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This seminar provides a critical hands-on introduction to the museum as an institution created in the colonial era, which is currently confronted with a range of challenges, e.g. digitisation, cultural diversity and inclusion as well as calls for the repatriation of Indigenous artefacts and human remains. In the introductory section, students will familiarise with the history of a range of new and old museums across the Anglophone world (including the British Museum and the Australian National Museum). We will then explore Indigenous perspectives on the museum through the debate on repatriation of Indigenous artefacts and human remains in the UK, Australia and Germany. Special attention will be paid to new museums that engage with Indigenous peoples, and museums curated and/or directed by Indigenous people. Depending on the current situation, participants may have the opportunity to visit museums in the vicinity, including the Soul of Africa Museum in Rüttenscheid, the Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum in Cologne, and explore the colonial legacy in Essen.
A selection of critical texts and further sources will be made available to participants via a Moodle course. |
