Shifting Vibes and the Doing of Postcolonial Provenance Research

In the late 2010s, ‘Postcolonial Provenance Research’ became quickly integrated into Germany’s memory infrastructure. This institutionalising process has seen growing funding opportunities for research into the colonial histories of collections and an increased willingness among collection-holding institutions to do so. But what happens when shifts in political attention alter memory politics and, as a result, resources and funding decrease?

The talk focuses on an important feature of ‘Postcolonial Provenance Research’ that is often overlooked in explanations of the field’s rapid development: the dedication of the research community involved. Drawing on my PhD research, which investigates the institutional conditions underlying provenance research, I will explore whether the research community’s commitment to its cause could be a means of strengthening the field’s resilience to shifting political vibes.