Museum & Exhibition Guidelines
Standards for museums and cultural institutions displaying Indigenous textiles and cultural heritage
Museums, galleries, and cultural institutions play a significant role in how Indigenous cultural heritage is perceived, understood, and valued. This responsibility requires moving beyond colonial-era collecting practices toward genuine partnership with source communities.
These guidelines draw on international museum ethics standards, including ICOM's Code of Ethics, the NAGPRA framework principles, and Indigenous-led initiatives such as the Mataatua Declaration and the First Nations Principles of OCAP (Ownership, Control, Access, Possession).
Core Principles
Community Partnership
Source communities should be partners in decisions about their cultural heritage, not merely subjects of display. Their voices must be central to interpretation and presentation.
Shared Authority
Interpretive authority should be shared with communities. They have the right to define how their culture is represented and to correct misrepresentations.
Living Heritage
Indigenous textiles and cultural objects are not relics of the past but expressions of living cultures. Exhibitions should reflect their contemporary significance and ongoing practice.
Reciprocity
Institutions should give back to communities through access, documentation sharing, capacity building, and when appropriate, repatriation of cultural materials.
Collection and Acquisition
Ethical Acquisition
When acquiring Indigenous cultural materials:
- Provenance research: Investigate the history of how items were obtained — were they legitimately acquired with community consent, or taken under colonial circumstances?
- Community consultation: Before acquiring items, consult with source communities about whether acquisition is appropriate
- Fair compensation: If purchasing from artisans or communities, pay fair prices that reflect cultural and artistic value
- Documentation: Record provenance information, cultural context, and any community input received
- Avoid illicit trade: Do not acquire items that may have been illegally exported or obtained through exploitation
Review of Existing Collections
For items already in collections:
- Conduct provenance research to understand acquisition history
- Identify items that may have been inappropriately acquired
- Reach out to source communities to discuss collection items
- Be prepared to discuss repatriation where appropriate
- Correct any misattribution or misidentification in collection records
Repatriation
Institutions should have clear policies on repatriation:
- Sacred or ceremonial objects should generally be returned to communities upon request
- Human remains and funerary objects must be repatriated
- Items acquired through theft, coercion, or colonial exploitation should be considered for return
- Where full repatriation is not possible, consider loans back to communities, replica creation, or digital access
- Repatriation discussions should be community-led, not institution-led
Exhibition Development
Community Involvement
Communities should be involved throughout exhibition development:
- Early consultation: Engage communities from the conceptual stage, not just for review at the end
- Advisory roles: Create formal advisory committees or curatorial partnerships with community members
- Community curators: Where possible, have community members serve as guest curators or co-curators
- Compensation: Pay community advisors and contributors fairly for their expertise and time
- Approval processes: Allow communities to review and approve exhibition content before opening
Interpretation and Labelling
How objects are described and contextualised matters:
- Community voices: Include community perspectives in labels and interpretation — quotes, first-person narratives, community-authored text
- Accurate attribution: Identify items by specific community, tribe, and location — not generic terms like "tribal" or "Northeast Indian"
- Cultural context: Explain the significance and meaning of items within their cultural context
- Living culture: Make clear that these are living traditions, not historical artifacts
- Avoid exoticisation: Present cultures on their own terms, not through an exotic or primitivist lens
- Multilingual labels: Where possible, include text in community languages alongside English or other dominant languages
Culturally Sensitive Display
Some items require special handling or may not be appropriate for public display:
- Sacred objects: Items with sacred or ceremonial significance may require restricted access or specific display conditions — consult communities
- Gender-restricted items: Some items may traditionally be viewed only by certain genders — respect these protocols
- Photography policies: Some communities may not want items photographed — implement appropriate restrictions
- Handling protocols: Follow any community guidance on how items should be handled, stored, or oriented
- Contextual sensitivity: Avoid displaying items in ways that trivialise, mock, or decontextualise their significance
Access and Community Engagement
Community Access
Source communities should have special access to their cultural heritage:
- Allow community members access to view, study, and engage with items from their culture
- Facilitate visits by knowledge holders and cultural practitioners
- Share collection documentation, photographs, and research with communities
- Support community-led documentation projects
- Consider loan programs that return items to communities for cultural use or community exhibitions
Digital Access
Digital initiatives should respect community rights:
- Data sovereignty: Communities should control how digital representations of their heritage are used
- Consent for digitisation: Obtain community consent before digitising and publishing images of cultural items
- Access controls: Some digital content may need restricted access according to cultural protocols
- Benefit sharing: If digital content generates revenue (licensing, publications), consider benefit-sharing
- Community copies: Provide communities with copies of all digital documentation
Public Programming
Educational programs and events should:
- Feature community members as speakers, demonstrators, and educators — with fair compensation
- Avoid having non-Indigenous people "perform" or demonstrate Indigenous practices
- Provide accurate, community-endorsed information
- Create opportunities for direct community-audience engagement
- Support living practitioners through artist residencies or workshops
Special Considerations for Northeast India
Historical Context
Many museum collections of Northeast Indian materials were assembled during the colonial period or in contexts where community consent was not meaningful. Institutions should:
- Acknowledge this history transparently
- Be proactive in reaching out to source communities
- Be open to discussions about appropriate disposition of items
Diversity of Communities
Northeast India includes hundreds of distinct ethnic groups, each with their own cultural heritage:
- Never generalise across communities — each has distinct traditions
- Invest time in understanding the specific communities represented in your collection
- Build relationships with specific communities, not just regional intermediaries
Textiles as Living Tradition
Northeast Indian textiles are not just historical artifacts:
- Many traditions continue to be actively practised
- Exhibitions should reflect contemporary as well as historical production
- Consider commissioning new works and supporting living weavers
- Connect exhibitions to contemporary issues around cultural preservation and appropriation
NECIK can help institutions connect with communities, review exhibition content for cultural accuracy, and develop ethical engagement approaches.