2018-JILANI-How To Decolonize A Museum

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How to decolonize a museum

SarahJilaniargues that Westen1institutionsn1ustinterrogatetheir
own colonialhistories
By Sarah Jilani
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https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/how-decolonize-museum/ 7/2/2020
"Culturalprogress is made ... through honest dialogue and commitment

to followthrough", urged a recent letter from nineteen cultural,
educational and community organizationsin the US.The letter's
recipient was the BrooklynMuseum.Organizedby DecolonizeThis Place,
a NewYork-basedaction group, this letter was a follow-upto an earlier
one, which explained the community's objectionsto a high-profilehiring
decision. It was shared extensivelyon social media after the full text was
published by Hyperallergicon April 12,2018.That it resonated beyond
Brooklynwas no surprise. It encapsulated a debate occurring on both
sides of the Atlantic,which concerns the colonialhistories of Western
museums, the narratives surrounding people of colour that such histories
perpetuate, and an apparent lack of interest in addressing it.
That earlier letter, " Your Curatorial Crisis is an Opportunity

to Decolonize ", recommended the creation of a "Decolonization
Commission"after KristenWindmuller-Luna,a white woman, was hired
as the new chief curator of the museum's Africancollection.Windmuller-
Luna's curatorial approach may of course be profoundly decolonial;but
what stands up in the letter is the idea that structural injustices can easily
prevent a truly meritocratic line-up of candidates, reflectiveof society as
a whole, in the first place. In failingto understand how tone-deaf this
hiring decision was, the BrooklynMuseumalso failedto acknowledgethe
lived experiences of all those people for whom our current approach to
"doing culture" has not been working for a long time. For the signatories,
the remnants of colonialismare still clear, whether they be in Brooklyn's
gentrification,which has often occurred along race lines, or in the
approaches that the majoritypopulation all too often adopts towards
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The art, culture and heritage sectors here in the UKcan often trace their
histories back to the BritishEmpire. Initiatives,campaignsand
exhibitions devoted to decolonizingUKinstitutions over the past two
years or so have sought to demonstrate this. A one-day symposiumat the
International SlaveryMuseumin Liverpool,Museums in a Post-Colonial
Commonwealth, which took place in April,examined how non-Western
cultures, histories and material objects have been represented in the

Western museum. What appeared to be a step in the right direction was
short-livedand underwhelming, however. A one-day symposiumto
tackle how to represent (what unfortunately read like) "the rest of the
world" revealed a more fundamental obstacle to Liverpool'sproject: the
Western institution's self-imageas the objectivearbiter in a passions-
driven world.
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery's #ThePastlsNow exhibition

promised a more substantial approach. A group of co-curators of colour
were invited to set up an exhibition from the Museum'spermanent
collectionto address its colonialhistory. The final result was informative
and at times even moving,contextualizingobjects as part of often
traumatic histories. One of its guest co-curators, SumayaKassim,
however, questioned whether the museum had successfullyexamined its
own biases. "I do not want to see decolonisationbecome part of Britain's
national narrative as a pretty curio with no substance", she wrote in a
piece published on Media Diversified, that also recounts her feelingof
being treated tokenistically."Or, worse, for decolonialityto be claimed as
yet another great Britishaccomplishment: the railways, two world wars,
one world cup, and decolonisation."
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The questioning of long-heldbeliefs and understanding of the full

histories behind institutions should have positive repercussions for
everyone. But as the Brooklyn,Liverpooland Birminghamcases
highlight,decolonizingcultural institutions is not straightforward.Their
attempts suggestthat the key issue at this early stage is a lack of
understanding about what decolonizingan institution means, and what it
entails. A genuinely decolonialapproach would see museums interrogate
their positions as apparently objectivecaretakers of non-Westernobjects
and artefacts. The assumption of Western objectivityis not only divorced
from the material conditions in which those objects have come to be
"owned" by Western knowledge- knowledgeinformed by a history of
contact on unequal terms - but it also instantiates the exceptionalism
with which Western cultures have felt entitled to the final, objectivesay
on other cultures. Byacknowledgingthis, and then pursuing new roles
and missions, institutions could take a number of concrete steps, such as
repatriating objects where feasible,especiallyif they were plundered
from peoples for whom they sustain cultural value; embracinggreater
accountabilitytowards their local communities;and consider the colonial
and racial legaciesinformingtheir operations and governance.
Such "undoings" would be incomplete without new action, which could

see: the curation of collectionsto reflect the imperial acquisitionand
representation of the objects; improvingthe conditions of their
underpaid and often migrant labour; and questioning the ethnic and class
homogeneityin their boardrooms. Decolonizationis an ongoingprocess,
but its justice and methods grow more obvious through practice.
There is a recurring mistake in much of the public discussion

surrounding decolonization:that it is somethingto be done by, about and
for people of colour. But decolonizationis different from diversification:
it demands fundamental change rather than mere representation. It is
about how museums can facilitatehistorical accuracy by engagingtheir
majority-whiteaudiences with how cultures, societiesand national
identities today remain deeply shaped by the era of colonialism.
They may want to look to the twenty-three-year-oldAliceProcter's

Uncomfortable Art Tours while they are at it. Started in June 2017,they
now run at six museums. Each tour takes visitorsthrough a major
national collectionwhile explainingthe role of colonialismin its shaping
and funding. A discussionof an eighteenth-centuryportrait may reflect
on the sitter's lesser known links to the slave trade; an "exotic"
Elizabethanartefact may reveal the global reach of that era's economic
plunder; the museum itself may have a founding story set against the
backdrop of imperialism.
As an individualrunning these tours independently, Procter is not afraid

of tracing the historical context she provides right up to its present-day
economic, politicaland social legacies,touching on topics from
immigrationpolicy to Brexit.In 2016,YouGov found that 43 per cent of
the public thought the BritishEmpire was a good thing (25per cent did
not know). Our art and artefacts have the power to tell us what we should
value, emulate and preserve; the work of decolonizingmuseums is
therefore vital, and it must allow for nuance and complexity- a real
conversation about Britain's history. To better understand ourselves, we
must come to understand how colonialism shaped our past and how its
legacy still haunts our present.
SarahJUaniis studying for a PhDin Englishat King's College,Cambridge.
• This article was amended on June 11.We had incorrectly stated that
the UncomfortableArt Tourswere free.
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How to decolonize a museum - Culture - TLS Page 1 of 7

How to decolonize a museum

Subscribe today: only £1a week

"Culturalprogress is made ... through honest dialogue and commitment

That earlier letter, " Your Curatorial Crisis is an Opportunity

cultures, histories and material objects have been represented in the

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery's #ThePastlsNow exhibition

Subscribe today: only £1 a week

The questioning of long-heldbeliefs and understanding of the full

Such "undoings" would be incomplete without new action, which could

Subscribe today: only £1 a week

There is a recurring mistake in much of the public discussion

They may want to look to the twenty-three-year-oldAliceProcter's

As an individualrunning these tours independently, Procter is not afraid

Subscribe today: only £1 a week

SarahJUaniis studying for a PhDin Englishat King's College,Cambridge.

Architecture I Book Review

Food & drink I Book Review

Food & drink I Book Review

Subscribe today: only £1 a week

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST

Google Products Spotify Apple Podcasts

Terms & Conditions Privacy

Company registration number: 935240. VATno: GB 243 8054 69.

Subscribe today: only £1 a week

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