PGR & ECR Study Day: Call for Participants

Museum History Research: Sources, Methods, Approaches

Jodrell Lecture Theatre, Royal Botanic Garden, Kew

19 January 2023, 10am—4.30pm

MGHG are pleased to announce a PGR/ECR study day to explore methodological approaches to researching museum history. The day is aimed at those working with museum archive material and/or museum objects as part of historical research projects. With keynote contributions from Dr Emma Martin (University of Manchester) and Dr Isobel MacDonald (British Museum), the event will explore different approaches to the range of museum sources, from the data-driven to the object-focused. In a programme incorporating keynote papers, work-in-progress papers, engagement with material from Kew’s museum and archive collections and discussion sessions, it will challenge participants to think about what sorts of history are produced by different sources and analytical approaches, and how we can develop museum history methodologies to explore new aspects of museum history.

Key questions for the day include:

  • What are the structures and silences of museum collections and archives?

  • How should different sources be approached and understood?

  • What kinds of approach, from data crunching to history of emotions to material analysis, can help us understand museums and their collections?

Call for participants:

To take part in the study day, please send in, along with name and contact details:

  • A short description of your research including sources and methodologies used (max 100 words); and optionally—

  • A short proposal for a work-in-progress paper (10 mins) including title and max 100 word description. Please highlight methodological issues and questions arising in your work.

There will be approx. 16 slots for work-in-progress papers but up to 25 slots for the study day as a whole. Send to contact@mghg.info by 1 December 2022.

Attendance will be free for accepted participants, and those without institutional support for travel costs may be eligible for a small bursary—please let us know when you apply.