Return, reconcile, renew: understanding the history, effects and opportunities of repatriation and building an evidence base for the future. The repatriation of ancestral remains is an extraordinary Indigenous achievement and inter-cultural development of the past 40 years. This international project will provide critical new knowledge to understand repatriation, its history and effects and will provide scholarly and public outcomes that empower community-based research and practice.
Australian Indigenous Collectors and Collections. 'Indigenous Collectors and Collections' considers Indigenous people's contemporary roles in shaping private and public collections, and the influence of historical circumstances and ideas of communal ownership and responsibility. It therefore subverts the dominant emphasis upon Europeans as collectors and appropriators of indigenous objects. By considering Indigenous people as collectors, curators and presenters of beloved objects, this project w ....Australian Indigenous Collectors and Collections. 'Indigenous Collectors and Collections' considers Indigenous people's contemporary roles in shaping private and public collections, and the influence of historical circumstances and ideas of communal ownership and responsibility. It therefore subverts the dominant emphasis upon Europeans as collectors and appropriators of indigenous objects. By considering Indigenous people as collectors, curators and presenters of beloved objects, this project will offer major new perspectives on Australian Indigenous history and museology. By exploring the power of material objects in cultural identity and historical consciousness, this project disrupts the stereotype of Indigenous people as purely 'museum victims'.Read moreRead less
Contexts of Collection- a dialogic approach to understanding the making of the material record of Yolngu cultures. The research project will make people aware of the collaborative nature of the material record of Yolngu societies that has been made over time by the participation of researchers, collectors, filmmakers and Yolngu people themselves. It will demonstrate the ways in which digital technology can be used as an integral part of a research process to produce outcomes that can be made acc ....Contexts of Collection- a dialogic approach to understanding the making of the material record of Yolngu cultures. The research project will make people aware of the collaborative nature of the material record of Yolngu societies that has been made over time by the participation of researchers, collectors, filmmakers and Yolngu people themselves. It will demonstrate the ways in which digital technology can be used as an integral part of a research process to produce outcomes that can be made accessible to a wide range of different users. It will help people understand the complex historical processes that have resulted in the present museum and archival record and facilitate their use.Read moreRead less
Reconstructing the Spencer and Gillen Collection: Museums, Indigenous Perspectives and the Production of Cultural Knowledge. Spencer and Gillen's research placed Australia at the heart of world discourse in anthropology at the beginning of the twentieth century and they influenced the paradigm changes that resulted in the development of the modern discipline. Digital technology now enables the material record of their research to be recreated as a whole revealing the richness of Aboriginal socie ....Reconstructing the Spencer and Gillen Collection: Museums, Indigenous Perspectives and the Production of Cultural Knowledge. Spencer and Gillen's research placed Australia at the heart of world discourse in anthropology at the beginning of the twentieth century and they influenced the paradigm changes that resulted in the development of the modern discipline. Digital technology now enables the material record of their research to be recreated as a whole revealing the richness of Aboriginal society in central Australia at the turn of the twentieth century and uncovering a crucial period in the history of anthropology. The research project will advance understanding of Australia's role in the history of anthropology and related disciplines in addition to creating a cultural resource of great value not least for the Indigenous communities themselves.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354824
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
Indigenous Collections and Knowledge Archives Research Network. We will develop an ongoing inter-disciplinary network of researchers (museum researchers, anthropologists, art historians, musicologists, linguists) working with Indigenous collections (ethnographic, anthropological, fine art) and knowledge archives (sound, film, photographic and print). The network will create an exceptional research resource, and facilitate communication between holding institutions, researchers and local Indigeno ....Indigenous Collections and Knowledge Archives Research Network. We will develop an ongoing inter-disciplinary network of researchers (museum researchers, anthropologists, art historians, musicologists, linguists) working with Indigenous collections (ethnographic, anthropological, fine art) and knowledge archives (sound, film, photographic and print). The network will create an exceptional research resource, and facilitate communication between holding institutions, researchers and local Indigenous communities. As well as facilitating pure research (eg. documenting the material, investigating memory systems and processes of cultural change) the project will play a significant role in community development (e. g. repatriation of images and information to Indigenous communities will benefit present generations and fulfil social, emotional and intellectual needs).Read moreRead less
The Relational Museum and its Objects. This project, being conducted in collaboration with Indigenous communities and regional museums in Australia and the United Kingdom, aims to develop and to pilot approaches that facilitate Indigenous people’s access to and engagement with museum collections and objects. Reconnecting Indigenous Australian communities with ethnographic collections is central to contemporary museum practice. Yet, the historical dispersal of objects across museums, nationally a ....The Relational Museum and its Objects. This project, being conducted in collaboration with Indigenous communities and regional museums in Australia and the United Kingdom, aims to develop and to pilot approaches that facilitate Indigenous people’s access to and engagement with museum collections and objects. Reconnecting Indigenous Australian communities with ethnographic collections is central to contemporary museum practice. Yet, the historical dispersal of objects across museums, nationally and internationally, makes relationship and reconnection a challenge to communities and museums alike. The project seeks to address this and to contribute to new museum practice and museum development in Australia.Read moreRead less
Engaging objects: Indigenous communities, museum collections and the representation of Indigenous histories. This project centres on the research process leading up to a major exhibition in Australia of the British Museum's Australian Indigenous collections. By exploring the historical and representational issues evoked in creating this exhibition, new understandings of these collections and their historical and contemporary significance will result.
Cultural heritage and the mediation of identity, memory and historical narratives. Anxiety pervades many Western countries about the direction, nature and expression of social debate regarding community identities, and the social and cultural values underpinning them. In developing our understanding of heritage, and how it is used to construct and legitimatise certain social values and identities in certain national, cultural and social contexts, the research will inform the development of museu ....Cultural heritage and the mediation of identity, memory and historical narratives. Anxiety pervades many Western countries about the direction, nature and expression of social debate regarding community identities, and the social and cultural values underpinning them. In developing our understanding of heritage, and how it is used to construct and legitimatise certain social values and identities in certain national, cultural and social contexts, the research will inform the development of museum and heritage exhibition/interpretation policies. In examining the agency of heritage audiences, the research will inform and facilitate the abilities of museum and heritage professionals to effectively convey messages about contentious issues or make more informed interventions into social debates.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0566962
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$81,105.00
Summary
Developing a prototype multi-institutional search engine for Australian Indigenous collections. We will investigate technical and cultural issues, and identify an optimal model for developing a multi-institutional search engine for Australian Indigenous collections. This will be achieved through the development of a prototype search engine linking two Australian museum collections. Current digital models for managing and accessing materials in multiple formats (audio, film, photographic and prin ....Developing a prototype multi-institutional search engine for Australian Indigenous collections. We will investigate technical and cultural issues, and identify an optimal model for developing a multi-institutional search engine for Australian Indigenous collections. This will be achieved through the development of a prototype search engine linking two Australian museum collections. Current digital models for managing and accessing materials in multiple formats (audio, film, photographic and print materials) will be investigated, and a set of cultural protocols developed for a subset of materials from one geographical area. Such an online research tool has the potential to facilitate research across disciplines, encourage collaborations between cultural institutions, and re-connect Indigenous communities with collections.Read moreRead less
The legacy of 50 years of collecting at Milingimbi Mission. This project will bring life to Aboriginal material collections made at Milingimbi, in Arnhem Land, Northern Territory. A model for museums and Aboriginal people will be made that will give more Aboriginal authority over collections and benefits the museum's knowledge base.