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- Convenors:
-
Olympia Peperaki
(Greek Ministry of Culture)
Artemis Stamatelou (Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Tourism)
- Location:
- Wills G25
- Start time:
- 18 December, 2010 at
Time zone: Europe/London
- Session slots:
- 1
Short Abstract:
Taking its cue from B. Dicks' analysis of contemporary visitability, this session seeks to expose the ways in which current strategies of staging the past as a visitable experience work to (re)produce archaeologies of a certain kind.
Long Abstract:
Visitability, in the sense of the ability to attract visitors, has emerged as an important concern in heritage, connected with both the economic viability of related institutions and their avowed mission to educate the public. As Bella Dicks (2004) in her recent analysis has noted, such ability came recently to depend on specific strategies of representation, in terms of both content and modes of display (from simulations and reconstructions to popular hands-on, interactive exhibits). The underlying assumption has been that these strategies may ensure meaningfulness and relevance for wider and more diverse audiences.
This session invites a discussion of this assumption with particular reference to the representation of archaeological material in either museums or archaeological sites - a crucial focus given the growing concern over both the public impact of archaeology and its epistemological status. To undertake this analysis, we propose an inquiry into the ways in which currently popular representational strategies seek to structure the experience of "visiting" archaeology, and the particular ways of relating to archaeological material that these promote, especially in relation to previously prevalent, more "traditional", modes of representation. It also commands interest in potential conflicts and contradictions between the intentions of those entrusted to stage such experiences and their impact on those actually performing the visit.
Welcoming insights from archaeological theory, museums and heritage studies (including visitor research), as well as tourism, the ultimate goal is to assess the extent to which such considerations may indicate new ways of defining (and achieving) "visitable" archaeologies.
References
Dicks, B. 2004. Culture on Display: The Production of Contemporary Visitability. London: Open University Press
Accepted papers:
Session 1Afroditi Chatzoglou (University of Cambridge) Olympia Peperaki (Greek Ministry of Culture)
Paper short abstract:
This paper examines how the implementation of a major project in the heart of the historic centre of Athens shapes perceptions of the monumental archaeological heritage in this area.
Paper long abstract:
The monumental archaeological heritage of the historic centre of Athens, that has been discovered in the Renaissance period and the Age of Enlightenment and has been established in the nineteenth century, has been recently re-examined in an attempt to redefine what should be the cultural history of the area and how it should be presented to the public. As is well-known, the project included both new excavations and enhancement of existing archaeological sites, as well as intensive remodeling of a network of streets (the so-called "Grand promenade") designed to connect these various components of the landscape. The principal rationale and ambition of the project was the communication to the public of a sense of historical continuity that intensive occupation of the city had interrupted.
The purpose of this paper is to expose and evaluate the logic and implications of this endeavour. A particular focus on the "Grand promenade", as the major means through which this sense of continuity could be realized by the visitor, serves, in this sense, a dual purpose. It first of all allows acknowledging the project as an exercise at imposing coherence and legibility on an intensively built and rebuilt landscape. Secondly, it invites reflection on the ways in which the long history of the area has been (re)constructed and received by visitors.
Laura Snook (University of Birmingham)
Paper short abstract:
This paper argues that Greek architectural sculpture has, in recent years, begun to be regarded less as high art, and more as archaeological artefact, and that this change is reflected in the way those sculptures are being displayed in museums.
Paper long abstract:
The display of Greek sculpture in museums gained prevalence in the early nineteenth century with the discovery and excavation of numerous temples and sanctuaries. Copies of the collections were made in plaster and shipped out to museums across the globe wanting to display what were deemed to be examples of the finest art to come out of Classical Greece. These displays were often designed so as to produce the best conditions for artists wanting to draw and paint the sculptures.
In recent years several of these collections have undergone significant rearrangements, with many of these new exhibitions attempting to reunite the sculptures with their archaeological background, exhibiting them in ways that remind the visitor of their architectural origins and context from which they came. The age of the display of Greek sculpture as pieces of art, shown in isolation of their intended surroundings, devoid of their archaeological history, appears to be coming to an end.
This paper discusses the different methods of display currently being employed to present Greek architectural sculpture as archaeology rather than art. It compares archaeological, historical and artistic exhibitions of architectural sculpture, analysing the various display methods used in each.
Matt Blewett
Paper short abstract:
Pengersick Castle, Cornwall, is transforming from home to museum. Instead of conforming to the cult of the country house, it is an eclectic mix of ontologies. Will it still be visitable while retaining all of its eccentricities, from dowsing to spiders webs?
Paper long abstract:
Pengersick Castle, Cornwall, is an ideal candidate for the "cult of the country house" (Smith 2006, 158), possessing a medieval granite tower set in pleasant gardens. Yet on the death of the last owner, the tower was left to trustees in order to "preserve the magic and mystery" of Pengersick as they opened it to the public, an approach which can best be summed up as "alternative". Research has encompassed archaeological, historical, folklore and literature strands. These sit with dowsing and ghost hunters and a policy of leaving spiders webs on show to make this an absorbing but complex place. This paper explores some of the guiding principles of the trust and the plans for transformation, to ask if they reconcile with Dicks' analysis of "Visitibility". Do the plans conform to just another representation of dominant culture, or do they truly offer something new?
Siân Smith (University of Exeter)
Paper short abstract:
This paper draws on my experiences as a volunteer on the First Hand scheme at Plymouth City Museum which allows visitors to handle artefacts from the collections. It considers questions about visitor reaction, sensory and emotional engagement, and the effect of the scheme on visitability.
Paper long abstract:
Plymouth City Museum's Archaeology gallery, entitled 'Uncovered', re-opened to visitors in 2009 after a redesign and refurbishment which aimed to provide a more meaningful engagement between visitors and collections. The displays and activities in the gallery feature artefacts in the context of places and periods, but also show the methods used to excavate, conserve and interpret the artefacts, and allow visitors a more complex sensory interaction with the artefacts and the archaeological process. As part of this new perspective, the 'Uncovered' gallery plays host four days a week to a 'First Hand Discovery Desk'. Visitors handle a selected range of objects from the museum's collections and discuss their ideas and feelings about these artefacts with volunteers who oversee the desks. This paper will discuss the ideas behind the 'First Hand' scheme, and will draw primarily on my experiences as a Discovery Desk volunteer. It will consider my assumptions about the way in which visitors would react to artefacts and the way in which assumptions have been confirmed and confounded. It will also consider a number of related issues: does handling an object enable a more meaningful encounter? Is this encounter essentially a performance by object and volunteer? Does the scheme allow greater freedom of interpretation or encourage the telling of particular stories? And does it contribute to the museum's 'visitability'?
Steven Timoney (Perth College UHI)
Paper short abstract:
Although archaeological sites presented to the public are bound up within heritage and tourism spheres, visits to sites reflect the variety of roles which sites play. Based on research into public perceptions of archaeology sites, this paper looks at case studies of their interpretation in Scotland.
Paper long abstract:
Although archaeological sites presented to the public are generally bound up within the heritage and tourism spheres today, visits to sites reflect the wide variety of roles which archaeological sites play. As well as being incorporated within the myriad option of tourist attractions, archaeological sites are important symbols linked to personal or national heritage and identity, as well as being connected with a sense of place and providing a tangible connection to the past, real or imagined.
Based on research into public perceptions of archaeological sites, this paper will look at two case studies of the interpretation of archaeology in Scotland. It will reflect on the ways these sites have been presented, before looking in more detail at the ways in which people engage with these sites.