'Unmasked: Spirit in the City' Curator Talk

Monday 23 October, 12.30 

A man lies on a bed with, leaning his head on one raised arm, staring towards the camera, in a room with green walls.

Masquerade is a public spectacle based on disguise. It conceals and resists knowledge. In many ways it is unknowable. But in the ethnographic museum masks are presented as if they reveal the mysteries of a culture and its cosmology. Museums pin them down in glass vitrines and furnish them with explanatory labels. As a result African masks are often presented as static symbols of the identity and material culture of rural communities from a bygone era. But masking has always been current, reflecting the times in which it is performed, and the landscapes - including cities - that masked spirits encounter.

A talk by one of the curators of Pitt Rivers Museum's current exhibition.

Part of our Research Spotlights Series.

 

On the last Monday of the month join Pitt Rivers Museum researchers in the galleries for interactive talks bringing cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary research to life. In 2023, connect with objects and images from the collections and get to know the work of visual and evolutionary anthropologists, curatorial activists, health-care researchers and many other specialists who are accessing the museum to take their research in new directions and to connect with new people.  

Where: Meet underneath the Star House Crest Pole (Haida Totem Pole) in the Museum’s Court for talks to start at 12.30.  

Who: All are welcome to attend, from families to museum aficionados!  

Accessibility: Talks will be wheelchair accessible, may involve material that can be handled and we can provide follow-up info over email for visitors.      

 

Is there a particular aspect of the Pitt Rivers’ works that you want to hear more about?  Tweet us to let us know @Pitt_Rivers #PRMResearchSpotlight