The Role of Object Biographies in Museology

Van de Ven, Annelies [UCL]

The biographies of objects are essential to constructing narratives in museums. They determine the parameters of possible display strategies, and contribute to the structure and content of interactions between the viewer and the exhibition. However, museums also contribute to writing object biographies themselves. The process of museological interpretation—the categorization, conservation and curation of the object within a collection—can add to or alter what is known about the object’s life story. The statue I have chosen (Object IV) is interesting because it was discovered in its secondary use in a paved floor. For a museum professional this provides a challenge. Besides choosing what physical characteristics of the object to communicate and in what form (labels, catalogues, digital media), you now also have two archaeological contexts to consider, the unknown primary context that must be deduced from physical features and comparison, as well as the secondary known and recorded context. In this workshop I will simulate a museological interpretation of Object IV, considering the implications that its physical and contextual attributes may have on display and publication strategies. My aim is to demonstrate the importance of the object biography as a technique of analysis when constructing and evaluating museum narratives.