Symbolic Machines – Institutional transformation through exhibitions

Symbolic Machines – On the power of exhibitions to transform museums.

How does a changed understanding of the museum's public role affect the way exhibitions are created today? And in what ways can exhibitions transform, discuss, or revise art institutions from within?

With contributions from artists, researchers, and curators, Symbolic Machines investigates how exhibitions not only reflect but can actively challenge and reshape a museum's relevance to its audience.

Artistic critics have long highlighted the gendered, class-based, and colonial power structures embedded in institutions. Recently, however, there has been a shift towards institutional self-criticism, with even large museums increasingly addressing their practices and narratives in public dialogue with audiences.

By integrating historical context with modern analyses, Symbolic Machines demonstrates how museums and exhibitions can actively engage in societal change.

About the editors

Edited by Pernille Lystlund Matzen, curator and PhD, and Jacob Lund, Associate Professor of Aesthetics and Culture at Aarhus University.

Contributors

• Nora Sternfeld
• Yvette Mutumba
• Cem A.
• Kim West
• Giulia Bellinetti
• Lucia Pietroiusti
• James Voorhies

The book is the first volume in the LOUISIANA RESEARCH series - edited by Lærke Rydal Jørgensen and Cecilie Harrits.