Ecologies of Display | Contemporary Art in Natural History Collections

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The presentation of contemporary art in natural history collections is a distinct field of curatorial practice that also has a recent art and exhibition history. The opportunities that this work presents for museums and audiences alike are manifold, but it is not without challenges.

This lecture discusses the production and display of contemporary art in natural history collections across a range of institutions and examines the ways this work has addressed ecological concerns such as species and habitat loss. At a time when museums across the sector are declaring a climate emergency and developing ways to respond, Dr Sarah Wade suggests that this artistic and curatorial work provides productive ways to activate collections, engage audiences and offer new possibilities for thinking through human-wildlife relations in ecologically troubled times.

is Associate Professor in Museum Studies at University of East Anglia. She has published widely on extinction and wildlife conservation issues in artistic and curatorial practice. She also co-founded the ‘Curating the Sea’ research project, resulting in a special issue of the Journal of Curatorial Studies (2020) and Oceans: Documents of Contemporary Art (MIT Press/Whitechapel Gallery, 2023). Sarah has worked with various museums and heritage organisations and continues to collaborate with museum colleagues on research, exhibitions and public engagement events.

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This is an in-person event at the Linnean Society of London on Piccadilly, London. If you have chosen to 'watch a recording', a link to the recording will be sent to you within a week of the event.

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