terra firma

In ethnographic museums, the displayed objects are taken from their place of origin and placed in a completely different environment. The harsh space where they don’t belong transforms them into slightly other objects – they become a museum’s exhibition. This separation gives them a new identity. They used to be objects of everyday use and now they are artefacts and their only function is to tell a story – the story of people who were left behind and lived in the past. The presence of the objects makes the absence of the people even more noticeable. The design project covers the collection of the Wereldmuseum Rotterdam to the eye of the spectators. We focus the attention on what is usually not visible in institutions by trying to show the neglected historical background that brought these artworksto be displayed. But are they actually there? We can only see the shape of the pedestals. So maybe there are not there anymore. Were they taken? Or where are they? Where should they be?