Shaping Identities: Colonial Histories in Museums

The Irish Museums Association (IMA) invites you to an intimate afternoon screening of seven short videos examining objects in museums' collections with links to empire and colonialism.

Produced by the Irish Museums Association and Queen's University Dublin, as part of the MENII Memories, MENII Voices (MMMV) project, each of the seven recordings invites a museum curator to select an object from their collections with links to our colonial legacy, examining how museum objects carry the legacies of empire and exploring both their complex histories and continuing influence on contemporary cultural and our social identities.

Curators and objects featured are:
- Brian Crowley, Curator of Kilmainham Gaol Museum, Office of Public Works: 1808 Kilmainham Gaol Map
- Dan Breen, Curator of Cork Public Museum: Bill of Lading (Cork–Jamaica)
- Roisin Doherty, Curator of the Tower Museum, Derry City and Strabane District Council: “Empire-Sun” Toy
- Anne Hodge, Curator of Prints and Drawings, National Gallery of Ireland: William Evans of Eton’s 1838 Portfolio of Sketches
- Agrippa Njanina, Assistant Curator of World Cultures at National Museums NI: Shona Mbira
- Helen O'Carroll, Curator/Manager of Kerry County Museum: Roger Casement Sketch Map
- Paolo Viscardi, Keeper of Natural History at the National Museum of Ireland: Selangor Mud Snake example

These Curator’s Choice recordings highlight the role of museums in interpreting these collections in a changing social context and is part of a wider reflection on the foundations of heritage and our history, not only in our physical structures, but also in the landscapes, systems, and cultural narratives that have shaped our society.

The screening will be presented in an informal setting, presenting an additional opportunity to talk to IMA staff about the broader work of the Association and its members.

Find out more about the IMA and how we support the museum sector, on our website: https://irishmuseums.org/

This event is free of charge but registration is necessary.

The Irish Museums Association (IMA) is the main representative body for the Irish museum community. An all-island organisation, the IMA promotes and supports the museum sector through activities that highlight the value of our collections and the contribution of museums to our society as places of learning, conservation, research, and interpretation.

The MENII Memories, MENII Voices project (2023-2024) was developed by Queen’s University Belfast in partnership with the Irish Museums Association and ArtsEkta. It aimed to promote understanding of intersecting themes of shared futures, diversity, and the decolonisation of heritage, and to amplify community voice in understanding how colonial and imperial histories relate to contemporary society.