Tracing histories

What is National Museum? And when, why and how are such museums made? Today, almost every country we visit has a museum and a gallery that it calls ‘National.’ Within these institutions, we are able to trace a history of the nation through art. National museums are so widely present that it might come as a surprise to learn how recently they took this form.

This, to a stream of thought, suggests a close relationship between political sovereignty and national self-representation in the cultural sphere. So what all could they be? To answer all the question that rises in your mind about this curious hyperlink, National Museum, Delhi,  is organising the 17th NM lecture this Friday evening. Renowned art historian, Kavita Singh of Jawaharlal Nehru University will be delivering a lecture on this subject.

Against the backdrop of the global history of national museums, this lecture will discuss the formation of the National Museum in Delhi (founded 1948), and put it in dialogue with two other National Museums of South Asia: the National Museum of Pakistan in Karachi founded in 1948, and the National Museum of Bangladesh, formed in 1973. 

When: May 29

Where: National Museum