Museums, History and Migration in Australia

Abstract

It is easy to take the presence of migration histories in Australian museums for granted. After all, most Australians are descended from immigrants, Australia's cultural diversity is celebrated as a national strength, and museums must represent and explain that diversity in order to tell stories of the nation's past. However, it is only in the last thirty years that experiences of migration have become the subject of collections, exhibitions, and even entire museums in Australia. In light of recent research and scholarly work this article surveys how migration history is portrayed in Australian museums. It reveals that creators of migration exhibitions have constantly negotiated a tension between an inclusive and affirming 'nation of immigrants' story and the more difficult histories of conflict, difference and exclusion that characterise Australia's history of migration. Curatorial approaches to this tension have been shaped by changing political climates, public attitudes to migrants and multiculturalism, and community demands for representation in cultural institutions. International museological events, such as the opening of Ellis Island Immigration Museum in New York in 1990, have also been influential. When located within these institutional, social and political contexts, exhibitions of migration history in Australia can be understood within three broad and overlapping phases. The earliest exhibitions, beginning in the mid-1980s, aimed to integrate minority migrant experiences into a pluralistic national story in order to overturn previous monocultural narratives of national becoming. A second phase of exhibitions, from the mid-1990s, overtly democratised this 'new' migration narrative in an attempt to appeal to Anglo-Celtic Australians who did not identify with multiculturalism. While elements of both approaches remain, in last decade Australian museums have begun to look beyond migrations to the nation and towards an exploration of transnational networks, personal belonging and dislocation, and the idea of home.

Experiencing differences and negotiating prejudices at the Immigration Museum Melbourne

“…In the context of Australia, which is generally seen as a country of immigrants, Henrich (2013) traces the history of Australian migration exhibitions and discerns three phases: the first in the mid-1980s aimed to integrate minority migrant experiences into a pluralistic national story, the second phase from the mid-1990s democratised this migration narrative and in the in last decade the focus has shifted to transnational networks and personal belonging. Importantly, while Australia has been a pioneer in migration museums through institutions such as the Migration Museum in Adelaide (Szekeres 2007), the theme of migration has remained a contested terrain, as can be observed in the case of the National Museum of Australia (NMA).…”

Marginal or mainstream? Migrant centres as grassroots and official heritage

“…People are still paying to have their and their families' names included on the growing Wall. These types of commemorative 'walls' to migration have become, since the 1990s, a familiar feature of the Australian commemorative landscape (see Henrich 2013). They hint to a willingness of some former DPs and assisted migrants to participate in the congratulatory rhetoric that now surrounds the post-war migration scheme.…”

Pereajalugu internetiajastul: diasporaa-genealoogia ja jätkuv ajalookirjutusprotsess

“…igal pool maailmas eriti tähtsaks. (Vt nt Ashton & Hamilton 2007;Marselis 2011;Henrich 2013. ) Migratsiooniga seotud arhiivid ühendavad eri riike, ent on samas olulised ka iga üksiku riigi rahvusliku ajaloo seisukohast (Creet 2011: 3) lisaks ümberasuja isikuandmetele ka muud temaga seonduvat teavet ja tema minibiograafia.…”

“…Põhjus, miks pereajaloole nii palju tähelepanu pööratakse, peitub osaliselt nende riikide mitmekultuurilisuses. Oma juurte tundmist on peetud vahendiks, mis aitab saabujail koduneda ja kohalikul elanikkonnal teadvustada mujalt tulnute ajalugu (vt nt Creet 2011;Henrich 2013).…”