Franco-German Doctoral Program:”Representing the ‘Other’: Museums, Universities, Ethnology”

PI: Prof. Dr. Hahn

Funding: German-French University (DFH/ufa)
Period: 01/2023 – 12/2026

In a cooperation of the Univ. Paris III and the Goethe University, funded by the DFH, the collegium will investigate over the next four years the particular challenges that museums with ethnographic collections face in the present. Starting from the observation that such museums are places of representation, the aim is to explore in more detail what social functions museums have in the 21st century, what role collections play in this, and finally, what principles can be used to design appropriate exhibitions.

The aim of this college is to contribute to the internationalization of the debate on museums, and precisely not to limit itself to the dominant Anglophone discourse. Other questions of interest are: What are the particular achievements that distinguish museums in German-speaking and Francophone countries? What particular challenges do they have to contend with? What recommendations can be made for the further development of museum concepts and museum practices?

These are the questions that the participating scholars and a small group of selected doctoral students are addressing during this period. They are searching for convincing and sustainable answers to these questions through specific research in the individual doctoral research projects funded, as well as through exchange in workshops and conferences.

Here you can find information from our partner institution in Paris.