scholarly journals Under Construction: National Identity and the Display of Colonial History at the National Museum of Singapore and the Museum of New Zealand  Te Papa Tongarewa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Julia Waite
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
Fresh Perspective ◽  
National Museums ◽  
Under Construction ◽  
Museum Display

<p>In New Zealand and Singapore, national identity is inextricably linked to the processes of colonisation, decolonisation and the gaining of political independence. Unlike highlytheorized accounts of national identity, this study provides a deeper understanding of the ways in which it is actually developed, materialised and negotiated in 'real world' examples through history exhibitions at Te Papa and the National Museum of Singapore. The research provides a fresh perspective on recent displays of colonial history and how they shape and are shaped by the concerns of present-day nation-building particularly in former British colonies including Asia. It seeks to move beyond the existing literature which has been concerned with deconstructing national identity as a cultural construct to consider the ongoing process of updating, remaking and maintaining identity through museum display. Using a qualitative approach, this dissertation incorporates archival research, interviews, theoretical and historical literature, and visual analysis of exhibitions to contextualise and analyse the similarities and differences in the history exhibitions mounted at these two recently redeveloped museums. The Day 1 history exhibitions at Te Papa, opened in 1998, form the core of this study, while the chapter on Singapore provides an added layer of comparative depth, helping to broaden the picture of national museums and nationalism more generally. This research explores how national museums negotiate, on the one hand, the material and intellectual legacy of previous inherited definitions of 'the nation', while on the other responding to the contemporary expectations which arise from present-day conceptualizations of nations and national identity. My findings suggest that the construction of national identity is not independent from socio-political contexts, and that the political ideals of multiculturalism and biculturalism helped to foster inclusive and politically harmonious visions of national identity in the National Museum of Singapore and Te Papa. The conclusion argues that national museums' participation in the public articulation and definition of a collective idea of 'the nation' is unstable, contradictory and contested but nonetheless worthy of serious academic research.</p>

scholarly journals Under Construction: National Identity and the Display of Colonial History at the National Museum of Singapore and the Museum of New Zealand  Te Papa Tongarewa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Julia Waite
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
Fresh Perspective ◽  
National Museums ◽  
Under Construction ◽  
Museum Display

<p>In New Zealand and Singapore, national identity is inextricably linked to the processes of colonisation, decolonisation and the gaining of political independence. Unlike highlytheorized accounts of national identity, this study provides a deeper understanding of the ways in which it is actually developed, materialised and negotiated in 'real world' examples through history exhibitions at Te Papa and the National Museum of Singapore. The research provides a fresh perspective on recent displays of colonial history and how they shape and are shaped by the concerns of present-day nation-building particularly in former British colonies including Asia. It seeks to move beyond the existing literature which has been concerned with deconstructing national identity as a cultural construct to consider the ongoing process of updating, remaking and maintaining identity through museum display. Using a qualitative approach, this dissertation incorporates archival research, interviews, theoretical and historical literature, and visual analysis of exhibitions to contextualise and analyse the similarities and differences in the history exhibitions mounted at these two recently redeveloped museums. The Day 1 history exhibitions at Te Papa, opened in 1998, form the core of this study, while the chapter on Singapore provides an added layer of comparative depth, helping to broaden the picture of national museums and nationalism more generally. This research explores how national museums negotiate, on the one hand, the material and intellectual legacy of previous inherited definitions of 'the nation', while on the other responding to the contemporary expectations which arise from present-day conceptualizations of nations and national identity. My findings suggest that the construction of national identity is not independent from socio-political contexts, and that the political ideals of multiculturalism and biculturalism helped to foster inclusive and politically harmonious visions of national identity in the National Museum of Singapore and Te Papa. The conclusion argues that national museums' participation in the public articulation and definition of a collective idea of 'the nation' is unstable, contradictory and contested but nonetheless worthy of serious academic research.</p>

Multicultural and Transnational Novels

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Meffan
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
The Other ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
History Of ◽  
Return Home ◽  
Access Rights ◽  
The One

This chapter discusses the history of multicultural and transnational novels in New Zealand. A novel set in New Zealand will have to deal with questions about cultural access rights on the one hand and cultural coverage on the other. The term ‘transnational novel’ gains its relevance from questions about cultural and national identity, questions that have particularly exercised nations formed from colonial history. The chapter considers novels that demonstrate and respond to perceived deficiencies in wider discourses of cultural and national identity by way of comparison between New Zealand and somewhere else. These include Amelia Batistich's Another Mountain, Another Song (1981), Albert Wendt's Sons for the Return Home (1973) and Black Rainbow (1992), James McNeish's Penelope's Island (1990), Stephanie Johnson's The Heart's Wild Surf (2003), and Lloyd Jones's Mister Pip (2006).

scholarly journals Exhibiting the Nation: Indigenousness in Chile's National Museums

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-97
Author(s):  
Magdelena Gil
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Latin America ◽  
National Identity ◽  
Natural History ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Indigenous Cultures ◽  
History Of ◽  
National Museums

This article describes the history of Chile’s national museums, focusing in particular on their exhibition of indigenous cultures. Three museums are considered: the National Museum of Natural History (originally the National Museum); the National Museum of Fine Arts; and the National Museum of History. Using museum catalogues, visitor’s guides and bulletins as sources, this research traces the role given to indigenousness in the museums’ exhibitions through time. Initially, the ‘Indian’ was presented as either part of the territory conquered by Chileans, or as not part of Chilean culture at all. By the twentieth century, however, a new narrative emerged which recognizes the indigenous people as the ‘pre-historic’ inhabitants of Chile. Most recently, a more complex narrative presents Chile as a blending of races and cultures. Overall, we see that today each museum continues to see nationhood as something that is monolithic, allowing little place for indigenous people beyond mestizaje (blending of ‘races’).Key words: indigenous, exhibitions, Latin America, national identity

Conclusion

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alistair Fox
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Identity Formation ◽  
Essential Role ◽  
Coming Of Age ◽  
Financial Returns ◽  
Self Recognition ◽  
International Audience ◽  
National Identity Formation

The conclusion reaffirms the essential role played by cinema generally, and the coming-of-age genre in particular, in the process of national identity formation, because of its effectiveness in facilitating self-recognition and self-experience through a process of triangulation made possible, for the most part, by a dialogue with some of the nation’s most iconic works of literature. This section concludes by point out the danger posed, however, by an observable trend toward generic standardization in New Zealand films motivated by a desire to appeal to an international audience out of consideration for the financial returns expected by funding bodies under current regimes.

Creating a union catalogue for the libraries of the French national museums

2003 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian David ◽  
Catherine Granger ◽  
Nicole Picot
Keyword(s):  
The Internet ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Internet Site ◽  
Western Art ◽  
History Of ◽  
National Museums

The French national museum libraries service comprises 21 libraries specialising in the history of western art and archaeology. The central library, which is at the head of the network, was automated first and has completed its retrospective conversion. At first this library catalogued the material acquired for all the others; then a number of them were able in their turn to computerise and thus contribute directly to the union catalogue of the national museum libraries. This can now be consulted on the internet site of the Ministry of Culture.

Colonization, Decolonization, and Power: Ruptures and Critical Junctures Out of Dominance

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
James H. Liu ◽  
Felicia Pratto
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
National Identity ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Social Structure ◽  
Critical Junctures ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World ◽  
European Colonization ◽  
Historical Trajectory ◽  
The Impact

Colonization and decolonization are theorized at the intersection of Critical Junctures Theory and Power Basis Theory. This framework allows human agency to be conceptualized at micro-, meso-, and macro-levels, where individuals act on behalf of collectives. Their actions decide whether critical junctures in history (moments of potential for substantive change) result in continuity (no change), anchoring (continuity amid change with new elements), or rupture. We apply this framework to European colonization of the world, which is the temporal scene for contemporary social justice. Several critical junctures in New Zealand history are analyzed as part of its historical trajectory and narrated through changes in its symbology (system of meaning) and technology of state, as well as the identity space it encompasses (indigenous Māori and British colonizers). The impact of this historical trajectory on the social structure of New Zealand, including its national identity and government, is considered and connected to the overarching theoretical framework.

scholarly journals Costing the cold: Connecting fuel poverty & supplier switching in Wellington, New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sam McLean
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Electricity Market ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
Electricity Prices ◽  
Energy Services ◽  
Poor Households ◽  
Competitive Prices ◽  
Supplier Switching ◽  
Equitable Outcomes

<p>Fuel poverty describes the inability of households to afford adequate energy services, such as space heating. In New Zealand, where 25% of households are estimated to be ‘fuel poor’, high electricity prices in a restructured electricity market have an important influence on fuel poverty. However, the ability of the New Zealand Government to regulate these high electricity prices is constrained. Consequently, there is a strong reliance on consumers to switch energy suppliers, which promotes competitive prices and in turn regulates the price of electricity. In contrast to energy efficiency improvements, switching offers fuel poor households a low-cost opportunity to improve the short-term affordability of energy services. Yet, switching is suggested to not benefit fuel poor households who are in most need of affordable energy.  This thesis explored the relationship between fuel poverty and supplier switching in Wellington, New Zealand through a geographic lens. First, a new approach to identifying fuel poverty in New Zealand was applied. Using geographic information systems (GIS), a fuel poverty index was calculated to identify fuel poverty in Wellington at meshblock level. Spatial analysis of the index revealed the complexity of identifying fuel poverty and the extent to which the spatial distribution of fuel poverty in Wellington is shaped by the city’s colonial history. The index was then used to identify survey participants through which a survey was conducted exploring Wellington households’ switching behaviours. In a competitive market, consumers are expected to switch according to economically rational behaviours. However, switching behaviours in the survey sample were influenced by factors other than these economically rational behaviours. Integrating the findings of this thesis supports suggestions that switching is not benefiting the fuel poor. Finally, this thesis sheds light on the extent to which an understanding of the geography of fuel poverty can be applied towards improving the effectiveness of policy and equitable outcomes for fuel poor households.</p>

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document