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This talk follows on from a 2024 article published in History: The Journal of the Historical Association. The talk will consider the state of the field of the history of collecting and its institutions, looking forward also to the future of this evolving field of study. Focusing particularly on work being undertaken from the perspective of collecting institutions rather than individual collectors, the talk will consider various areas of research within the field, including: histories of empire, slavery and gender; investigations of stakeholders; digital collections research; and commercial histories of collecting. The speakers will also consider the recent wider impact of research into the history of collections and its institutions. It will help museums and other institutions think how they can advance their research into the history of their institutions and collections.
Surya Bowyer, Shreya Gupta, Liberty Paterson and Niti Acharya co-authored the 2024 article “State of the (Future) Field: The History of Collecting and Its Institutions”. The four speakers are Collaborative Doctoral Students based at various museums and universities across England. Between 2020 and 2023, the speakers convened the History of Collecting and Institutions Group, an AHRC-funded research group that held a programme of events that generated critical conversations about this field of research.
Header image: Mounted albumen print, casts in store corridor, South Kensington Museum, c.1850s-1860s, V&A museum no. 33964