Re-Connecting Sámi Heritage
For their 20th anniversary, this year’s European Cultural Days are dedicated to the northern European region of Sápmi. The programme takes place against the backdrop of an ongoing project that started late 2022 and is funded by the German Lost Art Foundation.
In this project, museum staff work with researchers and artisans from Sápmi to investigate the provenance of the Sámi collection at the MEK. The aim is not only to uncover the conditions of the acquisitions, but also to connect the objects with their Sámi names and stories, thus contributing to the re-appropriation of Sámi cultural heritage.
The Áimmuin* project space was created specifically for this investigation.
The Sámi collection was moved here from the depots: over 800 objects were decontaminated, some of which restored, and, thereafter, they were rearranged according to Sámi categories in dedicated storage units.
This provides the researchers and artisans from Sápmi with easier and more direct access to the objects that, otherwise, would be locked away in the depot. In the safe workspace, they were (and still are) able to engage intensively with the collection and have become inspired to create their own works.
From 15 August, these works, which are currently in the making, will be on display alongside the historical collection in Áimmuin.
Opening up this workspace provides visitors with the opportunity to learn about the initial results of the provenance research, though this work has only just begun and will require many more years of intensive study.
Additional information
Price: €10.00
Reduced price: €5.00
Reduced price info: Children and young people up to the age of 18 are admitted free of charge.
Reduced price: €5.00
Reduced price info: Children and young people up to the age of 18 are admitted free of charge.