Women directors in museums c.1908 1965: an interdisciplinary approach (original) (raw)

2022, Journal of Art Historiography

This short article derives from the author's attendance to the Summer School in Digital Humanities taking place at the Universita degli Studi dell’Aquila (Italy) in June 2022. It acts as an Open Access introduction to her recently started postdoctoral research project at Radboud University (Nijmegen, the Netherlands). The project explores the extent to which the current ‘glass ceiling’ in museum management accross Europe may be linked with the historical, 20th-century gender-biased development of the curatorial profession. Via an interdisciplinary methodology, combining archival research and digital humanities with semi-structured interviews and statistical analysis, Women Managing Museums aims to uncover the legal framework, the social context and the historical circumstances in which women started becoming museum directors in Europe. The data collected via these means serves a dual purpose: on one hand, it unearths the significance of early twentieth-century female curatorial work. On the other, it brings to light the impact of gender-related difficulties (such as working conditions, legal restrictions, ‘marriage bars’, salary gaps, cultural prejudices, and limitations to decision-making) in shaping the work of pioneering female museum managers. By pursuing this dual outcome, the project aims to provide a new reading of the shaping of museums and their collections in early 20th-century Europe, thus contributing to rewrite their history from a gender perspective .

Sign up for access to the world's latest research.

checkGet notified about relevant papers

checkSave papers to use in your research

checkJoin the discussion with peers

checkTrack your impact