Extreme Collecting
Challenging Practices for 21st Century Museums
Graeme Were editor J C H King editor
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Berghahn Books
Published:1st Apr '14
Should be back in stock very soon
By exploring the processes of collecting, which challenge the bounds of normally acceptable practice, this book debates the practice of collecting ‘difficult’ objects, from a historical and contemporary perspective; and discusses the acquisition of objects related to war and genocide, and those purchased from the internet, as well as considering human remains, mass produced objects and illicitly traded antiquities. The aim is to apply a critical approach to the rigidity of museums in maintaining essentially nineteenth-century ideas of collecting; and to move towards identifying priorities for collection policies in museums, which are inclusive of acquiring ‘difficult’ objects. Much of the book engages with the question of the limits to the practice of collecting as a means to think through the implementation of new strategies.
“The book takes the study of materials innovation and design outside the prevalent focus on Western technoscience. Its focus on Pacific societies also raises the issue of digital return and, furthermore, digital technologies in the museum and heritage sector more broadly. In this connection, Were pushes beyond debates on authenticity and instead highlights digital technology’s productive potentials.”• Social Anthropology
“…the chapters are well written and informative…this volume brings us back to the persistent relevance of objects and collecting to museums. Although architecture and community building have taken center stage in museum discourse, this volume reminds us of what museums continue to do: collect. The primacy of objects in making places, museums, memories, and history remains central to their endeavor.”• Visual Anthropology Review
“This collection is an interesting concept, composed of telling case studies over a satisfying range of collecting topics... with some consideration of philosophical and theoretical perspectives.”• Linda Young, Deakin University
ISBN: 9781782385141
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 340g
248 pages