Collecting Covid — Connor Chung

 This week, I chose to attend "Collecting Covid-19 part 1: Examining how museums have worked with communities to collect and record the pandemic," a discussion hosted by the School of Advanced Study of the University of London. The basic premise of the panel was discussing the role of the museum as a cultural space in the age of COVID — how these museums have adapted to the times, and how they're looking to the future. Speaking was Andrea Hadley-Johnson of the National Justice Museum, Imogen Clarke of the Science Museum, Stewart Emmens of the Science Museum, and Simon Brown of the National Justice Museum.

Looking around, one cannot help but feel that we're living through history. From the incredible death and suffering that has accompanied this pandemic to the fundamental social realignments that will surely prove lasting, it's clear that our present moment will go down in the history books. The panel was an incredibly fascinating window into how this historical record is assembled — and how the memory of this moment is being created and preserved.

One interesting part was learning about the nuance of how collecting actually occurs. Simon Brown spoke on this, noting the specific steps his museum took to (among other things) ensure that no collection efforts detracted from the capacity or time of first responders. As he pointed, a harmless email a museum director might send in perfectly good faith could end up taking up time from someone who has far more urgent things to do in this crisis —thus, the need to ensure that the collection process reflects the specific demands of the time. This was really striking, as it was a reminder of the hidden stories that lie behind all museum artifacts, and also of the ways in which (intentionally or not) museums can do bad as well as good. 

Another was hearing about how museum work has changed. A number of the speakers on the panel remarked that they haven't stepped foot in their museum since the pandemic began — an interesting reality, since we often associate museums with material and tangible culture. Instead, they've had to learn new skills (one spoke of teaching himself video editing to product youtube content) and get creative with the artifact acquisition process (one spoke of finding a newspaper about the first UK case on the subway, and deciding to keep it — that's surely an artifact that will be striking when a researcher comes across its corner of the shelf in 50 years!). It was, in a sense, reassuring to hear about all the work that has gone into capturing this moment. And I do wonder if when the pandemic is finally over, the digital acumen built up in this past year will prove useful to the long-term success of the museum sector.

Finally, the speakers discussed the ways in which museum work has stayed the same. All strongly defended the importance of collecting a record of the age of COVID, in part on the grounds that it's an essential first step to learning lessons for the future. And on this note, I have to agree. Early on in this pandemic, for example, a number of commentators sought to draw parallels to the Spanish Flu — and were able to tease out a number of fascinating conclusions thanks to the preserved legacy of that era. When (far from now, fingers crossed) the next public health crisis arrives, it will be due to the work of people like these speakers that future commentators will be able to look to the past and learn something. 

As the speakers made me appreciate, the historical record is never just a passive object — the process by which it is created (who gets to write it, what gets recorded, how it is received, and so on) informs and shapes the final result. That's why the way in which we answer these questions is hugely important... especially at this juncture in history. The good news is that it seems that at least a number of people from the museum sector are thinking very critically and thoroughly examining these issues, and seeking to determine the way in which the sector can not just move forward but thrive in challenging times. That is to say, I am extremely grateful for having had the opportunity to attend this discussion, and look forward to keeping it in mind when museums open their doors once again.