90706 - Museology in Contemporary Age

Conoscenze e abilità da conseguire

Students achieve in-depth and up-to-date knowledge of today's concept of Museum and of its most recent transformations, both from theoretical-methodological and socio-historical points of view. In particular, they become familiar with the evolution of museology and museography and the major international figures who have contributed to redefine the museum. They develop also useful skills to understand the relationship between museums and the city, as well as with their role in contemporary society.

Contenuti

The 30-hour course takes place in the first semester (6 CFU).

The course aims to study the genesis and development of contemporary critical reflections on museums, their functions and their public. The student is led to acquire theoretical and historical knowledge on the protection, conservation and management of historical and artistic heritage and to study in space and time the specific issues related to the practice of collecting.

During the last decades, the definition of the museum has been contested by curators, academics, politicians and activists, according some new national, political or ideological agendas. The institutions are now more globalized than ever, but also more fragmented and divided, with opposite philosophies about the status and ethics of collecting, the provenance issues, the public uses of things, or the goals of research and entertainment. While new information technologies as well as new rituals of visit and appropriation are on their way, the curatorship has taken on a polymorphous form, and is in search of instruments of evaluation.

The seminar activity foresees case studies, the list of which will be given by the teacher during the first lesson.

Testi/Bibliografia

For the final examination Students enrolled are required to prepare all the texts listed in Section One, plus at least one text from Section Two. Students who do not attend the course complete their preparation with one text from section Three.

Section One:

Andrew McClellan, The art museum from Boullée to Bilbao, Univ of California Press, 2008.

Maggie Fergusson ed. Treasure Palaces. Great Writers visit Great Museums, London, 2016.

Section Two:

Eileen Hooper Greenhill, Museums and the Shaping of Knowledge, Routledge, 1992.

Daniel J. Sherman and Irit Rogoff, eds. Museum culture: histories, discourses, spectacles, Routledge, 1994.

Tony Bennett The birth of the museum: History, theory, politics, Routledge, 1995.

James Putnam, Art and artifact: The museum as medium, Thames and Hudson, 2001.

Sharon Macdonald and Gordon Fyfe eds. Theorizing museums: representing identity and diversity in a changing world, Wiley-Blackwell, 1998, reprint 2004.

*or other bibliographical material selected in agreement with the teacher for the preparation of the seminar activity.

Section Three:

Peter Vergo ed. New museology. Reaktion books, 1997.

Janet Marstine ed. New museum theory and practice: an introduction. John Wiley & Sons, 2008.

Emma Waterton and Steve Watson, eds. The Palgrave handbook of contemporary heritage research. Springer, 2015.

Metodi didattici

Lectures  

 

 

Modalità di verifica e valutazione dell'apprendimento

Students will be required to submit a written assignment commenting on a recent research article on one of the course themes. Successful candidates shall demonstrate an adequate knowledge of the contents covered during the course and the material indicated in the recommended readings/bibliography. They shall demonstrate critical ability to understand and explain the theoretical approaches to the museum.

1. It will be graded as excellent the performance of those students demonstrating to be able to thoroughly analyse the text and to put it into an organic view of the topics discussed during the course. The proper use of the specific language during the examination will be also essential. 2. It will be graded as discrete the performance of those students with mostly mnemonic knowledge, no in-depth analysis capabilities and a correct, but not always appropriate, language of the recommended texts.

3. It will be graded as barely sufficient the performance of those students with approximate knowledge, superficial understanding, poor analytical capabilities and a not always appropriate language.

4. It will be graded as insufficient the performance of those students with learning gaps, inappropriate language, no orientation within the recommended bibliography.

Strumenti a supporto della didattica

Powerpoint slides and videos.

Orario di ricevimento

Consulta il sito web di Dominique Pierre Maurice Poulot