Co‐Curation and the Public History of Science and Technology

Boon, Tim

doi:10.1111/j.2151-6952.2011.00102.x

Cited by 15 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…To recognise and incorporate varied readings of science within and across cultures is challenging, but recent developments in participatory mechanisms for exhibit development suggest ways forward. For example, Boon's (2011) concept of 'co-curation' in developing public approaches to the history of science, technology and medicine may provide a useful model. Such an approach includes broadening the range of experts consulted beyond the natural sciences and beyond academia (Boon et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussion: Understanding the Exhibitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual Nature? (Re)presenting Sexuality and Science in the Museum

2016

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The past 15 years have seen dramatic changes in social norms around sex and sexuality in the UK and worldwide. In 2011, the London Natural History Museum (NHM) contributed to these debates by opening the temporary exhibition Sexual Nature, which aimed to provide 'a candid exploration of sex in the natural world' whilst also drawing in an under-represented audience of young adults. Sexual Nature provides an opportunity to explore Macdonald's 'politics of display' in the mutual construction of (public) scientific knowledge, society and sexuality, at a time of intense contestation over sexual norms. Whilst Sexual Nature both reflected and contributed to major reframings of sexuality and what science can say about it, the assumption that it would be possible to present this topic as morally neutral, reliable and uncontested, in line with traditions of public science, proved to be problematic. The language of the exhibition moved back and forth between human/animal similarity and difference, and between scientific and cultural tropes as the NHM tried to maintain epistemic authority whilst also negotiating the moral boundaries of acceptable sexual behaviour. The topic of sex pushed the museum far beyond its usual expertise in the natural sciences towards the unfamiliar territory of the social and human, resulting in an ad hoc search for, and negotiation with, alternative sources of expertise. Boon et al.'s co-curation approach to exhibition building has the potential to extend the NHM's audience-driven strategy, whilst also producing a more coherent and nuanced exhibition about the science of sex.

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Section: Discussion: Understanding the Exhibitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual Nature? (Re)presenting Sexuality and Science in the Museum

2016

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“…Like many organizations (Davies et al. ; Stein ), the Science Museum was interested in how it could engage its audiences with the history of science, technology, engineering and medicine through public history and participation, attending specifically to the “ways in which lay people pursue historical interests—whether that be family and local history, collecting, consuming historical magazines and television programs, or museum visiting” (Boon , 383; Boon et al ).…”

Section: The Rationale For the Enfield Exchange Projectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing Local Narratives for Objects in National Collections: Lessons Learned from the “Number Please? Working with the Enfield Exchange” Project

Geoghegan¹,

McIlvenna²,

Vaart³

2017

Curator The Museum Journal

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Museums of science, technology, and engineering are developing new ways of interpreting and displaying their collections. Increasingly objects are being placed within narratives of everyday use; the human side of technology. The focus of this article is a section of one of the last UK manual telephone switchboards, which was acquired by the Science Museum, London, following its decommissioning in 1960. This artifact offers a unique insight into a communication technology that relied extensively on female telephonists, a distinct way of understanding gender roles in the twentieth century. The authors explore strategies for developing local narratives for objects from national collections and reflect on lessons learned from a cross-institutional collaboration. This article highlights: the value of local historians, community events and oral histories to developing local narratives; how these activities informed understandings of the telephone switchboard; work life in the communications industry; the relationship between women and technology; and practical strategies that can enhance collections and museum practice through collaboration.

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“…Content curation finds many applications in online culture world today, including projects about heritage (Boon, 2011;Nilsen et al, 2012) and online identity (Boyd andEllison, 2007, 2008;Cox et al, 2008;Durrant et al, 2011). As a practice pertaining creative production, content curation has been understood to disrupt hierarchical modes of production (Parry, 2007;Hooper-Greenhill, 2000), but there are also more cynical applications of the concept in the online marketing world.…”

Section: Content Curation: Telling the Story Of The Storiesmentioning

confidence: 99%