Memorial Museum Research Articles

Mariia Maksymovych’s Embroidered Shirt: A Study of the Ornament

The results of the research of the embroidered ornament of Mariia Maksymovych’s shirt, preserved at the Taras Shevchenko Literary Memorial House-Museum are described in the article. The study of the issues related to Ukrainian history and national identity is a relevant topic interesting for the scientists as well as for the general public. Modern ethnological studies have faced the issue of investigation of Ukrainian ornamentation in the system of cross-cultural approaches. The research methodology is based on the works of such scholars as Khv. Vovk, O. Kosach, St. Taranushenko, T. Kara-Vasylieva, M. Selivachov, H. Hough. The history of the transfer to the museum and the technological features of the embroidered shirt of Mariia Maksymovych are studied thoroughly in the work Mariia Maksymovych’s Shirt by O. Karpenko (2012). Our investigation is dedicated to the discovery of a possible original source of the embroidery ornament of Mariia Maksymovych’s shirt. As a result of the search, identical patterns have been found. They are published in a series of works by the DMC textile company. It has published books and albums on needlework under the name brand of Th. Dillmont (a famous popularizer of embroidery art in the 19th century). Some doubts about the authenticity of Mariia Maksymovych’s shirt have been raised with a found information. However, a deeper study of the issue has showed that the DMC firm has attracted previously printed schemes to its published works. So, at the moment, we cannot state unequivocally that the embroidered shirt hasn’t belonged to Mariia Maksymovych. The submitted materials reveal new perspectives for the study of intercultural influences of embroidery ornamentation. The pattern on the shirt preserved at the Taras Shevchenko Literary and Memorial Museum will be considered also in the context of the heritage of the authoritative Austrian connoisseur of embroidery art Th. Dillmont after our research.

‘Pou maumahara’, ‘the memory place’: Remembrance and material cultures of colonial conflict at the Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira

This article explores how material objects reveal patterns of remembrance in the public histories of the nineteenth-century New Zealand Wars fought between British regiments and colonial forces and Māori hapū and iwi (tribal groups). It is based on collections research conducted at the Auckland War Memorial Museum which conceptualises a new gallery displaying stories and objects relating to the wars. Bringing together museology and historiography, the article argues that an engagement with the material culture of the New Zealand Wars and public lexicons of memory in a museum context offer opportunities to move beyond national narratives. Just as these colonial conflicts reconfigured the materiality of violence and collective belonging, so too do museum-based objects activate the presentation of these histories in light of new public needs since 2017.

Cosmopolitan Hybridity, Cultural Memory and Curation in Hong Kong Poetry

This article builds on previous research on the engagement of British-based Hong Kong Anglophone poets with the visual arts. It attempts to outline an object-based curatorial poetics observed in Hong Kong Anglophone poetry. Understanding curation as a mode of writing, we argue that Hong Kong poets writing in English employ a curatorial poetics, transforming the poetic space into a collection of images while refraining from description, as in ekphrasis. Objects with an Asian/Chinese/Hong Kong connection are presented as a collective, inviting the reader to associate with and reflect upon a pluralistic understanding of Hong Kong’s history based on an intermingling of personal and collective memory. We trace the development of this poetics and identify its beginnings in the works of Chinese-language Hong Kong writers. Then, we examine how a range of poets, both locally and internationally based, utilize the curatorial form to demonstrate the cosmopolitan hybridity that characterizes the city and contribute to an increasingly pluralistic discourse on Hong Kong’s identity. The poems employing this form of poetics act as museums of cultural memory, recording the hybridity of Hong Kong and subverting homogenous, totalizing attempts to define the city.

A Place of "Re-collect": Zainichi Experiences with/in Utoro, Japan

Abstract: As a memory place that exemplifies contemporary Zainichi experiences, the Utoro district in Kyoto, Japan, entails stories of Japan's colonial exploitation and postcolonial oppression, yet simultaneously reveals human hope, cooperation, and solidarity. First formed for the Korean workers and their families mobilized for the construction of a military airport during World War II, Utoro was left abandoned for decades in postwar Japan. Its Korean residents have suffered from continuous eviction suits, harassment, and violence including the most recent arson attack in 2022. At the same time, these intricacies of colonial origin and postcolonial controversy also invited networked grassroots efforts among the Japanese and Koreans to remember and reconstruct the place's sociohistorical meanings, resulting in the construction of the Utoro Peace Memorial Museum in 2022. This paper highlights the significance of Zainichi experiences with/in Utoro through an analysis of identity, discourse, and representation of the place. Drawing upon collective memory scholarship and adopting a theoretical framework of re-collection, the paper unravels complex meanings of a site in relation to human acts of remembering, making sense of, and finding significance to our past experiences with/in it. By situating visual and discursive voices of the Utoro community (Zainichi in Utoro ), such as its former residents' oral testimonies and museum displays, this study elucidates the significance of Utoro in Zainichi history. This paper argues that Utoro projects contradictory positionalities of Korean subjects as both integral and excess in the history of colonial and postcolonial socio-politics of ethno-racial Other in Japan.

Difficult Heritage in Southeastern Europe: Local and Transnational Entanglements in Memorializing Political Prisons after Socialism

Throughout Central and Eastern Europe, various governments supported the creation of memorial museums of political violence during state socialism. While much scholarly attention has been given to Hungary’s House of Terror and the Baltic museums of occupations, this article examines the contrasting situation in Southeastern Europe, where state actors were generally absent and which witnessed relatively belated and overwhelmingly bottom-up processes. The article analyses the particularity of political prisons as ‘difficult heritage’. It scrutinizes the commonalities and entanglements between the memorialization of political prisons in three Southeastern European countries marked by distinctive trajectories both during and after communism: Albania (Spaç), Romania (Sighet and Piteşti), and Croatia (Goli Otok). The article shows how in the absence of state-level policies to address transitional justice, activism surrounding difficult heritage memorialization has aimed to fill the gap. It also argues that the relationship between site memorialization in Southeastern Europe and the wider European models is doubly constitutive: first, the memorialization of Sighet in 1990s Romania borrowed approaches from Western European Holocaust memorialization, then shaped a European wide set of best practices; second, a wave of new memorial initiatives after 2010 in Southeastern Europe was connected to the Europeanization of memory and transnational engagements.

Transformation of tradition in Kenzo Tange’s projects as a way of shaping contemporary Japanese architecture

This study explored the transformation of tradition in contemporary Japanese architecture, with a focus on Kenzo Tange’s works as a potential solution to the lack of national identity in modern urban spaces, particularly prevalent in post-socialist countries. Such homogenisation, as established by previous research, has negative implications for human psychology. The purpose of this study was to identify K. Tange’s creative approach to the use of tradition in the context of modernity. Ukrainian, Japanese, English, American, and other sources on the history of traditional and modern architecture in Japan, including the theoretical achievements of K. Tange himself and several sources on the architect’s works, were used in the study. A considerable amount of photographic material was also collected for the study. The paper described certain types of traditional religious architecture in Japan. The architecture of Shinto and Buddhism were considered as prototypes. Accordingly, the following objects of K. Tange were analysed: The Peace Memorial Museum in Hiroshima, in comparison with the Ise Shrine Complex; Kurashiki Town Hall in comparison with the main pavilion of the Buddhist temple complex; the Kagawa Prefecture Government Office Building in Takamatsu in comparison with the Buddhist wooden pagoda. As a result, it was found that the transformation of tradition in K. Tange’s works can occur at four levels: the organisation of the master plan, the formation of the interior space of the building, the formation of its overall structure, and at the level of semantics. For each example of transformation, appropriate references were made to certain features of Japanese architecture or traditional Japanese worldview that were discovered during the study. In addition, an algorithm for introducing traditional features into modern architecture was presented, which, given the need to rebuild Ukrainian cities destroyed as of 2023, could help revive them while avoiding the architectural shortcomings of the past

Social Media as Lieux for the Convergence of Collective Trajectories of Holocaust Memory—A Study of Online Users in Germany and Italy

By articulating a shared victimhood or guilt or responsibility, memorial museums are designed as ethical projects that encourage visitors to learn from the past to build a “better future”. In contemporary Europe, Holocaust memorials and museums constitute a trajectory of remembrance about public Holocaust memory that consolidates political legitimacy and articulates national narratives of the legacy of WWII. In parallel, increasing adoption and spread of digital technologies have resulted in a convergence and a globalisation of themes and user interests associated with Holocaust memory. The purpose of this study is to investigate the perspectives and interests of users of the social media profiles of a group of Holocaust museums and memorials in Germany and Italy. Using a primarily quantitative approach, the study sought to understand the motivations, interests, and online activities of users of nine Holocaust museums and memorials. While national narratives regarding public policy continue to diverge in the two countries, users express a convergence of interests and motivations when using these social media profiles. This dual venture of Holocaust memory is a complex yet powerful example of how the globalisation of digital media is playing an increasingly significant role in European contemporary society.

Memory discourses in visitor books of travelling exhibits in Southern Chile

The Museum of Memory and Human Rights in Chile hosts regular travelling exhibits about the country’s recent traumatic past of 1973–1990. In this article, I study the visitor books (VBs) that accompanied travelling exhibits to the cities of Valdivia and Puerto Montt to examine their effect on the audience. The entries reflected a variety of writers, from younger generations to survivors and witnesses. The analysis shows that the VBs are used to exercise the right to memory, to confirm their ‘duty to remember’ manifested in the presence of transitional justice discourses, and to express emotions that seem to reflect a positive and healing effect. Moreover, it was proven that the nature of the visitor’s memory (direct or postmemory) would showcase different reactions to the exhibit experience.

Women in community-based museums of memory in Colombia. Their struggle for peace building

ABSTRACT Institutional strengthening, securitisation, free market promotion, and development policy implementation are foundational elements of liberal peace. However, the creation of an inferior colonisable other sustains this link and has justified programmes of violent repression and silencing. Decolonial, post-liberal, localised, and feminist peace-building stances condemn those power structures and promote alternative means of achieving well-being and social transformation. Women have played a significant role in these struggles in Colombia. Among other initiatives, feminist and women’s social movements have embraced works of memory, including museums of memory, as mechanisms to produce difficult knowledge about their painful past and alternative ways to build peace. This article explores the role of women in peace-building process via case studies of two community-based museums of memory in Colombia. Cases analysed embody ways in which knowledge is created regarding war, suffering, and reflection on the significance of living a dignified life, pursuing well-being, social justice, and peaceful coexistence. Memories gathered in these museums not only recount victimising incidents but also testify to how women elevate the discussion about the colonial and patriarchal roots underpinning Colombia’s decades-long armed conflict, and how it relates to development. Findings contribute to the discussion on the challenges of peace building, which include imagining roles for women in producing knowledge beyond the stereotypes that are imposed on us, even in peace.

Motivations and Expectations of Residents Revisiting Small Museums in Communities: The Case of Beijing Guo Shoujing Memorial Museum

The management of small museums is closely related to the understanding and participation of the surrounding residents. However, this topic has not aroused enough attention in the academic area. As an integral part of community culture, residents' evaluations and visiting patterns can significantly impact the reputation and business status of small museum. To investigate audience participation and motivation at the Beijing Guo Shoujing Memorial, the researcher conducted interviews and natural observations. The study highlights personal, work, and social needs as the primary drivers of residents' re-participation in community small museums. These findings hold value for guiding the future development of small museums in the community.

Practice and Reflection on the Collection of Cultural Relics for Revolutionary Memorial Museum

Practice and Reflection on the Collection of Cultural Relics for Revolutionary Memorial Museum

The Holocaust in Polish and American culture. Deliberations, politics and watershed moments.

This article addresses issues related to Holocaust education in two emblematic sites: the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum (A-BSM) and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) in Washington, DC. Every year, these institutions are visited by millions of people, which contributes to their enormous impact on the memories of future generations. Their method of education, however, cannot be understood outside its historical, cultural and political context. Auschwitz contains the history of a former concentration and extermination camp, and the institution itself is also linked to the history of another totalitarian regime. In the United States, the National Holocaust Museum underwent years of deliberation over why the country should nationally commemorate Jewish victims, and why a memorial should stand on the National Mall in Washington, a place associated with American democracy. A broad view of the subject, as outlined in the article, not only allows for an awareness of what these centres are and how they educate, but it allows for an understanding of their perspective, excluding numerous criticisms that would seek to invalidate their discourse, while favouring criticism based on historical facts.

On the occasion of the centennial of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 1923: Nicolae C. Paulescu-between scientific creativity and political fanatism.

On the occasion of the centennial of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 1923: Nicolae C. Paulescu-between scientific creativity and political fanatism.

Japan’s Van Gogh? Analogy and revision in the case of Shikō Munakata

After a fortuitous encounter with a reproduction of Vincent van Gogh’s Six Sunflowers in 1920s Japan, then teenager Shikō Munakata (1903–75) famously pledged to become “Japan’s Van Gogh.” Instead, Munakata would become a woodblock printmaker celebrated in a purposely non-analogical manner not only as “the world’s Munakata” but also, later, as “Japan’s Munakata,” amongst numerous other variations. Conveyed through successive (dis)analogies, the story of Munakata’s artistic development makes clear certain national paradigms entangled in the historization of Japanese modern art. In this case study, I trace the varied ways in which Munakata and others construct, propagate, and modify analogy in an active and, at times, unwitting process of historicization across several contexts, including Munakata’s own visual and textual legacy, the writings of his contemporaries and art historians, and the interpretive approaches of museums. This article focuses on key insights from historiographical research and a site visit to the Munakata Shiko Memorial Museum of Art in Aomori, Japan. This example is unusual and significant in that an analogy proposed by the artist himself (Japan’s Van Gogh) is adopted and modified by others in a way to which Munakata responds in different ways throughout his life. In comparing the intentions and contexts that underlie each instance, I discuss ruptures in how Munakata’s life and work are interpreted in writings about the artist. I emphasize that analogies need not be static; they are also strategically inconsistent, malleable, and thus revelatory of their underlying conventions.

Yavorov's Museum in Chirpan and Its Message to the Society

House Museum "Peyo Yavorov" Chirpan has been the leading institution of the life-giving memory in the local museum structure for 69 years. The text follows the social messages to the expositions, which revive in the guide's story. They are presented in historical context and are analyzed expositions, different kinds of audience and the communication with them, the museum's good practices, the varied and cultural events and activities. The institution is an active component of current cultural and social dealings, which brings the full of matter and aesthetic messages of Yavorov's inheritance and the codes of national identity. During its near 70-years old history, House Museum "Peyo Yavorov" are making progress from memorial museum to cultural institute and forum, which socialized the cultural inheritance.

How Major European Cities Memorialize Mass Terror Attacks: Paris, Madrid and London Facing the Same Memorial Challenge

Abstract: Since the terrorist attacks of January and November 2015, Paris is facing the same memory challenge as other European capital cities before her, consisting in knowing how to create a memorial to publicly mark the memory of mass attacks perpetrated by Islamists. In early 2016, a commemorative tree was planted on Place de la République in Paris. But other projects have since taken shape, including a memorial garden behind Paris City Hall and a memorial museum in the Paris suburb of Suresnes. How and why did this plurality of memorial sites and projects come into being? In order to understand that, this article proposes a comparative detour through Madrid and London following the path of the memorials created in these cities in remembrance of the terrorist attacks of 11 March 2004 and 7 July 2005.

Towards a Model of Community co-curation in the Caribbean:

In 2018, The University of the West Indies and The Barbados Museum & Historical Society embarked on a project to facilitate a community-led composite history of the Caribbean migratory experience to Britain. This was the Museum’s first attempt at an intentional large scale community collaboration across the diaspora. The resulting outputs - the Virtual Museum of Caribbean Migration and Memory and The Enigma of Arrival: The Politics and Poetics of Caribbean Migration to Britain, a rare Caribbean-based travelling exhibition on post-war migration from the Caribbean territories to Britain and the subsequent post-independence rejection of Caribbean migrants, and the process which generated them, are models for how Caribbean museums with global communities and audiences can incorporate an inclusive practice model. This paper chronicles how the museum has evolved from small community interventions and collaborations to this major project as examples of a “community of curatorial practice” (Lave and Wenger, 1991) and explores next steps for imagining the truly inclusive museum in our curatorial practice going forward.

Collectivizing justice: Participatory witnessing, sense memory, and emotional communities

This article describes and analyzes the practices made possible by the temporary exhibition of AMA y No Olvida, Museum of Memory Against Impunity, a community and transmedia museum project in Nicaragua, in tandem with the embodied performances of the families of the victims of state violence and visitors during repression and a state of exception. I theorize how the witnessing performed by the audience surpasses the framework of memory museums for human rights with a participatory framework that uses activist and performative expressions. Participatory witnessing is made possible by expanding the exhibition into a performative and political space in which society at large can participate and witness the victims’ struggle for justice through sharing intimate experiences of embodied pain and grief and demands for justice and reparations. Such witnessing then creates an emotional community with solidarity and a moral and political commitment that recognizes and centers the victims as active survivors, activists, and protagonists.

Design elements evoke embodiment at cultural sites in Rwanda and South Africa

Design elements, the physical or architectural choices that determine the character of space, can have a dramatic effect on visitor experience at museums and memorial sites. At those employing strategies of embodiment, viewer experience takes on added significance. Many contemporary memorial sites employ physical touchstones that evoke emotional experiences, giving viewers a deeper empathy for injustice or humanitarian tragedy. This visual essay examines design elements—such as architectural details and the placement of objects—that evoke embodiment at three sites: the Bisesero genocide memorial in Rwanda and the Apartheid Museum and Prestwich Memorial museum in South Africa. Each of these sites manifests design elements that encourage visitors to engage physically and emotionally with the victims of historical atrocities. Moving visitors beyond a detached, intellectual understanding of traumatic histories toward a physical/emotional engagement may engender a deeper connection with humanitarian tragedy and the struggle for healing and reconciliation.

Campscapes in and through testimonies: New approaches to researching and representing oral history interviews in memorial museums

This paper discusses the role of audio and visual testimonies in safeguarding, understanding, presenting, validating and decentering the history and memory campscapes, be it, for researchers, practitioners, memory activists, or museum visitors. Its primary objective is to present and contextualize two research tools developed within the framework of the project Accessing Campscapes: Strategies for Using European Conflicted Heritage: the Campscapes Testimony Catalogue, a new directory of oral history interviews devoted to selected camps covered within the scope of the project; and the online environment Remembering Westerbork: Learning with Interviews – a prototype of an online display environment presenting survivors’ experiences to today’s visitors in an exemplary memorial that opens up, expands and complexifies the paradigmatic narrative offered by the campscape at the on-site exhibition.