A Chinese Puzzle: The Representation of Ethnic Minorities in the Museums of Kunming, Yunnan Province of China

Varutti, Marzia

doi:10.18848/1835-2014/cgp/v01i03/44520

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“…This is not to deny the agency of non-State actors, or to imply that such narratives are not being contested, discredited, ignored, or even scoffed at, in other contexts. Yet they arguably remain authoritative within the museum walls (Varutti 2008b). This is all the more the case for the representation of ethnic minorities, which, albeit often presented as an exercise of scientific rigour, is very clearly a political matter.…”

Section: Memory and Imagination In Chinese Museums Of Ethnic Minoritiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Museums have been instrumental in such manipulations. From Imperial collections to revolutionary memorabilia, Chinese material culture has been the object of governmental policies aimed at upholding and strengthening the legitimacy of political authority (Varutti 2008b). The objectification of the past has been further made possible by the fact that memory in Chinese museums is not so much thought of in reference to the person or historical events, but rather as embodied and materialized in the object.…”

Section: Memory and Imagination In Chinese Museums Of Ethnic Minoritiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Politics of Imagining and Forgetting in Chinese Ethnic Minorities' Museums

Varutti¹

2010

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Through an exploration of the representation of ethnic minorities in the museums of Kunming, Yunnan Province of China, this article discusses the active role that museums play in the processes of memory and identity engineering, whereby museum images and narratives are used to support collective imagination about ethnic minorities' identities and past. Drawing from a comparative analysis of museum displays in Kunming, I discuss how the image of ethnic minorities is conveyed through a selective process of i) remembering and emphasizing specific cultural elements, ii) forgetting other elements, and lastly, iii) modifying the perception of ethnic minorities relation to the Han majority. By revealing the extent and modalities through which museum representations manipulate ethnic minorities' identities in China, the analysis aims to contribute to our understanding of the multiple ways in which museums act as sites for the enactment of collective memory and imagination.

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Section: Memory and Imagination In Chinese Museums Of Ethnic Minoritiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Memory and Imagination In Chinese Museums Of Ethnic Minoritiesmentioning

confidence: 99%