Museums, Publics, Power

Module code: MU7012

In this module, we will work together to explore how museums shape, and are shaped by, the societies in which they operate. You will encounter different kinds of museum organisations, including national and local museums, galleries, heritage sites, archives, and science centres, and examine how histories of collecting, funding, and institutional power influence what museums do and how they understand their public role.

We will consider museums not as isolated institutions, but as part of wider ecologies through which people, objects, knowledge and resources move. You will examine how museums exercise cultural authority, how political and policy agendas shape their work, and how museums themselves can reinforce or challenge existing inequalities and social relations.

The module also introduces ways of studying museums in context. You will use observation, mapping and case-study analysis to trace connections beyond the museum itself and compare institutions across different settings. In doing so, you will build confidence in critical discussion and evidence-based argument while developing the skills needed for postgraduate study in Museum Studies.