Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Museum Studies Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Museum Studies

Decolonize This Place: The Activist Potential Of Anthropology Museums, Katharine Anne Nelson May 2021

Decolonize This Place: The Activist Potential Of Anthropology Museums, Katharine Anne Nelson

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Museums are under increasing pressure to become more activist. The literature revealed that museum activism can benefit society, though a gap appeared pertaining to anthropology museums. Historically, anthropology museums were tied to colonialism and even racism, and thus need to evolve to become more socially responsible. Through a qualitative case study of four anthropology museums in the United States – the Museum of Us, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, the Penn Museum and the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology – this study examined how anthropology museums can change and engage with activism. A series of recommendations were …


The 2020 Awakening: A Study On Exhibiting Topics Of Race And Identity In Mid-Sized Art Museums, Samantha Becker May 2021

The 2020 Awakening: A Study On Exhibiting Topics Of Race And Identity In Mid-Sized Art Museums, Samantha Becker

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

After the many racial injustices that occurred in 2020, cultural institutions have been motivated to educate the public on historical and contemporary topics of race and identity. This project sought to analyze exemplary cases of exhibition production with topics of race and identity in mid-sized art museums. The goal was to provide a set of recommendations for exhibiting these topics to bolster community trust. Two museums were studied–the Montclair Art Museum and Newark Museum of Art–which revealed that the exhibitions at both institutions were relevant to contemporary issues, engaging to their respective communities, and educational for a wide range of …