Contested Exchange: A Practice-based Exploration of Museum Learning Communities (original) (raw)
Related papers
Education in the Museum - A Space of Political Emancipation?
ArtLeask Gazette, 2015
This text is based on the concepts, working methodologies, and deliberations of institutions conducted by the initiative Radical Education (RE) between 2006 to 2014. RE was initiated as a project within a public art institution – the Museum of Modern Art in Ljubljana – in order for it, through analysis of its own work, to direct itself towards a different level of relationship with this institution and others like it. With (those) groups that are not “only” artist collectives, like Radical Education, in most cases we are not dealing exclusively with visual material. These kinds of groups do not perceive art merely as a “form”, representation of some political or social reality, but as a new, different kind of “aesthetics” that emerges at the crossroads of politics, art, social criticism and engagement. At the same time, with groups that enter art institutions in different ways, the following question almost always arises: “In which ways do you avoid the hegemony of representation so that the work process, research methods or political action do not fall into the trap of a participative- multicultural project?”
Museums, Communities and Societal Development
2011
In an effort to counterbalance the inequalities and unequal power relationships that have resulted of globalisation, and to include varying perspectives of development in decisionmaking, non governmental organisations (NGOs) are increasingly acting as forums for marginalised and vulnerable communities. Through networks, NGOs have also enhanced the exchange of ideas, skills and knowledge between a wider sector of society. However, NGOs have been criticised by failing to effectively use their resources and capacities to significantly influence debates and decision making. To reach effectiveness, NGOs need to develop certain capacities and better understand their relationships. For this, planning and decision making support processes like strategic environmental assessment can be useful. In this paper the experiences that were gained by the museum members and communities of Samp Intercontinental Museum Network, a Swedish registered NGO, are presented. The results were participant engagement, process ownership, capacity mobilisation, and the identification of key issues to better understand the work of the network. It is argued that participative, adaptable and flexible strategic environmental assessment processes can support cultural network organisations to make their higher level guiding concepts operable, to share and develop capacities across borders and to reach long term transformations in society.
'In and against the museum': the contested spaces of museum education for adults
Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 2009
This paper focuses on museum and gallery education for adults in Dundee, Scotland. Dundee has recently experienced a shift from being mainly working-class to an educational, cultural and tourist centre. Hence, an interesting field for the examination of the educational policies and practices of the city museums/galleries and the different fashions they receive and act upon wider developments in the museum world has emerged. Questions arising are how the new, open and accessible museum (and gallery) has changed the way education is constructed and offered in the museums in the city? What is the relationship of education with marketing and the new discourse of social inclusion and participation in museums and galleries? For example, one of the most pertinent findings was that, at least in Dundee, activitybased and individual learning has been over-valued, at the expense of a more social and dialogic educational experience that participants seemed to largely prefer and indeed propose as more meaningful to them. Although new ideas and participatory practices have improved attendance and the engagement of the local adult population, other issues, such as the new economic reality for museums and the close relationship of education with marketing are policies that were often treated with resistance, if not opposition, by the research participants.
The community museum: a space for the exercise of communal power
Cadernos De Sociomuseologia, 2010
This paper discusses two key elements in the field of museums: a summary of the concept of the community museum, on the one hand, and, on the other, a proposal as to how this concept is put into practice, especially in the early stages of the creation of the museum, when the social basis for the project is being established. We will discuss how the community museum combines and integrates complex processes aimed at strengthening the community as a collective subject, asserting its identity, improving its quality of life and building alliances between communities. In the second part, which has a methodological focus, we will discuss how the museum is born out of community aspirations to strengthen its identity and integrity, the initial process of consensus-building, the roles of different agents, both internal and external to the community, as well as some factors that foster or prevent community appropriation. To conclude we will emphasize the potential of community museum networks as a strategy to generate a broader field of action, in which communities can exercise greater autonomy, by collectively
UNESCO Observatory. Multi-Disciplinary Journal in the Arts, 2013
Volume 3 | Issue 1 | 2013 i UNESCO Observatory Multi-Disciplinary Journal in the Arts The UNESCO Observatory refereed e-journal is based within the Graduate School of Education at The University of Melbourne, Australia. The journal promotes multidisciplinary research in the Arts and Education and arose out of a recognised need for knowledge sharing in the field. The publication of diverse arts and cultural experiences within a multi-disciplinary context informs the development of future initiatives in this expanding field. There are many instances where the arts work successfully in collaboration with formerly non-traditional partners such as the sciences and health care, and this peer-reviewed journal aims to publish examples of excellence. Valuable contributions from international researchers are providing evidence of the impact of the arts on individuals, groups and organisations across all sectors of society. The UNESCO Observatory refereed e-journal is a clearing house of research which can be used to support advocacy processes; to improve practice; influence policy making, and benefit the integration of the arts in formal and non-formal educational systems across communities, regions and countries. Volume 3 | Issue 1 | 2013