The German MA’s Recommendations for Representing Migration

A couple of weeks ago, the German Museums Association (Deutscher Museumsbund) published recommendations for museums on how to include and represent migration and cultural diversity in their work. I was really impressed by two key concepts that frame the entire document: Migration is the Norm This is a fact that is evident when we burst … Continue reading The German MA’s Recommendations for Representing Migration →

My issue with ‘provocation’

A few months ago on Twitter, the Stadtmuseum Stuttgart shared this article (titled, in German, ‘Local museums must provoke’) and asked ‘Do they?’ In the ensuing chat, they wrote that ‘Provocation is easy. Relevance is difficult.’ I first surprised myself by writing back that provocation also needs to be relevant, and that it is only … Continue reading My issue with ‘provocation’ →

One year as a consultant

This week saw my one year anniversary since becoming a consultant. I wrote this when I started, and what strikes me the most about that post is a fear of loss: losing touch with people’s heritage, missing out on that daily contact with the people for whom we work – our visitors – and no … Continue reading One year as a consultant →

Lights Out! Or: How German Institutions Take A Stance

Just before Christmas I saw a picture of the Semperoper (Opera House) in Dresden taking a stance against the Anti-Islam ‘Pegida’ movement [1]. Now, the Semperoper pretty much carries the same cultural clout in Germany as the British Museum does in the UK (different sector, but same clout). So imagine this: in response to Pegida … Continue reading Lights Out! Or: How German Institutions Take A Stance →

Re-visiting Stonehenge, Or: Visitor Management Vs Experience

A few years ago, I visited Stonehenge for the first time. Like many others, I was shocked at the (then) lack of interpretation and facilities, and after circling the stones once (also an oddly disappointing experience), I set off with the dog to go on a hike through the landscape, totally unplanned, merely drifting along … Continue reading Re-visiting Stonehenge, Or: Visitor Management Vs Experience →

Tweeting interpretation?

In the months leading up to the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in November this year, the German Stasi-Unterlagen-Behörde [1], the Zentrum für Zeithistorische Forschung Potsdam [2] and the populist newspaper Bild together created a Twitter-Account that live-tweeted the events that took place on that day, at that hour 25 years … Continue reading Tweeting interpretation? →

Museums and Political Debate, Or: Why I Need You To Take A Stance

Over recent months, living as an immigrant in Britain [1], I have gone through a process that leaves me feeling increasingly alienated from museums and heritage sites in this country. In still-used museum discourse terms, I'm probably becoming one of the ‘hard-to-reach’. I feel let down by British museums. You see, these days, I daily … Continue reading Museums and Political Debate, Or: Why I Need You To Take A Stance →

Awards for Interpretation: Are We Sending the Right Signal?

The Association for Heritage Interpretation (AHI) in the UK has recently announced the re-launch of their awards scheme for interpretation. AHI have yet to publish their rationale and criteria for the awards, so the following are my thoughts on their published information to date. The Ambition AHI want their awards to be a ‘prestigious badge … Continue reading Awards for Interpretation: Are We Sending the Right Signal? →

Qualified Teacher Status: A Requirement for Museum Educators?

In a piece on The Conversation UK earlier this month, Jacqueline Baxter of The Open University argues that all teachers should have Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) [1]. Her piece reminded me of the fact that in many museums, QTS is the required qualification for museum educators – the people that deliver the programmes for schools. … Continue reading Qualified Teacher Status: A Requirement for Museum Educators? →

The Scottish Referendum and the Reactivation of Heritage

A few years ago, I read Marta Anico’s essay on representing identities at local municipal museums [1]. In it, she discusses the heritage activation process [2]. Over recent months, while Scotland was in the grip of the referendum campaign, the concept came back to me. Not quite as Anico described it [3] but rather as … Continue reading The Scottish Referendum and the Reactivation of Heritage →