Women and museum collections - Conference 2022
Leiden, Netherlands and hybrid - March 17-18 2022 The study of women’s place in history, their lives and agency has been a focus of historiography since the mid-twentieth century. Women were not the passive bystanders they were once believed to be, but were active in society in a variety of ways which were previously overlooked. While not always as well-known as their male counterparts, women have been involved in the development of museums since their conception. Whether as donators, collectors or employees, women have had important roles in the building up and display of collections in museums throughout the world. This conference seeks to examine women’s involvement with museum collections in the historical setting. The importance in recognizing women’s contribution to museums is at the heart of this conference no matter how controversial that input was. The status of women historically makes they histories of women collectors and contributors a rich area of analysis as issue