Blog post by Birgitte Kirkhoff Eriksen, Museum Director at Museum of Contemporary Art. This is a summary of a longer text in Danish.

During the winter holiday the Museum of Contemporary Art arranged a two day-workshop for children and their families. The workshop gave the children the possibility to make a dreamcatcher, which is a sacred object with origins in the Native American culture. The dreamcatcher has become a very popular object in the western world because of its legend and properties: like a spider it will catch bad dreams in its web while letting the good dreams pass through to the sleeping child.

The workshop became very popular. There were more participants in this workshop, than in any other that we´ve held for children aged +5 during my time as the director. That could indicate that the dreamcatcher has become a mainstream symbol, with a place in the western culture. It has been assimilated to our Danish culture, just like so many other things: the Christmas tree, the ryebread, words, customs, and tons of other things. The list is long.

The intention with our workshop was to initiate children´s discussions about fears and how to handle them. There were several lovely chats between the participating children and our staff throughout the day. In the workshop we focused on the dreamcatcher´s qualities, and didn´t articulate any of its cultural origin and history. We could and probably should have, but at the time we didn't come to think of it.

On our Instagram profile we promptly received criticism from an artist, with whom we have worked with in several projects. It stated that we as an institution should have known better. We should have been conscious enough to not practice cultural appropriation - meaning using a culture´s sacred symbols for our own purpose, for the workshop. Cultural appropriation is a dominant culture´s use of another culture's customs and ideas. It is theft and can have roots in racism. It is cultural imperialism once more, in a new form.

Cultural appropriation is never acceptable. It is not only tasteless and ignorant, but also a repetition of a disturbing history. The thought that the workshop was understood in those terms and that we would have violated another culture is distressing and profoundly thought-provoking. That was never the museum´s intention.

The museum, and our critic, probably dream about the same things: a world which is conscious of its mistakes and acts accordingly. A world which is socially just and where people acknowledge the value of themselves and others, and where there is mutual respect, tolerance, and empathy. Those values are under pressure now, as the world is deeply polarized. In my opinion there is a strong need for more dialogue and more openness. And I think it is our task as a museum to facilitate that.

As an institution in a global and more digitalized society we need to be more tuned in and more conscious than ever before. That is something the example with the dreamcatchers has shown. This isn't the first time the Museums of Contemporary Art has curated projects, events and exhibitions that work with problematic issues in history and of today. We have failed many times and we will maybe fail again. That produces many questions regarding ethics and responsibility and how we still can preserve curiosity and openness.

To get expert advice and learn more about the topic I have contacted the NGO IGWIA, which is a “global human rights organization dedicated to promoting, protecting and defending Indigenous Peoples´ rights”. I have also contacted the director for Arts and Culture of First Nations, Inuit and Metis Peoples Program in Canada, and am waiting for a reply.

At ICOM, the international network for museums, it is now discussed if the definition of a museum should be modified, from being caretakers of art for e.g. public education, study, and enjoyment, to being ethically responsible spaces for critical dialogue. It is an example of that the discussions about the old power structures also applies to the museum sector.

The Museum of Contemporary Art aims to address and discuss problematic topics. I am invited to speak at a meeting with the title The Museum as a Social Actor (Museet som samfundsaktør) held at Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen. I will there take the opportunity to use the example of the dreamcatcher to start a discussion about the role, ethics, and responsibility of a museum.

It takes many trials and errors when you wish to make a change and demolish old structures of power. Some of them will fail. These mistakes are important though, because it takes a lot of practice and learning to establish self-consciousness and awareness. It is a muscle that needs its workout, in the museums sector as well as in society by and large.