Community Reflections
Reflecting on Community Engagement from the Lens of Ethics of Care View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Deniz Unsal
The COVID-19 pandemic challenged all societies with a crisis in care. As it disrupted the normalcy of life, it exacerbated existing inequities and social issues, too. Black, Indigenous and racialised communities were impacted by the social and economic challenges caused by the pandemic more than others and in different ways. Many organizations responded to these challenges by adopting different working conditions, shifting priorities, developing strategies and alternative communication methods to serve their communities. The experience of community museums and cultural centres is particularly noteworthy as culture and community are at the core of their work and identity. In the Winter and Spring of 2022, I had conversations with several community museums and cultural centres in British Columbia to understand how their approaches to community and practices of community engagement have been impacted by the pandemic. Many pointed to a new (self)awareness during this crisis in care and justice. In this presentation, I reflect on my conversations with museums based on ethics of care, a concept much discussed in the context of healthcare, and presents much for thought for museum researchers and practitioners, with its emphasis on community, empathy and building and maintaining relationships. I discuss how this approach, that defines self as connected to others and justice as an extension of caring, might offer a frame in which to theorize and practise community engagement.
The (inclusive) historic house museum in Denmark. : Strategies for Re-interpreting Historic Houses in the Light of Contemporary Movements and ICOM's New Museum Definition View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Mia Yates
Historic houses are often understood as ‘time capsules’ since they preserve an original historic environment and often strive to keep things exactly as they were. However, historic houses are currently being encouraged to re-think their grand narratives and traditions of interpretation through the lens of contemporary society. This is further emphasized by the brand new ICOM museum definition which includes a new focus on interpretation, accessibility, and diversity. So how can historic house museums, as a distinct type of museum, open the time capsules and become relevant, by including contemporary perspectives in their interpretations of the buildings and collections? What are the pressing issues for Danish house museums in terms of becoming relevant and accessible for a diverse audience today? This paper outlines some of the challenges for historic house museums in Denmark, when it comes to re-thinking and re-defining their role and value in contemporary society, considering the new ICOM definition. It also brings forth and discusses examples of how historic house museums across Denmark are attempting re-define themselves through more inclusive interpretive strategies and community engagement.
Mi Casa Es Tu Casa: An Expanded Interventionist Approach to the Illinois State Musuem, Including the Domestic Narratives of the Mexican-American Community of Illinois View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session William Oswald
The Illinois State Museum's permanent exhibit, 'At Home in the Heartland', has aged poorly since its opening to the public in the Fall of 1992. Many of the exhibit labels feature outdated designs and tell a Eurocentric narrative, presenting the domestic lives of White Americans as the norm. This creates a problematic narrative, one that excludes the lived experiences of the diverse array of people who have called this land their home. This paper proposes an interventionist approach, that replaces one of the outdated exhibits with one that presents a collection of domestic objects and associated narratives, collaboratively sourced from the significant Mexican-American community of Illinois. Taking a similar design approach to the newly installed exhibit, June's Room, this proposal uses digital exhibit designs at allows underrepresented communities to express the value of these objects in their own words.
