1989: Changing Europe? Contemporary History as Cultural Heritage task for the Art Museums

A new research project on “the Long 1989” and cultural exchanges in the Nordic-Baltic region

The project will investigate the art field during the phase of system change understood as the Long 1989, ca 1985-1996, and to provide opportunities for art museums to work with contemporary history. The focus is on contacts between Denmark/the Nordic countries and (East)Germany, Poland and the Baltic states with the following main research questions and objectives: 

• Which developments conditioned the system change in 1989 and how did historical, cultural and artistic factors interact?
• Which artist-driven initiatives and contacts had a particular significance, and how did they relate to the official policy in the respective societies?
• How did the official cultural diplomatic exchanges between Denmark and the state socialist countries proceed before, during and after 1989?
• How did collection work and museum exchanges unfold during the European 1989, and what traces has this left on the institutions today?
• What methods of contemporary history can art history and the art institutions develop through the relevant historical case?
• How can experiences with cultural exchange in times of crisis help the institutions today?

This will contribute to draw a cultural history for the long 1989 in the visual arts as a transnational art history, which illuminates the many exchanging activities and changes and discusses their significance – both in the historical present and for European cultural conditions today. Danish and foreign museums are offered targeted workshops with a focus on tools, collection work and exchange, and the project includes a partnership with Malmö Konstmuseum, where, in collaboration with a scientific assistant, an exploration is carried out as a model for collection work that can lead to new exhibitions. Finally, the project seeks to contribute to cultural exchange and diplomacy today through expert meetings, debates and a guide for the cultural institutions.