“Shhh! Don’t Tell Anyone!” Uncovering Histories of the Longyear Museum of Anthropology

May 2–June 30; September 5–November 24, 2019 

The Longyear Museum of Anthropology, in celebration of the University’s Bicentennial, conducted an archival and collections-based research project on the museum’s history. Based on this research, students in Christy DeLair’s spring 2019 course, 'MUSE 300: Museum Curating,' have curated an exhibition that explores the lives and activities of the curators who shaped the institution; traces how collections evolve; and asks visitors to envision the museum’s future. The exhibition highlights nine different collections that entered the museum from the mid-20th century to the present and are connected to communities in the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Oceania.

The exhibition opens at the end of the spring semester, closes for the summer break, and reopens for the fall semester.