Legacies

Episode 2 of What Are Museums For?: released on 25 November 2021

There is increasing recognition that enslavement, racial violence and exploitation are an inextricable part of our collective histories. In this episode of What Are Museums For?, Fitzwilliam Museum Director Luke Syson and Athena Art Foundation Director Nicola Jennings are joined by Aindrea Emelife and John Orna-Ornstein, to consider museums’ responses to the legacies of enslavement and colonialism. How can we tell stories about them without repeating the violence and perpetuating racist hierarchies? How do we make space for multiple truths, complexity and contradiction? In the face of multiple truths, where does the authority of museums reside?

This podcast is a Fitzwilliam Museum, Colnaghi Foundation and Athena Art Foundation co-production.

Image of Freedom Plate used as a banner image © Woolley & Wallis.