{"id":241,"date":"2024-06-27T10:26:42","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T10:26:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/museumemotion.stir.ac.uk\/?p=241"},"modified":"2024-06-27T10:26:42","modified_gmt":"2024-06-27T10:26:42","slug":"guest-blog-doing-what-feels-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/museumemotion.stir.ac.uk\/?p=241","title":{"rendered":"Guest Blog – ‘Doing What Feels Right’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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By Tom Hughes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the past few years, I\u2019ve experienced the widest range of emotions in my museum career as I\u2019ve tried to connect with non-traditional audiences for our museums service and create opportunities for people to participate and tell their stories.  Sometimes, this has been met by resistance from colleagues who feel we should concentrate on core audiences, or that we shouldn\u2019t work with certain groups, such as asylum seekers or people in prisons.  Views like this left me disappointed and frustrated, but I\u2019ve continued all the same and, although it has been a steep learning curve, I\u2019m pleased to have persisted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve continued because it feels important to do the right thing.  I know from experience of the negative effect on our wellbeing by not being true to our identity.  Working with people and museums is a big part of who I feel I am.  I was lucky enough to participate in the \u2018Emotions in Museums Work\u2019 session at Stirling and the GLAM Cares conference in Birmingham and at both events I heard from several inspiring practitioners who spoke about \u201cworking by stealth\u201d.  This was exactly what I\u2019d been experiencing, so why are we having to do this? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It feels that the wider sector might prevent this work happening otherwise.  Are museums nervous of getting involved in work with an emotional impact?  Is this a sort of risk averse approach, concern that colleagues might be overcome by emotions, or that community groups might be distressed? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connecting with these communities, particularly my ongoing work with our Ukrainian guests, has been a great success, with people reporting their emotional response of being welcomed and accepted into the region and moments of joy in difficult times.  Through it all, I\u2019ve had a sense of guilt at my privilege and inability to help as much as I would wish, along with regular humbling experiences at the generosity of spirit and reciprocal welcoming of this community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s difficult to explain what emotion this is, but I\u2019m left with the recurring thought that this is the right thing to do, and perhaps we should listen to these instincts more often.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tom Hughes is Access Officer with Dumfries and Galloway Council Museums<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A Ukrainian Burns Night at Dumfries and Galloway Council Museums<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Tom Hughes Over the past few years, I\u2019ve experienced the widest range of emotions in my museum career as I\u2019ve tried to connect with non-traditional audiences for our museums service and create opportunities for people to participate and tell their stories.  Sometimes, this has been met by resistance from colleagues who feel we should<\/p>\n

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