Course syllabus

 

 

SEMESTER 1, 2019

15 points

 

Teacher: Linda Tyler

Course delivery format:

Lectures - Tuesdays and Thursdays 2pm - 3pm

Tutorials - Tuesdays 3pm - 4pm, Wednesdays 12pm - 1pm and 2pm - 3pm

Well-being always comes first We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

 

Summary of Course Description:         

An introduction to the history and theory of museums, and to institutional collecting and the interpretation of culture. The focus will be on the role of museums in colonisation and nation building, involvement in globalising processes as well as the opportunities museums offer for social advocacy.

Aiming to provide a wide-ranging and challenging introduction to the theoretical issues involved in contemporary museum practice as a sociologically-informed and socially-situated discipline, this course will encourage the development of critically aware perspectives on professional practice and research processes.

The aim of this course is to familiarise students from a range of subject specialisms with current issues in museology, and the ways in which museums have been developing from storehouses of culture and centres of authority to flexible places which engage with communities and invite audiences to author their own museum experiences.

Examples will be drawn from museums in Europe, North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Asia but there will be a special focus on Australia and New Zealand.

The analysis of case studies will enable the identification of key themes in museum practice today such as the politics of representation; contestation between demands for access to collections and the need for preservation and control; repatriation of collections and human remains and the impact of digitisation imperatives on the use of collections. Emphasis will be given to critically analysing the role of museums locally in the building of the nation-state as well as the impact of post-colonialism and de-colonisation on local museum practice. The potential for social and historical criticism in museum practices and the importance of the critical perspective of audiences and communities will be examined.

Classes will explore recent controversial cases in the museum world in order that students will gain critical insight into different aspects of museum practices and community engagement.

Course outcomes:

On completion of the course, students will be able to:

• show an understanding of both theoretical and practical approaches to key issues in the field of museology;
• demonstrate a familiarity with, and express informed opinions about, current museological debates;
• critically assess literature and develop a structured written argument based on it.

 Assessment Summary:

100% coursework comprising 6000 words over 2 assignments over 1 semester.

Assignment 1: Exhibition review. 40%. 2500 words.

Assignment 2: Exhibition proposal. 60%. 3500 words.

Weekly Topics:

 An introduction to the history and theory of museums, and to institutional collecting and the interpretation of culture. The focus will be on the role of museums in colonisation and nation building, involvement in globalising processes as well as the opportunities museums offer for social advocacy.

1	5 March	Introduction: Museums, Artefacts, and Meanings	What is a museum?
2	7 March	Museums and Multiculturalism
3	12 March	The Reticent Object Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett lecture tonight 6pm	Thinking (with) Museums: From Exhibitionary Complex to Governmental Assemblage
4	14 March	The Politics of Museum Display
5	19 March	Museums and their Communities PCAP, Kingitanga	Auckland Museum visits
6	21 March	Maori and Museums Guest Lecture by Ngarino Ellis
7	26 March	Case Study: West Australian Museum in Perth Guest Lecture by  Dr Nigel Bond
8	28 March	Getting to Our Place: Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa EXHIBITION REVIEW DUE 40%	Rewriting the Script: Te Papa Tongarewa the Museum of New Zealand
9	2 April	Getting to "Our Place" MONZ Te Papa Tongarewa. NO TUTORIALS THIS WEEK	No Tutorials this week.
10	4 April	Critiques of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa	No Tutorials this week
11	9 April	The Art Museum and the Ritual of Citizenship	Change and Continuity: Art Museums and the Reproduction of Art‐Museumness
12	11 April	Art Museums in Aotearoa	Museum Encounters and Narrative Engagements
MID-SEMESTER BREAK: 15-28 April 2019
13	30 April	The empire strikes back: repatriation and restitution	A Critique of Museum Restitution and Repatriation Practices
14	2 May	Seminar
15	7 May	Meeting the public	Visitor Studies: Toward a Culture of Reflective Practice and Critical Museology for the Visitor‐Centered Museum
16	9 May	Seminar
17	14 May	Decolonising the museum	Museums in Transformation: Dynamics of Democratization and Decolonization
18	16 May	Seminar
19	21 May	The pop-up museum: a new typology	Moving Out: Museums, Mobility, and Urban Spaces
20	23 May	Doris de Pont, New Zealand Fashion Museum ESSAY DUE 60%
21	28 May	Difficult Histories: Slavery, Apartheid and Holocaust Museums Museums and Trauma: the Canterbury earthquake experience	The International Difficult Histories Boom, the Democratization of History, and the National Museum of Australia
22	30 May	Seminar
23	4 June	Museums and Sex: Special lecture by Siren Deluxe	TBA
24	6 June	Seminar

                                               

 

 Recommended Text:

The international handbooks of museum studies

Workload and deadlines for submission of coursework:      

Exhibition Review due on Thursday 28 March 2019

Essay due on Thursday 23 May 2019

The University of Auckland's expectation is that students spend 10 hours per week on a 15-point course, including time in class and personal study. Students should manage their academic workload and other commitments accordingly. Deadlines for coursework are set by course convenors and will be advertised in course material. You should submit your work on time. In extreme circumstances, such as illness, you may seek an extension but you may be required to provide supporting information before the assignment is due. Late assignments without a pre-approved extension may be penalised by loss of marks – check course information for details.