City Exhibitions: Community Involvement and the Construction of History

Abstract

City exhibitions today are intended to not only represent the museum’s community but to also serve the needs of their community. Museums in the 21st century are moving towards establishing more equal power relationships between the community and the museum, which has resulted in an adaptation to many museum’s engagement strategies. These strategies ultimately determine the purpose and relevance of a city exhibition. This thesis aims to examine how New Zealand museums are displaying a city’s history in their social history exhibitions, what is their purpose and whether they are a socially relevant addition to New Zealand museums. Two case studies are presented by way of example: Waikato Museum’s exhibition Hamilton Stories: Never a Dull Moment, and the Museum of Wellington City and Sea’s exhibition Telling Tales- Wellington’s 20th Century. In addition, this thesis will explore ideas of museum authority and how including multiple perspectives can affect the construction and representation of the city’s history and identity. This thesis concludes that city exhibitions can be socially relevant within New Zealand museums but only when the exhibitions include extensive community involvement within the development process. This is critical to create links between the past, present and future in order to invoke a sense of understanding, belonging, and identity for all the communities involved.