Museum of Dissent, 2018

Exhibition Guide:
Changeover

Introduction
Changeover​ @MuseumofDissent brings together a variety of objects to present a ‘reverse
museum’. Sometimes the staff are great, there is good interpretation and the visitor
(museum partner) feels warm and challenged by the space they are in. At other times they
are made to feel as “other”, presented with stereotypes and non-verbally told that the space
does not care for their history, their facts nor their personal experiences. Museums are not
neutral nor are they spaces which treat everyone as partners. Hence this exhibition
welcomes participants to experience the spectrum of emotions which museums can create.
To feel a spectrum of museum emotions. Every visitor to the Changeover exhibition leaves
with a different experience. Perhaps they were treated well by the staff members, perhaps
they felt uncomfortable and left as soon as possible. Nevertheless all elements of this
exhibition were drawn from real-life museum experiences and should be respected as such.

What do we mean by #Everydaydissent?

The Museum of Dissent have worked to create an inclusive and accessible environment.
Examples include paying all contributors fairly as well as ensuring that the space adheres to
accessibility best practice. To be dissentful it is important to always have room to grow,
which often includes moving away from the status quo. We at the Museum of Dissent
recognise that there is always room for improvement, and strive to be dissentful in all our
actions. Using the hashtag #Everydaydissent acknowledges that dissent is a continuous
process and a daily choice. As inspiring as any conference can be, it is important that
inspiration leads to action rather than stagnating once we return to a comfortable
environment. This being said please use the hashtag #Everydaydissent to keep yourself
inspired, challenge yourself daily and to move towards Dissent.

Programming
Curator tour
This tour gives a general introduction to the “Museum of Dissent”, explaining why the
displays were created and giving a more in depth look at what a real dissenting museum
could look like. This will include highlighting the terminology used to describe ethnographic
objects/ art work and how this comparison denotes a lack of respect for art and material
culture created in other cultures.
Museum of Dissent, 2018

The Exhibition

Role play in the exhibition space

Staff members will treat participants according to theme of the changeover exhibition
(good/bad). They will engage in conversations with participants but reserve the right to end
the conversation at any given time. This is to consider how changing personal behaviour (the
way you personally treat visitors and your work) is dissentful.

Featured Objects
Teacup, saucer and tea bags
Bad label -​ ​This label looks at British people in an ethnographic “othering” context, daring
visitors to challenge the discourse as it states categorical lies as facts. Though the text
describing different UK “tea” tribes may be viewed as nonsensical, the tone of this label was
set in order to show how nonsensical misinformed labels are.
Good label -​ This label briefly explores the global origins of tea and its popularity in the UK.
The label explicitly mentions the colonial origins of tea in UK, rather than brushing such an
important narrative under the “we cannot discuss this” carpet.

Wisdom by Citizen Kwame

Bad label -​ ​This label sees the statue and thinks ethnographically, the meaning and
sensuality of the statue is reduced to a material name and guessed location of origin. The
label also assumes the knowledge of the viewer rather than accepting that the label should
be accessible to a variety of audiences.
Good label -​ This object is the handling object of the Changeover exhibition. So often in
museums protection and preservation of an object is placed above all else, and therefore
institutions often inadvertently cut off some of the object's sensory functions. ​Wisdom​ is
made of ivory wood and was inspired by Ghanaian carvers and every element of the piece is
made to inspire. Information about the creator of the statuette and object provenance is
added here to show that more time needs to be put into under researched (underfunded)
areas of collections. Audio interpretation is used to open up the accessibility of the object.

Self portrait by Sarah Cecilia Harrison

Bad label -​ In this piece of interpretation Sarah C. Harrison is talked about in the context of
male gaze, and because she is a woman her achievements are downplayed.
Good label -​ Looks at Sarah C. Harrison as a skilled Irish artist and pioneer in her time.
Despite the pressures of Victorian & Edwardian society she dissented and became a
trailblazer. Though Harrison was definitely privileged, this does not take away from her great
tenacity and dissenting nature which pushed her to make change in Dublin.

GLDN by Sheeren Hunte

Bad Label -​ Looks at this contemporary artist in a very one dimensional way, and doesn’t
truly value what the artist is speaking about. Text is kept to a minimum to highlight how
women of colour (WOC) are often sidelined in comparison to their white peers.
Good Label - ​Here the artist speaks in their own voice, and is given free reign to
contextualise and explain the art which they created.