. Petersen Library and Research Center | Meet in 1st Floor Lobby
Description coming soon.
Presentor: Laura Fisher, Chief Archivist at the Petersen Automotive Museum
11:30 PM Break
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Break
11:45 AM Option 1: Moving Auto History Forward: Building Collaboration Between Educators and Museum Professionals
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Panel Discussion
Summary: Public education and outreach are key directives for many automotive museums. Educators in secondary, primary, and postsecondary institutions frequently turn to automotive museums as a means of providing their students with enrichment in automotive history, transportation, and other related subfields. Despite the close link between automotive museums and education, there are many questions about how museum professionals and educators can work more effectively together to achieve their respective goals. There are numerous challenges faced by museum professionals in appealing to student and educator interests. Appealing to the needs of primary school and postsecondary educators are separate but related challenges. This panel will discuss how educators and museum professionals can work together to achieve better youth educational outcomes, increase public interest in automotive history, and develop programs and initiatives to further collaboration. This panel will consist of three professionals with educational and museum backgrounds. They will discuss and debate topics including exhibit design, outreach programs for young students, and educational programming for postsecondary students. The chairperson is an assistant professor of history with extensive postsecondary educational experience and a direct research interest in automotive history. The chairperson will guide the panelists through a list of question topics that will stimulate debate on the relevant topics. Audience members will also be encouraged to participate, with time reserved at the end for questions and responses. This panel should appeal to a wide range of conference attendees: educators (both K-12 and postsecondary), museum personnel with an education portfolio, and anyone with an interest in more effectively communicating automotive history topics to young museum-goers.
Panelists:
- Casey Maxon, Senior Manager of Heritage, Hagerty Drivers Foundation
- Toby Stinson, Director, New England Auto Auction, Owls Head Transportation Museum
- Mary Seelhorst, Independent Museum Exhibit Developer and Writer
- Moderator: Dr. John E. Mohr, Assistant Professor of History, College of Southern Maryland, Executive Director, Society of Automotive Historians
Presentor Bios:
Dr. John Mohr is Assistant Professor of History at the College of Southern Maryland. He holds a PhD in the history of technology from Auburn University. Dr. Mohr has been teaching at the college level for a decade. Prior to his current position, he taught at Auburn and at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Dr. Mohr has extensive experience with course development in both traditional and distance-learning formats. He has developed courses on American history, the history of technology, global and world history, women’s history, the history of Alabama, African-American history, and the U.S. South. His primary research interests are in the history of the auto industry from the 1970s to the present day, gender and the automobile, and the intersection of class, globalization, and neoliberalism. He has published on the history of the auto industry in the American South and on the gendering of automotive marketing. He is currently a Director of the Society of Automotive Historians, where he serves in a variety of roles including committee chairman. John lives in Capitol Heights, Maryland with his husband Joe.
11:45 AM Option 2: Library & Archives Tour
Location: Robert E. Petersen Library and Research Center | Meet in 1st Floor Lobby
Description coming soon.
Presentor: Laura Fisher, Chief Archivist at the Petersen Automotive Museum
11:45 AM Option 3: Photography Demonstration
Location: Petersen Photo Cove | Meet in 1st Floor Lobby
12:30 PM Lunch & Annual Meeting of NAAM Members
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Lunch provided. Annual meeting of NAAM members & election of directors.
1:30 PM Option 1: Branding, Social Media, Guest Experience, and Membership
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Details coming soon.
Presentor: Samantha DeAcetis, Membership Manager at the Petersen Automotive Museum
1:30 PM Option 2: Library & Archives Tour
Location: Robert E. Petersen Library and Research Center
Description coming soon.
Presentor: Laura Fisher, Chief Archivist at the Petersen Automotive Museum
2:15 PM Break
Location: The Petersen Museum Founders Lounge | 4th Floor
Break
2:30 PM Why Didn’t I Take Care of That?
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Workshop
Summary:
As conference attendees look “Beyond the Garage” to move their museums forward, they should also look inward to ensure they have the appropriate risk management strategies and best practices in place to protect what they’ve worked so hard to build and achieve.
As museums are ever evolving and facing numerous challenges, effective risk management is key to ensuring safety, profitability, and long-term success. This session will explore innovative strategies, professional standards, and best practices designed to identify, assess, and mitigate risks in today’s fast-paced automotive museum environment. Attendees will gain valuable insights as they work to identify risks unique to their own museum so they in turn can help safeguard their business and drive future growth and enhance for themselves a competitive edge.
This session will provide practical techniques and strategies for the attendees to not only identify risks unique to their own operations but to also address common and uncommon risks that automobile museums face today. Attendees will learn about the critical aspects of risk management, drawing from extensive experience in the field. Whether a museum professional or an enthusiast, this session will offer valuable takeaways to help safeguard each institution’s future and enhance its resilience.
Note: All too often in the frequently hectic day to day schedule of museum operations, unfavorable museum exposures may be overlooked thereby exposing the museum to unnecessary risks. This workshop will help attendees identify risks that may negatively impact their museum and develop mitigation strategies to address those risks.
Presentors:
-
Michael Harding, Sr. Risk Solution Specialist, Markel Insurance
-
Krista Gallop, Account Specialist, Hagerty Insurance Agency
3:15 Open Discussion - Learning from Each Other
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Session: Moderated Open Forum
Moderator: Leslie Kendall, Chief Historian, Petersen Automotive Museum
4:00 PM Board Shuttles to Hotels
Location: Phillip Sarofim Porte Cochere | 1st Floor Parking Structure
Shuttles will return attendees to host hotels for a brief recess before the farewell dinner and NAAMY Awards.
5:30 PM Board Shuttles Hotels to PAM
Board shuttles at host hotels to go to Petersen Automotive Museum.
6:00 PM Reception, NAAMY Awards, Farewell Dinner
Location: Meyer Family Gallery | 2nd Floor
TBA Board Shuttles
Location: Phillip Sarofim Porte Cochere | 1st Floor Parking Structure
Board shuttles to return to hotels.
Saturday April 5, 2025
7:45 AM Board Shuttles Host Hotels to PAM
8:00 AM Bagel Breakfast & Ken Block Cruise-In
Location: William E. Connor Penthouse and Pavilion | 4th Floor
Bagel breakfast provided.
Ken Block Cruise-In: Attendee badges required for entrance.
Location: 3rd Floor of Parking Structure, enter through 2nd Floor of the Museum
9:00 AM Board Coach Buses for Orange County Tours
Location: Phillip Sarofim Porte Cochere | 1st Floor Parking Structure
TBA Orange County Tour 1
Details coming soon.
Lunch
Lunch TBA
TBA Orange County Tour 2
Description coming soon.
TBA Orange County Tour 3
Description coming soon.
TBA Board Shuttles to PAM & Hotels
Coming Soon.
Free Evening - Dinner on Your Own
Thank You to Our 2025 Conference Sponsors
NAAM is proud to partner with the following sponsors to help present events and meals at the 2025 conference. Each of these businesses provides exceptional service to the museum industry. Please join us in thanking those who support our professional development.
About Los Angeles
Los Angeles, is the second most populated city in the United States, located in Southern California. Renowned as the “Entertainment Capital of the World,” it’s famous for Hollywood, its diverse culture, beaches, and iconic landmarks like the Hollywood Sign.
In April, Los Angeles is typically warm and dry with a mix of sunny and cloudy days. Temperatures typically see a high of 73 degrees Fahrenheit and a low around 55 degrees Fahrenheit.
About Petersen Automotive Museum
The Petersen Automotive Museum is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile neighborhood of Los Angeles. One of the world’s largest automotive museums, the Petersen Automotive Museum is a nonprofit organization specializing in automobile history and related educational programs.
THE PETERSEN AUTOMOTIVE MUSEUM FOUNDATION IS DEDICATED TO THE EXPLORATION AND PRESENTATION OF THE AUTOMOBILE AND ITS IMPACT ON AMERICAN LIFE AND CULTURE USING LOS ANGELES AS THE PRIME EXAMPLE.
National Association of Automobile Museums
P.O. Box 50702
Bowling Green, KY 42102
(502) 219-4807
[email protected]