Claims and Reality of New Museology: Case Studies in Canada, the United States and Mexico

Abstract

In my work, I like to go back to the source, and I love those moments when we come across historical documents that prefigure, spark or express ideas very similar to those we are developing now, with the sense of breaking new ground... Suddenly we’re not alone anymore. In fact, we’re in good company. This doctoral dissertation, originally published in 1988, could almost be considered a historical document today. I reread the opening sentence: a 1985 quote from Hugues de Varine on the museum as a perfect tool for social transformation. Decades have since gone by. New museology has become sociomuseology and various other kinds of community-oriented museologies: participative, collaborative, relational, engaged, even activist… And yet the question of the social role of museums is timelier than ever, discussed and debated at all levels of contemporary museum practice. (…) For several years now, new museology has, in its current adaptations, experienced a significant revival. In many countries, museums are exploring and practicing participatory museologies in collaboration with their communities. These approaches are part of a great and ongoing societal transformation: the creation of a true cultural democracy based on the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion. Against the backdrop of shifting cultural and power relations, many museums are developing innovative approaches not only to reflect these new realities, but to become agents of change, involved in the construction of new social imaginaries that engage a plurality of voices. How can museums do more to contribute to social and cultural justice, economic development, individual and collective well-being and a sustainable future? What real impact can they have on individuals and communities? Can they change the world? The questions that have concerned me for so long are as resonant now as they were four decades ago. I hope this text will be “good company” for today’s museum professionals. Andrea Hauenschild