Museum under de/construction
With the exhibition What the Fem?* (11.11.2022 – 28.05.2023), the Nordico Stadtmuseum engaged in a diverse, open, and process-oriented exploration of the topic of “feminism.” We invited activists, women*- and LGBTQIA+ initiatives, and associations to bring in their own questions, themes, contradictions, and life realities and make them visible in the exhibition. For the first time, certain wall areas and parts of the rooms remained empty at the beginning of the exhibition. These “construction” situations differed in design from the areas reflecting the voice of the museum and the curator. Over the course of the exhibition, at five different dates, various groups and individuals filled these empty spaces, making other voices visible. In this way, the show grew into a diversity that continually revealed surprises and new perspectives. The original narrative could be questioned, interrupted, or supplemented by these contributions. In a word: it was about deconstruction, or a “museum under de/construction.”
Who is speaking?
The Museum
On one hand, this is the “anonymous museum voice” — that is, the people who conceived the exhibition, selected the artworks, designed the presentation, and wrote the contextual texts. Authors of exhibition texts usually do not disclose who they are, where they come from, or what shapes their worldview. This often creates the impression of an ostensibly neutral speaking position, lending this voice the appearance of “objectivity” and “omniscience.” However, whether those who tell the stories have personal experience with, for example, racism, sexism, or exclusion also shapes how they tell these stories, which stories they consider important, how they assess archival material, what they search for, and where the focus is directed.
Activists, Women- and LGBTQIA+ Initiatives and Associations*
During the research process for the exhibition, conversations with activists and initiatives highlighted the problem that, in cultural institutions in this country, narratives are usually claimed exclusively by white voices from the middle class — and this is problematic not only in relation to a political topic like feminism. All the more reason to be pleased that committed individuals from various Linz initiatives formed five working groups. These groups worked on the following themes in and with the exhibition, gradually contributing their results to the show. To help visitors navigate the exhibition, each working group is assigned a different color. The results became visible in the exhibition from a specific date onwards.
From 19.01.23 STICK TOGETHER – SOLIDARIC (LIV)ING
Working Group 1: aFz Linz, FIFTITU%, Bündnis 8. März, Feminismus & Krawall, Frauen*Volksbegehren 2.0
The installation STICK TOGETHER – SOLIDARIC (LIV)ING addresses the still largely unfulfilled demands of women*’s movements from the three waves, while also incorporating current demands from climate activists such as Last Generation, which have long been part of feminist discourses. Through the installation, the demands of women*’s movements enter the museum, spread within it, and are subsequently carried back into public space. QR codes on stickers allow for active participation by adding missing demands on a landing page at https://www.dieforderungen.at. Women* from Upper Austria (aFz Linz, FIFTITU%, Bündnis 8. März, Feminismus & Krawall, Frauen*Volksbegehren 2.0) join forces.
From 02.02.23 “Lesbian Visibility Inside and Outside the LGBTIQ+ Community”
Working Group 2: HOSI Linz, Queere Frauen Linz
Lesbians have been and continue to be an important part of the feminist movement. When we talk about feminism, it is therefore essential to include the lesbian perspective. Additionally, lesbians are part of the LGBTIQ+ community — that is, all people whose sexual orientation and/or gender identity does not conform to the heteronormative worldview. Yet, both within the women’s movement and the LGBTIQ+ movement, lesbians often remain invisible. Their interests and demands frequently take a backseat. Why is this the case? And how can lesbians become more visible? Is the term “lesbian” still needed today, and what exactly do we mean by it? These and other questions were discussed in a workshop at the Nordico in January. The workshop was led by Susanne Kalka and Helene Traxler, who co-edited the book Lesbisch – Feministisch – Sichtbar: Role Models aus dem deutschsprachigen Raum, along with Gerhard Niederleuthner from HOSI Linz. The results of the discussion were made visible in the exhibition in purple.
From 23.02.23 Museum under de/construction: “Black, Queer & Trans Radical Feminism – Decolonising the Nordico – Part 1÷2”
Participants in Working Group 3 were JAAPO. The initiative invited BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) on Thursday, 16 February at 5 p.m. for a joint exhibition tour followed by a discussion. Topics addressed included the role and function of museums from the perspective of BIPOC, as well as questions about Linz from the perspective of Black women* and Women* of Color. Working Group 3 presented the results as graphic recordings and interventions in the exhibition, marked in magenta.
From 23.03.23 Museum under de/construction: “Black, Queer & Trans Radical Feminism – Decolonising the Nordico – Part 2÷2”
Participants in Working Group 4 were kollektiv & MAIZ. Under the title “Black, Queer & Trans Radical Feminism – Decolonising the Nordico – Part 2÷2” and marked with the color orange, their interventions were visible in the exhibition. On 03.03., the initiatives held a publicly accessible event asking: Who cleans the critical museum? What do politically organized migrants do, think, and how do they act when the museum positions itself critically? On 23.03., the initiatives led an uncomfortable tour of the museum and intervened live on-site.
From 20.04.23 Museum under de/construction: “Museum under de/construction. Self-Reflection of a Process of Un/Learning”
Participants in Working Group 5 were the team of the Nordico Stadtmuseum itself. The process of self-reflection by the museum and its staff was also integrated into the exhibition. During the “under de/construction” exhibition process, we were confronted with many new and critical questions — not only concerning the curatorial process but the entire museum practice. These experiences and questions were shared with the team, the criticisms and themes that became loud and visible were reflected on together in an internal museum working session, and our existing structures were examined openly and collectively.
In this way, questions and insights from the What the Fem?* process were made available to all staff at Nordico and Lentos. The results shown in the exhibition stem from this first collective reflection across all departments, including management, on museum structures as a response to the criticism experienced. The shared conclusion is clear: this must not remain a one-time process. Criticism of the museum must have consequences within the museum. Further intensive training on topics such as “diversity awareness” and “opening up” are steps in this direction.
The Visitors
The dialogue series Gesprächsstoff invited visitors in the Linzer Zimmer from November to February to exchange ideas and collaboratively develop new questions and thoughts. These contributions were collected, carefully organized, and incorporated as results into the exhibition. The series was curated by art educator Gabriele Kainberger, and selected guests discussed various thematic focuses at different dates.
Independent of events or guided tours, visitors could also voice their opinions within the exhibition and share their experiences with the exhibition or feminism in their everyday lives. Visitor feedback was integrated into different wall areas throughout the exhibition.
Fem*Stamp Pass 1+5
Visitors could pick up a stamp pass, which allowed them to visit the exhibition six times in total and follow the development process. As a reward, a booklet awaited them at the end of the exhibition. It was available at the ticket counter.
