Keynotes

GLAMSLAM 2021 will have two keynote speakers.

Rahul Rao (SOAS)

'What do we mean when we talk about statues?'

Abstract

Following the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, protesters in the US, UK, Belgium, New Zealand and elsewhere vented their anger on statues associated with colonialism and slavery. This wasn't the first time that statues were attacked and it is unlikely to be the last. But the discourse around long-controversial statues such as Colston in Bristol and Rhodes in Oxford shifted decisively, suggesting – perhaps – that the era of colonial statues may be over. Yet statues continue to be built in many parts of the world on monumental scales, evidenced most compellingly by the iconographic rivalry between the Hindu Right and the Dalit movement in India. In this talk, I ask why statues have become a terrain for the assertion and contestation of racial and caste supremacy. How do statues become sites of pride, injury and reparation? Most vexingly of all, how do we distinguish between the decolonial and (neo)colonial claims being made through statues today?

Mike Jones

'Politics, Pandemics, and Postdisciplinary GLAM: Relationalities all the way Down'

Abstract

Following a year of political divisions, geographical restrictions, and personal isolation, the value of relationships has never been clearer. But many divisions remain. As we look to the future, GLAM practitioners needs to look beyond professional and disciplinary boundaries to build more relational institutions, fostering connections within our sector and our communities. In this keynote, Dr Mike Jones will explore the need to move beyond the limitations of convergence and organisational efficiencies, drawing on examples from Australia and internationally to highlight the need for a postdisciplinary, relational GLAM for a post-pandemic world.