The negotiation of narratives: a case-study of the Indian community exhibition Aainaa: reflections through Indian weddings (September 2002 - September 2004) at the museum of New Zealand te papa tongarewa

Abstract

Exhibitions produced as a result of collaboration between cultural communities and museums are a recently recognized phenomenon and have been steadily growing in popularity. There has been research carried out on collaborative exhibitions worldwide but little research has been done in the New Zealand context. The aim of this thesis was to investigate current issues related to collaborative exhibitions by analysing the community gallery development processes of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. It examines as a local case-study the collaborative exhibition Aainaa - Reflections through Indian Weddings staged by Te Papa and the New Zealand Indian community between 2002 and 2004. In addition to secondary sources, the research for this thesis involved collecting primary evidence from documentary files produced by Te Papa staff working on the Aainaa exhibition and interview material. This study therefore provides a more complete picture of the process of negotiation between museum and community. It incorporates not only the internal museum procedures but also the important 'community perspective' on the exhibition development process, particularly through the interview material gathered from Indian members of the community advisory group who worked on the exhibition. I conclude that although collaborative exhibitions at Te Papa are not the result of 'shared authority', the development of the Aainaa exhibition conforms to one of Cameron's proposed models of collaborative exhibition development in New Zealand in which the museum provides a forum for the community through a negotiation process where museum staff provide the skills and retain control. I also conclude that the aims of both partners for Aainaa were fulfilled - the Indian community made a valuable contribution of knowledge and objects and in turn the exhibition celebrated Indian cultural difference. I point out that several steps -publications produced in association with collaborative exhibitions, touring the exhibitions and holding community and museum de-briefs - would be beneficial to both collaborative partners, the general public and the relevant scholarly discourse. This thesis has thrown new light on the relationship between museums and communities by elucidating the negotiation process of community exhibition development at Te Papa. It makes a useful contribution to the task of developing future collaborative exhibitions in New Zealand museums, but also adds to and extends the current scholarly discourse in the area of collaborative exhibitions.