International Conference: Decolonizing Museums and Colonial Collections

Date: March 12-14, 2025
Location: Figueira da Foz, Portugal
Organisation: the conference is a collaborative effort between colleagues from Institute of Contemporary History, NOVA University, and Évora University (Portugal), Queens College, City University of New York (USA), University of São Paulo (Brazil), and Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford (UK), supported by TheMuseumsLab.

The TRANSMAT IN2PAST Conference conference will delve into the theme of transdisciplinarity as a vital tool and framework for reimagining museums and their colonial collections from an inclusive and decolonial perspective. Globally, there is a growing movement fueled by public demand to decolonize museum institutions. However, practical strategies for decolonizing museums and addressing their colonial collections are often lacking in discussions.

Transdisciplinarity has emerged as a response to the growing complexity of contemporary issues in society and must also be invoked to deal with the complexity of decolonization and the processes of collection documentation and rethinking of the ‘captive’ objects held in museums. To undiscipline museums and adopt a novel approach to documenting, curating, and presenting colonial collections, there is a need for future museums to be receptive to diverse ways of knowing, both within and beyond academia. Consequently, through case studies from around the world, this conference aims to disseminate transdisciplinary experiences and methodologies related to museums and colonial collections, fostering a more inclusive and informed approach to preserving and presenting historical knowledge.

Topics that will be discussed during the three-day conference include:

• Colonialism and power dynamics
• Provenance research
• Object, material culture biographies
• Restitution, repatriation, and reparation
• Collections development and care
• Decolonization and reinterpretation
• Exhibitions, and representing hidden and untold stories
• Representation and identity memory and healing
• Cultural appropriation and ownership
• Education and awareness

The final programme of the three-day conference is currently being drawn up.