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Paper short abstract:

What forms of learning and unlearning are required when working with vexed collections? This paper explores collection ethnography and multimodal pedagogy to unlearn residual categories and curatorial habits, reshaping how objects are interpreted within the Museum of European Cultures in Berlin.

Paper long abstract:

What forms of learning and unlearning are required when working with vexed collections? This paper reflects on long-term ethnographic engagement and teaching practice in collaboration with the Museum of European Cultures in Berlin (MEK). Drawing on the collection ethnography and two multimodal student projects co-organized in collaboration with MEK’s curators, the paper explores the potential of anthropological intervention in disrupting entrenched museum practices.

It reflects on the role of collection ethnography in facilitating institutional (un)learning, presenting new ethical and methodological challenges inherent in museum practice. Through anthropological engagement with collections, the paper seeks to unveil their critical curatorial potential by reestablishing connections with source communities and communities of practice that extend beyond the confines of the museum. This exploration not only scrutinizes the object itself but also illuminates the intricate political entanglements, histories of displacement, and imperialism shaping the relations between Berlin and the European periphery.

Furthermore, the paper presents a selection of creative and participatory engagements within student projects in dialogue with the MEK’s collection. These initiatives demonstrate that artifacts, initially deemed challenging for inclusion in displays, can acquire new layers of meaning and curatorial potential through participatory artistic and social research. This includes revealing feminist perspectives on the objects and unlocking the diverse memories with which they are entangled in post-Cold War Berlin. This multimodal pedagogy approach serves as a method for unlearning entrenched museum categories and reshaping the interpretative lens through which objects are viewed within the MEK.