Museums, collective memory and narrative imaginaries. Participatory communication as a strategy for constructing non-hegemonic stories in museums with a social vocation

Abstract

This article proposes that museums should be understood as agents with the capacity to promote participatory communication strategies. These allow interaction with communities so that they can participate in the construction of the stories about themselves that are produced and exhibited by museums. We begin with a clear premise: currently, museums with a social vocation are facing crises of participation and narrative. To resolve these crises, it is vital to debate participation, inclusion, and the types of access that communities have to museums. It is also crucial to debate the narrative imaginaries proposed in the discourse of these institutions. Firstly, the notions of practical communication and community are introduced. These are understood as the basis for the inclusion of collective imaginaries in the cultural narrative proposed by museums. Secondly, participatory communication is suggested as a theoretical-methodological proposal that facilitates the link between narratives/stories and collective memories. To empirically illustrate the proposal, we revisit some conclusions from the participatory communication process undertaken by the Maritime Museum of Mallorca in 2018 and 2019. The article ends with some conclusions from the aforementioned empirical research, as well as an open debate. The aim is to continue to contribute to the debate surrounding the relationship between museums, memory, and narrative.