Museums and the Shaping of Knowledge

by Eilean Hooper-Greenhill

Museums have been active in shaping knowledge over the last six hundred years. Yet what is their function within today's society? At the present time, when funding is becoming increasingly scarce, difficult questions are being asked about the justification of museums. Museums and the Shaping of Knowledge presents a critical survey of major changes in current assumptions about the nature of museums. Through the examination of case studies, Eilean Hooper-Greenhill reveals a variety of different roles for museums in the production and shaping of knowledge. Today, museums are once again organising their spaces and collections to present themselves as environments for experimental and self-directed learning.

Genres: Museums, Nonfiction, Museology, Art History, Theory, Art

244 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Helena · Rating 3 out of 5]

foundational work for my (hopefully) future studies, so of course i respect it, but i found the writing style pretty repetitive and unclear. the amount of foucalt quotations is frightening

also, miss girl bases a lot of her theory on macgregor, and while i get it, because he was indeed my childhood hero, i'm now reading brutish museums and his stance on repatrations and even more so iraq is ummm.. yeah. i mean, i know this book only began the discourse, but since i've been consuming a lot of museum studies oriented media and decolonisation media, it feels off to read a book on formation of knowledge in museums without a single mention of looting

[GraceHaff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rarely do I read an academic text cover to cover but this was relevant enough for my own research that I felt it was worth it. It was great for finding the origins of certain theories and laying down a framework for study. However there are some clear gaps and major points that haven’t be discussed particularly in terms of its eurocentricity.

[Phoenix2 · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay, but a bit complecated.