Work

Populist truth-making: a conceptual approach to populism in the context of European museums

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: This article develops the concept of populist truth-making as a device to study the effects of populist politics on museums in Europe. Despite a growing interest in the (mis)uses of the past by populist politics in heritage and memory studies, our understanding of how populist politics affect museums and other heritage institutions is still limited. With reference to our cross-European ethnographic study of museums and populism, this conceptual article applies an anthropological lens to populist politics to investigate how populist truth-making works in practice. The concept of ‘populist truth-making’ highlights how this repertoire of practices shapes the field of museums and heritage by drawing on the construction of truth (in the singular) and the making of heritage, as well as the power of emotions, affects, and digital affinities. In addition, the article discusses the main challenges that addressing populism poses for museum and heritage researchers and practitioners, and the contributions of the proposed conceptual approach.

Source: International Journal of Heritage Studies

DOI: 10.1080/13527258.2024.2443900

Authors: Julia Leser, Christoph Bareither, Sharon Macdonald

Institutions: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, University of Tübingen

Language: English

Topic: Cultural Identity and Heritage

Subfield: Archeology

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Funders: University College London, Volkswagen Foundation, Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen