Material Culture In Transit

"Material Culture in Transit: Theory and Practice constellates curators and scholars actively working with material culture within academic and museal institutions through theory and practice. The rich collection of essays critically addresses the multivalent ways in which mobility reshapes the characteristics of artefacts, specifically under prevailing issues of representation and colonial liabilities. The volume attests to material culture as central to understanding the repercussions of problematic histories and proposes novel ways to address them. It is valuable reading for scholars of anthropology, museum studies, history and others with an interest in material culture"--

Material Culture in Transit: Theory and Practice constellates curators and scholars actively working with material culture within academic and museal institutions through theory and practice. The rich collection of essays critically addresses the multivalent ways in which mobility reshapes the characteristics of artefacts, specifically under prevailing issues of representation and colonial liabilities. The volume attests to material culture as central to understanding the repercussions of problematic histories and proposes novel ways to address them. It offers valuable reading for scholars of anthropology, museum studies, history and others with an interest in material culture.

This volume focuses on the interplay between urban society and material culture in the medieval and Ottoman Middle East. The history of Jerusalem in the middle ages is discussed by a number of papers as well as Mamluk Tripoli and the urban history of Palestine during the Crusades. The multi-role of the cadi in the Muslim city is illuminated by two studies cases concerning the Fatimid and Mamluk periods. Three aspects of material culture; the production and spread of paper, textiles and the trade in medicinal substances also are dealt with.

Material Culture and (Forced) Migration argues that materiality is a fundamental dimension of migration. During journeys of migration, people take things with them, or they lose, find and engage things along the way. Movements themselves are framed by objects such as borders, passports, tents, camp infrastructures, boats and mobile phones. This volume brings together chapters that are based on research into a broad range of movements – from the study of forced migration and displacement to the analysis of retirement migration. What ties the chapters together is the perspective of material culture and an understanding of materiality that does not reduce objects to mere symbols. Centring on four interconnected themes – temporality and materiality, methods of object-based migration research, the affective capacities of objects, and the engagement of things in place-making practices – the volume provides a material culture perspective for migration scholars around the globe, representing disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, contemporary archaeology, curatorial studies, history and human geography. The ethnographic nature of the chapters and the focus on everyday objects and practices will appeal to all those interested in the broader conditions and tangible experiences of migration.

In recent years an increasing number of scholars have incorporated a focus on emotions in their theories of material culture, transnationalism and globalization, and this book aims to contribute to this field of inquiry. It examines how ‘emotions’ can be theorized, and serves as a useful analytical tool for understanding the interrelated mobility of humans, objects and images. Ethnographically rich, and theoretically grounded case studies offer new perspectives on the relations between migration, material culture and emotions. While some chapters address the many different ways in which migrants and migrant artists express their emotions through objects and images in transnational contexts, other chapters focus on how particular works of art, everyday objects and artefacts can evoke feelings specific to particular migrant groups and communities. Case studies also analyse how artists, academics and policy makers can stimulate positive interaction between migrants and non-migrant communities.

Provides a critical survey of the theories, concepts, intellectual debates, substantive domains and traditions of study characterizing the analysis of things. This handbook charts an interdisciplinary field of studies that makes a fundamental contribution to an understanding of what it means to be human.

This book lays out a framework for understanding connections between home and mobility, and situates this within a multidisciplinary field of social research. The authors show how the idea of home offers a privileged entry point into forced migration, diversity and inequality. Using original fieldwork, they adopt an encompassing lens on labour, family and refugee flows, with cases of migrants from Latin America, Africa and the Indian subcontinent. With the book structured around these key topics, the authors look at how practices of home and mobility emerge along with emotions and manifold social processes. In doing so, their scope shifts from the household to streets, neighbourhoods, cities and even nations. Yet, the meaning of 'home' as a lived experience goes beyond place; the authors analyse literature on migration and mobility to reveal how the past and future are equally projected into imaginings of home.