How museums help communities heal Honor Harger
so as you’ve mentioned I’m the director
of our Science Museum
it’s a iconic building in Singapore and
what we do is explore the intersection
of art science technology and culture
here six months ago our museum was a
hive of activity at the heart of one of
Singapore’s busiest areas Marina Bay we
welcomed an average of about 2,800
visitors a day and they came to see
exhibitions they’re speculated on the
future one of those exhibitions met and
how climate change might shape the world
in the next two centuries another is
full of immersive installations by the
artist team led visitors young and old
tended to flock to our Science Museum to
catch a glimpse of the future and also
to learn through physical interaction
and social participation but then the
pandemic struck and in a matter of two
short months our reality completely
changed from early February the museum
began screening the temperatures of
every visitor who came to visit we
introduced safe distancing measures and
our curators and conservators had to
adjust to a very different way of
working in the galleries the closure of
the borders of Singapore plus a strict
safe distancing laws that were passed
manage the pandemic can’t our visitation
by 89% and normally lively galleries
fell silent
then in April like so many other museums
we closed a Singapore went into its own
version of lockdown we’ve started to
contemplate a future in a world that was
wrecked by the pandemic and it seemed
clear that everything that we knew about
how to run a museum from staging it
submissions to running education
programs to setting budgets and
communicating with audiences
was no longer really valid we had some
dark days trying to figure out how it
would be possible economically and
culturally to run a museum for only 11
percent of the audience that we once had
we realized that we were going to need
to say goodbye to some things that we
had held very dear and that was
difficult there was no time to mourn
within two weeks of lockdown we spun up
an online program that we call art
science at home it enables listeners to
experience the museum from the comfort
of their own home and in this program
we’re responding directly to the context
of covert 19 by staging online talks
about how we might adapt to this
uncertain future we find ourselves in
we’re putting on workshops that give
families learning activities to do at
home and we’re staging performances my
artists who were also knocked down which
enables us to support a local arts
community out science at home is now our
primary public program it’s a new
chapter in our evolution but perhaps
also an illustration of one way for
museums to work a bit more sustainably
during the pandemic era with the
pandemic forcing us to work from home at
a different pace to before we also
notice things that we hadn’t paid
attention to before we started listening
to members of our community who have
been marginalized and kept out of sight
we heard stories from unexpected places
that we felt needed to be told so
science museum is hosted conferences
online with people with disabilities
talking about how the move to online
working is creating opportunities for
them and we’re currently screening the
first film made by a migrant worker in
Singapore salary day by our Marvin the
new reality that we find ourselves and
the wake of Cove at 19 means there are
on-site visitation is going to be
dramatically reduced by both safe
distancing and border restrictions for
the foreseeable future
this is certainly
whirring yet there are surprising
impacts that we hadn’t expected we’re
listening more we’re reflecting on how
we can amplify the voices of
storytellers in our more marginalized
communities we know of course that our
role as museum professionals goes far
beyond being the custodians of an iconic
building and we find ourselves now
gravitating towards the original meaning
of the word curator which in Latin means
to care building back better after
covered 19 perhaps means curating in
that sense of the word caring for each
other and caring for our community one
of the ways that we think we can do that
is by presenting visions of different
futures our current show 22:19 is set in
a world that’s been transformed by
climate change 200 years from now it
enables visitors to confront that future
as we all face the global crisis of
covert 19 this type of futuring work
feels ever-important
the Ren the writer Rene Denfeld has said
of people in crisis I found that the
people who survived the people who end
up thriving even other people who have
the power of imagination if you think
about it imagination is actually a
reticle wet because if you have an
imagination
you can imagine yourself in a different
future thank you well thank you so much
for that honor it was wonderful to see
images of the art science museum both in
the past and and and now presently sort
of as you’re experiencing this pandemic
and thank you so much for being with us
I know it’s very late where you are so
thanks for staying up to chat with us
today and you know I want to just talk
about a little bit of that quote you
ended on I love that so much this idea
of imagination as a radical act and you
know I think exploring that as it
relates to your work we all know that
the pandemic has majorly disrupted
arts and culture and I think the idea
that things will ever really go back to
normal
probably feels unrealistic and so my
artists and curators you know how much
do you think this moment requires that
sort of radical imaginative thinking it
really does and sometimes a crisis like
the one that we’re living through
painfully right now is almost what’s
required to kind of push you know
thinking beyond the bounds you know that
we often found ourself find ourselves
constrained within certainly it’s been
really interesting for us to think about
what a museum that doesn’t have access
to its building might do and how does it
can you know engage with not only the
community of visitors that we you know
kind of so affectionate towards but the
artists and scientists who collaborate
with us on the creation of our programs
how do we continue to keep those bonds
solid to keep them you know really
strong at a time where our building is
not available to us and this is really
you know kind of I think not just for us
but for many institutions and for many
creative practitioners put them in a
headspace where they’re having to think
radically differently not just for this
moment but to almost make permanent
changes to how their institution or
their practice might work now and can we
talk I guess a little bit about
Singapore specifically sort of what
you’re experiencing I know that you’re
in the early stages of reopening there
so what is that looking like for for
your museum and other cultural
institutions in the country so as of its
of the the kind of the moment right now
museums are still closed in Singapore
we’re still closed we’re in phase one of
Singapore’s reopening plan and we’re
shortly at the end of this week going to
be moving to phase two
but even in the first part of phase two
museums remain closed as do libraries
theaters and cinemas so we’re having to
continue to be innovative about how we
operate for the time being and think
really carefully
when we are able to open about how we do
so what kind of measures we need to put
in place to keep our staff safe what
kind of measures we need to have for our
audiences to feel confident to return
and we’ve got a bit of time yet I think
to think that through it’s really and
you mentioned the you know art science
at home initiative and how you are sort
of pivoting in this moment and it sounds
like that will continue for at least the
next few weeks until you have some plans
to reopen them and I think it will
continue beyond because one of the the
wonderful I guess points of empowerment
that the museum is is felt through the
creation of art science at home is being
else to tell stories through that
program that we probably wouldn’t have
thought to do with our on-site program
it’s it’s encouraging us to engage with
artists with filmmakers with scientists
with kind of political leaders with
community organizers that we may not
necessarily have had on our radar you
know when we were thinking about our
on-site programs it’s also helping us to
think that our community is not just in
Singapore it’s an international
community and just as we’re doing right
now being able to think about how to
stage events that kind of bring
participants from other points in the
globe is is something that the online
space offers us there’s a building
perhaps wouldn’t I mean and I think it’s
even talking about that one thing that I
was really struck by was your point that
you know this pandemic has really forced
you to to notice things that you hadn’t
noticed before specifically you know in
talking about the experiences of migrant
workers and I’m curious to just hear
more from you about how this pandemic
has really opened your eyes to to some
of those community experiences by
communities that are maybe marginalized
in Singapore or just otherwise are not
often highlighted through through your
work absolutely I think one of the the
the real truths of kovat 19 around the
world is that it’s amplified
inequalities that were already there
and in in in nearly every country which
has suffered you know with the pandemic
it’s it’s people who you know were
already suffering from multiple indices
of social deprivation that have been in
the you know kind of in the worst
condition and certainly there’s no
exception here and I think it’s a
compassionate group of curators
education kind of staff and organizers
it’s it’s really felt like a moral
obligation on our part I think to think
about you know reaching out to those
communities and trying to facilitate
ways that they can speak for themselves
trying to think about how we use our
platform you know as a museum and now as
a as an online museum to enable kind of
communities to tell their own stories
not mediated by a snore edited by us you
know canna simply to provide that
platform for voices that simply just
weren’t being heard to be heard you know
from a you know to much wider audience
that’s something that we hope to carry
forward I think into the future of the
museum that’s that’s powerful anywhere
in the world right at being able to
people to speak for themselves well we
have some questions from our community
that I’d love to bring into the
conversation just a moment we have one
here that is how can art and science
usefully interact in this moment to
guide or suggest a brighter future oh
that’s a lovely question thank you so
much to whoever answered it Aster’s and
we always feel you know as an
institution that is all about the
marriage of art and science that it’s
the intersection of the the two areas
where you see the the greatest power we
like to you know to say that it’s the
the understanding and the knowledge
generated by science in dialogue with
the empathy and the emotion which is so
powerfully able to create that will lead
us to the greatest insight
you know we’re in a time right now in a
global pandemic where scientists are
very much leading the way we need the
science community to be empowered
obviously from the perspective of
frontline workers but also to the
researchers who are working on
treatments and working on the
possibility of a vaccine but our touches
the soul at is able to to change
behavior to change psychology and when
we bring these two areas together I
think this is where we can really start
seeing powerful change wonderful it’s
wonderful one we have another question
here which is it seems like listening
more is something we all need to do more
of at this moment do you have any
insights both on how to do this
effectively and then importantly to
implement what you hear that’s an
excellent question and I think you know
to a very large extent you know every
cultural institution in the world is
asking that question of itself right now
or there should be I think in there in
the wake of the black lives matter
movement which is really really caught
the you know caught the attention of
people right around the world listening
more has been one of the key you know
one of the key sort of refrains that
we’ve heard again and again in our case
within the museum what we’ve tried to do
is to speak to communities as we were
saying before who really you know we’re
not being spoken to let alone listened
to and to try and provide a space on you
know platforms such as art science at
home for those communities to speak for
themselves a good example here is the
online screening of celery day by muffin
the first film made by a migrant worker
and Singapore there’s been migrant
workers in Singapore for many many many
years and the fact that you know this is
the first occasion where a film has come
into being and has been shown you know
on in the context of a museum is really
important it provides you know kind of
validation for that
voice but it’s the filmmaker you know
kind of himself you know who was telling
his own story and a film which his
directors written and then stars and so
I guess that’s the way that we’ve tried
to do this is to go to communities and
ask them what stories do they want to
tell and then provide you know kind of a
way of being able to let those stories
reach an audience yeah salary day I
watched that film it was beautiful and I
feel like for everyone out there should
take a look at this I think it says so
much just about an experience of the
community in Singapore but also I think
something that people probably
experience really worldwide and I mean
it’s really great to see that you have
featured that on on a on your site and I
think we have one more and which is just
simply can-can art change society a
resounding yes I would say from the
perspective of our institution
particularly our winners in dialogue you
know with with other fields of research
like science you are changes minds
shifts you know shifts mentality can art
changes the behavior of people it
changes the way they think and how they
feel so of course it can change society
we’ve seen that again and again and I
think this this kind of twin moment that
we’re going through right now with both
covert 19 and with that claves meta you
know we’re seeing I think the power of
culture and art to both heal but to also
you know kind of facilitate quite
dramatic change that’s great you know
and I I mean I think I really love this
point that you made William emphasized
the being a curator and sort of how that
means caring curator means caring and
how that has really affected the way
that you curate your work especially in
thinking about this more locally how you
can care for the community and and so
I’m curious you know as you’re
implementing these changes right now
what are the long-term lasting impact of
impacts of this do you do you see
I was carrying over into the future of
how you approach creation at the art
Science Museum well interestingly just
before we went into lockdown which is
called the circuit breaker in Singapore
we actually had a workshop with with the
whole team of the museum representatives
of the whole team from visitor
experience to the tech team the curators
the education staff to really kind of
emotionally work through how the
pandemic was was making people feel and
how that the team felt this was going to
impact on the future of museums it was a
workshop facilitated by two futures
practitioners Ariel Muller and Sheryl
Chong and in the group work that we did
over two days what was really
extraordinary is that in all the
scenarios that the teams worked up they
all ended up coming back to this issue
of care in the community completely
unprompted you know kind of by the
facilitators you know all by the
leadership team of the museum from the
grassroots of the museum it became clear
that the staff felt that their identity
as museum professionals were you know
very much defined as carers and so we’ve
really taken this on board it’s it’s
it’s going to permanently change our
values I think and what we do is an
institution and not just for this period
but I think you know kind of permanently
and you know finally we’re going to go
to our group conversation shortly but I
just am also curious there’s you know
been so much conversation here about
artists and curators and you know people
who are creating art and how that’s sort
of been changed by this moment but how
do you also see this moment changing for
people who are just art lovers or
patrons of museums how should we be
approaching this all differently well
you know what’s been extraordinary in
the past few months has to see is to see
how many museums and theatre makers have
have taken to the Internet to share what
they do with a much much wider audience
than perhaps they had access to before
I’ve been blown away by the the
the performance work that’s been made
available right around the world by
large and small theater companies by
musicians by dancers this is really you
know kind of changing I think sort of
the received wisdom they’re only you
know kind of physical encounters with
the art object I kind of all with the
performance were valid ways of being
able to you know kind of experience
culture the pandemics really turned that
notion on its head and I think it will
be hard to put the genie back in the
bottle
I think addressing a global audience or
in fact an audience that for whatever
reason can’t leave home and that of
course you know is not simply you know
kind of folks who are living in one’s
locality but people who may be living
with a disability you know kind of may
not necessarily have the financial means
to leave home and travel to have
cultural experiences we need to start
thinking as cultural institutions now
how how do we you know unfold folks who
are in that situation into our community
and to keep addressing them beyond you
know the specific moment of the pandemic
well thank you so much for all this