Collaborative Research
C .[Preparatory Research] General Research on the Establishment of an Imagery Type Exhibition System
| Type of Research | Scientific Research |
|---|---|
| Project Title | General Research in Museum Studies |
| Research Title | C .[Preparatory Research] General Research on the Establishment of an Imagery Type Exhibition System |
| Head of the Research Team | NISHITANI Masaru |
| Research Period | 2008–2010 |
| Research Team |
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| Purpose | The research reevaluates the material collections of museums by introducing the idea of "representation." This notion has been recently given more emphasis because of research in various fields of science, as well as anthropology, history, and the arts. Through this reevaluation, this group proposes a new approach for museums. "Representation" here means to extract more than one value and significance from a single material. The value here includes not only those in various cultural frameworks in contemporary Japan, but also those in relation with history and cultures that have come through various situations of various periods, as well as those observed from different cultural viewpoints of overseas countries. With these premises in mind, this group aims to create an exhibition system that effectively presents materials and information extracted from them and also invites the audience to participate in the formation of historical representation at a museum to deepen their understanding of history. The group's purpose is to review historical materials taking into account their relations with various periods, countries, and cultures, in order to present their rich and profound aspects to the audience effectively as well as dynamically using interactive exhibition methods. |
2008
Progress
| The 1st Workshop August 19 National Museum of Japanese History |
|---|
The group discussed the current situations of research on representation and the possibility of a representative exhibition at NMJH. |
The 2nd Workshop 1–3 November Fieldwork |
The group visited Asahikawa City and inspected examples of representative exhibitions and exhibition techniques. In particular, the group concentrated on Asahikawa City Museum, which was reopened on December 1, and Ainu Memoriam Museum, focusing on Ainu-related representative exhibitions. The group also visited Asahiyama Zoo in order to learn from their exhibition methods. |
| The 3rd Workshop January 29 and 30 Fieldwork |
The group visited the Toyota Automobile Museum and The Museum Meijimura in Aichi Prefecture. At the Toyota Automobile Museum, group members observed how the company expresses the relationships between cars and society. In The Museum Meijimura, the group examined exhibition techniques in an open air museum. |
| The 4th Workshop 19–22 February |
The group visited and examined representative exhibitions and exhibition techniques at The Railway Museum (Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture), Kankaku Museum (Osaki City, Miyagi Prefecture), Nanbu Toji Museum (Hnamaki City, Iwate Prefecture), and Ogawarako Folk Museum (closed) (Misawa City, Aomori Prefecture). |
Result
The group conducted a thorough review of the methods of exhibition and expression at museums, which are now at a crossroads, from the viewpoint of representation based on the research result so far. Accordingly, the group reached a conclusion that it is necessary to research not only theory construction but also the methods to embody them.
A museum will lose significance if its relations with the audience or the public become weak. In the future, it will have to meet the demands of the public, while maintaining a high level of research activity. Furthermore, it is essential for a museum to realize "coevolution with audience" by stimulating and enhancing the awareness of the public. Conventionally, an exhibition at a museum has been an "educational" opportunity to present a story. In the future, however, a museum will be required to create an exhibition environment that enables the audience to choose the necessary information actively from many options to form a historical representation, and thus produce a self-teaching audience.
By continuing the research toward the future, this group hopes to widely disseminate a methodical model of representation, "the NMJH model" as it may be called, among museums throughout Japan. Through such efforts, this group believes that it can create a new method of museum exhibition. The group also believes that propositions of developmental discussion can be induced by means of publishing the results of these researches not only domestically for museums and institutions such as universities conducting research on museology, but also more generally, for the world.
