| Description |
In Chapter I, the colonial history of art museums was established to identify past transgressions as a direct result of imperial power and their exploitation of non-Western cultures and communities. By making clear the historical relationships art museums hold to colonization, it illuminates how their pasts impact the present, and the current challenges art museums face to become more equitable public serving institutions. Chapter I also highlights the significance of addressing current inequities due to colonial paradigms, and the theoretical frameworks applied to this research for effectively investigating and addressing these challenges.; The literature review in the following chapter addresses the objectives of this thesis and discusses the current state of scholarship pertaining to the decolonization of American art museums. This overview highlights past and present barriers to achieving decolonial justice in American art museums; cultural property laws and museological standards concerning contested cultural property; and common attributes of contemporary decolonizing strategies. I also identify gaps in the literature as they relate to the research questions, and opportunities for furthering the discourse around decolonizing American art museums. |
