Work. Care. Museum

Our understanding of work is shifting: Not only is our work world changing dramatically, but our view of it as well. Museums are also helping to shape notions of work: What is represented in museums as “work”, and what activities are excluded from it, is part of this process of negotiation. The long-standing focus of museums on agricultural, artisanal, and industrial work is increasingly being challenged by current developments. How can we thus reflect on the representation of work in museums in a contemporary way? And what new perspectives can economic critical and feminist approaches provide? With this in mind, the workshop will deal with current approaches in a specific field, namely care work. Care work refers to forms of work that are precarious and/or unpaid and do not fit into the traditional notion of wage labour as productive work. They range from caregiving professions in hospitals, nursing facilities, and private homes to unpaid care services, which are predominantly performed by women. Museums engaging in a debate on such forms of work is not only relevant for socio-political reasons, but a debate of this kind can also serve as the starting point for a reconsideration of the terms and concepts that museums themselves use. The workshop will explore how it is actually possible to display these largely invisible forms of work, and how museums can thus become a platform for discussion on a very contemporary issue.