Exhibition TBT: ‘Human Nature’
The series of exhibition throwback’s continues. Today’s post touches on a subject that hold’s relevance today, as well as the past. Environments around the world have changed since the variations of lockdown have come into force. During this time, I have been thinking a lot about the impact of human nature on our environment. And how this term has been understood in past, in different societies.
The Human Nature exhibition attempted to connect past and contemporary thinking around consumerism, climate change and sustainability together. And encouraging lasting change that everyone could practically apply (or be more aware of) in their daily lives. With such a bold exhibition title and a huge subject area to explore: how did the Museum of World Culture in Gothenburg (Sweden) approach this?
Human nature as a term has many definitions depending on what era we’re looking at, as well as cultural context. At uni, I was introduced to theorists like Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Karl Marx, who debated the meaning of human nature. More recently, artists and theologians — like Lynette Yiadom Boakye and James H. Cone — have expanded this conversation even further. Strands of these debates touched on questions like, to what extent are our traits and behaviours natural or learned? And what impact do these traits have on our world?
With these questions in mind, I was intrigued when I saw this exhibition was being undertaken by a museum which houses an ethnographic collection. But how does ethnography actually relate to human nature? For context, ethnography is a research method used to study the societies and cultures of people. And this museum has collected objects that relate to the societies and cultures of different people. Just as a side note, there are mixed feelings about the study and display of objects through an ethnographic lens — but that’s a topic for another day.
The first section of this exhibition was set up as a one-way maze. Along the walls and behind peepholes, contemporary artworks and objects provoked thoughts on consumerism, material culture and sustainability. And offered creative ways of potentially changing our mindset in these areas.
The rest of the exhibition followed this maze structure but opened up to a bigger space. Themes such as Connected, Good Times and Slow Violence were explored in break out spaces. Objects from the museum collection, visual art and even clothing were displayed in close proximity together — or even overlapped.
For instance, this shovel from the Kerio Valley in Kenya was ‘used for digging the first irrigation canals, before iron tools were used’. It’s interesting then to consider how this shovel is connected with these cards associated with libraries (biblotek in Swedish). Are the curators thinking about how wood has been used in the past and at present? Or how wood as a material can link to sustainability in more than one way at different times?
These displays weaved in research from a project by Mistra — MistraSustainableConsumption.
This project focused on how to reduce consumption in the following areas:
- Food
- Holidays
- Interior decoration
Interestingly, these are areas of consumption are relatable to many people (not everyone). Considering ourselves as a starting point within the discussion of human nature, consumerism and sustainability can be a powerful, yet uncomfortable place (for some) to be. Questions can be great entry points for audience engagement. Especially, rhetorical questions as visitors are almost being confronted by their own thoughts, ideas and beliefs as well as information within the exhibition. There were also short provocations dotted around that really sparked moments for pausing and reflecting. I thought this was an effective strategy which laid the foundation for potentially shifting visitors mindsets towards the direction of active change.
My key takeaways:
- Understanding where we are situated within certain discussions can ground us. I think there are times when debates on issues such as human nature, climate change or sustainability can be quite abstract. Drawing connections with our actions and thoughts towards issues discussed in this post, can be a great starting point towards a journey of change (or improvement).
- Approaches to issues like climate change and sustainability has a long history. Considering different ways of thinking is vital as the world continues to face the alarming reality of climate change. But respect must be shown when ways of thinking influences policies, movements and education efforts. Crediting innovative people who encourage change is an important but sometimes overlooked area.
- During this time of uncertainty, I hope you have been inspired in some way (or by someone) which has either shifted your mindset around human nature and reconsidering what impacts on our world we can actually change.
