Paper short abstract:

This paper examines public displays about death, which have become popular in museums in the US. The paper argues that the displays stand in for and evoke personal narratives, and by drawing people into public spaces and the sharing of stories, the displays sustain the broader storytelling revival.

Paper long abstract:

This paper begins with a brief survey of the storytelling revival in the US, since the early 1970s, and its potential intersections with other changes in society, including the emergence of new tools for self-curation within visual fields. Then, with reference to a few key photographs, I turn to an examination of two kinds of temporary, participatory public displays that have become popular in museums and related venues in the Eastern US. The displays feature photography, paintings, assemblages and other forms of art and heritage, and deal innovatively with the subject of death. One kind of display consists of reimagined, reconfigured altars for the Mexican Day of the Dead; the other kind of display encompasses "memorial walls," public art, exhibitions and other displays that address recent deaths from opioid addiction. I focus on an example of each kind of display, drawing from observations and interviews in museums and addiction recovery communities; discuss changes in museum practice, including a turn away from authoritative narratives, that have contributed to the development of the displays; and consider the affect that the displays have on spectators. The paper argues that the displays stand in for and evoke personal narrative performances, and as strategies for drawing people together in public spaces, for participation in novel forms of sharing stories, learning and shaping the self, the displays respond to and shape the broader storytelling revival.