Museums, Nations, Identities: Wales and its National Museums

Watson, Sheila

doi:10.1093/jhc/fhn012

Cited by 10 publications

(18 citation statements)

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“…The authority of museums legitimising a specific discourse or policy position has long been established, as has, more recently, their potential for debate, contest and challenge, a function seen as closely correlated with the advent of the 'new museology' (Bennett 1995;Karp et al 1992). Similarly their critical engagement with notions of identity has been investigated most commonly in relation to the function and role of national museums (Boswell and Evans 1999;Mason 2007;McIntyre and Wehner 2001;McLean 2005), or as regards specific issues such as race, gender, inclusion and diversity, agency and authority (Golding 1997;Goodnow and Akman 2008;Merriman 1997;Sandell 2007). While they can reinforce master narratives of the past, museums may also give recognition to shifts in interpretation or plural viewpoints.…”

Section: Conclusion: Continuity or Change?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Must Museums Be Inclusive?

Maleuvre¹

2012

Journal of Educational Media, Memory, and Society

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This article reflects on the project of creating multicultural inclusive museums. By definition, an inclusive museum honors the cultural constituencies it is paid to serve. Yet in reality, cultural sensitivity is one thing and education another. Blurring the distinction risks sacrificing education, a moral mandate, to the ideal of equality. My article points to examples where, for fear of offending, a museum betrays its educational mission. I trace the affinity between inclusive museum politics and consumerist culture and consider the case of the Creation Museum-a museum that, as per the multicultural ideal, tailors science to the sensibility of its customer base, in this instance the sensibility of American biblical literalists.

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Section: Conclusion: Continuity or Change?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Must Museums Be Inclusive?

Maleuvre¹

2012

Journal of Educational Media, Memory, and Society

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“…The heritagization of a particularly narrow aspect of local and national forms is a relatively common element of the heritage process. In Ireland, similar emphasis on architectural forms has been seen to narrow community perception on wider forms of heritage value (Parkinson, Scott and Redmond 2016), Welsh industrial heritage narratives were left unvoiced until the 1980s due to nationalist bias against rural communities and traditions in the telling of Welsh history (Mason 2007), while in Pingyao, China, community heritage has been reshaped to cater to tourist demands, rather than Howell, D. 2020. Expanding Heritage Horizons through the Cheltenham: A Diaspora Project.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Expanding Heritage Horizons through the Cheltenham: A Diaspora Project

Howell

2020

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This article considers the Cheltenham: Diaspora project, an exploration and promotion of migration heritage narratives in Cheltenham (UK). Cheltenham has a diverse history, but heritage provision in the locality has been consistently concentrated on 18th and 19th century Regency architecture. This has led to a marginalisation of non-elite heritage narratives, with no permanent platform for culturally diverse heritage themes in the region. In addition, informal, online history themed social media groups have, rather than expand heritage narratives, ultimately further narrowed heritage discussions. The Diaspora project looked to challenge the lack of diversity in the authorised heritage discourse, and informal online discourses of Cheltenham’s heritage, while enhancing the democratic nature of research projects coming out of the University of Gloucestershire. This paper considers the difficulties encountered in attempting to democratise heritage research, in a cultural climate that is rigid in its perception of what counts as ‘heritage’ and what is deemed as relevant by more ‘vocal’ local stakeholder groups. Ultimately the project reveals that while social media provides a useful avenue through which diverse heritage narratives can be pursued and promoted, ingrained attitudes regarding authorised forms of heritage are robust and resistant to the introduction of the unfamiliar.

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“…When considering what should be collected by Te Papa curators and the public alike placed a premium on items 'of' New Zealand to apply Mason's (2007) concept to collecting. Determining what is 'of' New Zealand is more complex than locating items of 'kiwiana' or items made in New Zealand.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…National significance is a complex idea. Building on Mason's (2007) distinction between museums 'for' and museums 'of' the nation, nationally significant material equally encompasses material significant because of its perceived value for the people of the nation as well as items significant due to the way they are understood to be representative of the nation. Items may be significant for both reasons.…”

Section: Collecting New Zealand or Collecting For New Zealand?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Policy and Acquisitions Strategy, with repeated references to New Zealand; for example "to document, illustrate and explore the natural and cultural heritage of New Zealand, and those parts of the world that have contributed to New Zealand's heritage. "(Collection Development Policy 2007, 1.1) The majority of references to New Zealand in the policies relate to collecting items 'of' New Zealand, to useMason's (2007) term.The Collection Development Policy also says that Te Papa's collections "are a resource for the people of New Zealand." (7) In this way the existing policies also address collecting 'for' the nation(Mason 2007).…”

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Collecting for New Zealand: Examining What the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Should Collect

Searle¹

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<p>Collecting for New Zealand explores two interconnected questions: how do history curators at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa decide what to collect; and what do those curators and members of the public think Te Papa should collect. Te Papa’s status as a national museum is important to the context within which decisions are made and opinions formed about collecting. By detailing the actual acquisition process and including the views of museum users, this research makes an important contribution to the literature on museum collecting. This study draws on multiple sources of data to examine history collecting at Te Papa. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with current curatorial staff and focus group discussions were held with members of the public. Current and previous policy documents that influence collecting at Te Papa were also reviewed. These sources combine to develop a picture of collecting at Te Papa which encompasses both specific details of staff practice and a further understanding of what qualities people seek in museum collection items. This thesis provides vital details on the practice and implications of collecting using location, in this case New Zealand, as a selection guide. In examining how staff decide what to collect, concerns expressed in the existing literature about the power of individuals to shape what is acquired are also addressed. The extent to which the views of the general public and those of museum staff are shared is revealed. In developing a fuller understanding of what people think Te Papa should collect, this research contributes to the debate about how to collect in ways that are sustainable. Collecting for New Zealand concludes by reflecting on the importance of audience to Te Papa’s ongoing collecting activity.</p>

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Museums, Nations, Identities: Wales and its National Museums

Cited by 10 publications

References 0 publications

Must Museums Be Inclusive?

Must Museums Be Inclusive?

Expanding Heritage Horizons through the Cheltenham: A Diaspora Project

Collecting for New Zealand: Examining What the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Should Collect

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