Every Monument Will Fall: A Conversation with Dan Hicks

What determines who gets memorialized in our public spaces? Why do some histories endure while others are erased? Dan Hicks, professor of contemporary archaeology at Oxford University and curator at the Pitt Rivers Museum, answer these questions today on the Artalogue. In today's episode, we talk about Hicks' new book, Every Monument Will Fall, his research and how he navigates complex histories of colonialism and cultural heritage from within the institution. Every Monument Will Fall examines our memory culture: who we choose to remember through monuments and museum collections, and whose stories remain untold. Hicks challenges the notion that removing colonial monuments constitutes "erasing history," arguing instead that it creates space for different memories to emerge. "To shift a memory culture isn't to cancel history," he notes. "It's actually to decide that we want, as a society, to remember somebody else."Particularly eye-opening is Hicks' critique of major museums' lack of transparency about their collections. We chat about some museums poor record keeping, some with millions of objects (including human remains) hidden away in storage and undocumented. On the politics surrounding restitution, he asks of museums, "how can you be looking after something if you don't even have a list of what you've got?" This powerful conversation forces us to confront the uncomfortable truths about whose heritage we preserve and whose we neglect.Whether you're interested in museums, public history, or how societies remember and forget, this episode offers profound insights into how we might reimagine our memory culture for the 21st century. It packs a lot in just 25 minutes - prepare to learn! Follow Dan Hicks on social media @ProfDanHicks and discover his books "The Brutish Museums" and the forthcoming "Every Monument Will Fall." Connect with the Artalogue: Madison Beale, HostBe a guest on The Artalogue Podcast

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