Abstract
In an era when museums are reimagining their roles as custodians of community heritage rather than keepers of objects, this study examines how university museums in the Midwestern United States extend their curatorial practice to include incarcerated women as participants in meaning-making. Traditionally, museums are associated with equity, inclusion, and cognitive enrichment, while correctional institutions are marked by exclusion and vulnerability. This project bridges those worlds by exploring how curatorial work, exhibition design, and didactic strategies can support empowerment, belonging, and healing for women in correctional settings. We ask: How do university museums build capacity to foster productive diversity and community cohesion? How do incarcerated women position themselves within museum exhibitions, and what knowledge do they contribute to curatorial processes? How do power relations shift when museums are reframed as spaces of dialogue, creativity, and care? Using a mixed-methods and arts-based research approach, this study combines surveys, interviews, and creative visual responses to investigate changes in well-being, self-image, and agency. Interviews with curators, docents, and outreach staff further reveal how institutional missions and exhibition strategies are adapted to meet the needs of nontraditional audiences. Ultimately, this project argues that the evolving work of the curator involves relational, restorative, and participatory practices that position museums as transformative community assets—bridging art, education, and social justice.
Presenters
Linda HelmickAssociate Professor of Art Education, College of Education and Human Development, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Museums; Curatorship; Custodianship; Community Engagement; Arts-based Research; Inclusion; Restorative Justice
