Date of Award
5-2014
Thesis Date
5-2014
Degree Type
Honors Thesis-Unrestricted
Degree Name
B.A.
Degree Program
International Studies
Director
David Beriss
Abstract
This thesis discusses the recent construction and anthropological collaboration of the Paris museum: Musée du quai Branly (MQB), an art museum dedicated to showcasing art collections specific to aboriginal and indigenous cultures in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania. The opening of MQB in June 2006 raised a plethora of controversial questions concerning the museum’s methods of curatorial display of the art it has made its primary focus. One of the major issues discussed examines the Quai Branly’s authentic, or inauthentic, representation of certain artworks displayed throughout the museum. Thus, the essay raises the questions: does a non-Western object remain authentic once it is exhibited in a Western society’s art museum? To answer this question, the essay explores the various explanations of art and authenticity in order to reach an understandable conclusion of what constitutes an authentic display of non-Western objects in a Western art museum.
Creative Commons License
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Recommended Citation
Bernard, Mary Grace Cathryn, "Non-Western Art and the Musée du Quai Branly: The Challenge of Authenticity" (2014). Senior Honors Theses. 53.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/honors_theses/53
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this honors thesis in whole or part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the honors thesis.