Artifacts and Allegiances: How Museums Put the Nation and the World on Display

by Peggy Levitt

What can we learn about nationalism by looking at a country’s cultural institutions? How do the history and culture of particular cities help explain how museums represent diversity? Artifacts and Allegiances takes us around the world to tell the compelling story of how museums today are making sense of immigration and globalization. Based on firsthand conversations with museum directors, curators, and policymakers; descriptions of current and future exhibitions; and inside stories about the famous paintings and iconic objects that define collections across the globe, this work provides a close-up view of how different kinds of institutions balance nationalism and cosmopolitanism. By comparing museums in Europe, the United States, Asia, and the Middle East, Peggy Levitt offers a fresh perspective on the role of the museum in shaping citizens. Taken together, these accounts tell the fascinating story of a sea change underway in the museum world at large.

Genres: Nonfiction, Museums, Art, Museology, History

268 pages, Hardcover

First published July 7, 2015

Reviews

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

FTC Disclosure: I received this book free from Goodreads hoping I would review it.

[Drucilla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Take my rating with a grain of salt. I had a hard time with this book because it's very academic, and while I can handle academic, I found it dense at times and tough to get through. Levitt does a good job of accomplishing what she set out to do, though. I wish she would have focused a bit more on the behind-the-scenes aspect of museums. It seems like what led to these museums being created gets more page time than the actual museum.

[Victoria Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great study of several museums across the globe.