Thirteenth International Conference on The Inclusive Museum

Abstract

Both in public life and in museums, people are pressed to accept a particular version of any story. More importantly, where there is a master narrative in museums we must ask: who owns it, and what happens when they are challenged by counter narratives? This research inquires into the master and counter narratives concerning native, indigenous, and previously enslaved peoples in North America, South Africa and beyond. We examine historical and current representations in selected museums for example, Native Americans in early New York, the Koi in South Africa, Native Hawaiians and more. We suggest that contradictions of narrative fit well with cultural historical activity theory (CHAT, Engestrom, 1987) and socio-cultural theories more generally. Consistent with CHAT, this research explores contradictions within the stories told, asks “who owns the story” and focuses on specific exemplar museum representations (such as dioramas) that mark such contradictions, and reveals the dialectical relationship we posit inextricably connects them. Such research helps move the dialogue surrounding objects, stories, and other representations into the twenty-first century.