Imagining Asia

Cultural Citizenship and Nation Building in the National Museums of Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau

Emily Stokes-Rees

Despite widespread recognition that we are living in an era of mass globalization, there has
been a startling resurgence of nationalism in many regions of the world. Alongside this
development, many new national museums are being built or refurbished, pointing to the
critical role the telling of history plays in processes of building national identity. From new
museum construction to the re-purposing of colonial monuments, and from essentialized
narratives to spaces which encourage visitors to dream, this book explores the
development and influence of national museums in three contemporary Asian societies –
Singapore, Hong Kong, and Macau.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers / Rowman & Littlefield International

Pages: 268 • Trim: 6¼ x 9¼

978-1-78660-904-5 • Hardback • July 2019 • $135.00 • (£104.00)

978-1-78660-905-2 • eBook • July 2019 • $43.99 • (£34.00)

Series: Asian Cultural Studies: Transnational and Dialogic Approaches

Subjects: Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural, Business & Economics / Museum Administration & Museology, Social Science / Anthropology / Applied Anthropology, Social Science / World / Asia, Social Science / Culture

Imagining Asia

Cultural Citizenship and Nation Building in the National Museums of Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau

Hardback

eBook

Summary

Despite widespread recognition that we are living in an era of mass globalization, there has
been a startling resurgence of nationalism in many regions of the world. Alongside this
development, many new national museums are being built or refurbished, pointing to the
critical role the telling of history plays in processes of building national identity. From new
museum construction to the re-purposing of colonial monuments, and from essentialized
narratives to spaces which encourage visitors to dream, this book explores the
development and influence of national museums in three contemporary Asian societies –
Singapore, Hong Kong, and Macau.

Details

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers / Rowman & Littlefield International

Pages: 268 • Trim: 6¼ x 9¼

978-1-78660-904-5 • Hardback • July 2019 • $135.00 • (£104.00)

978-1-78660-905-2 • eBook • July 2019 • $43.99 • (£34.00)

Series: Asian Cultural Studies: Transnational and Dialogic Approaches

Subjects: Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural, Business & Economics / Museum Administration & Museology, Social Science / Anthropology / Applied Anthropology, Social Science / World / Asia, Social Science / Culture

Author

Emily Stokes-Rees is associate professor of museum studies at Syracuse University, USA.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Part 1: ‘Legacies’

Part 2: ‘Performances’

Part 3: Transformations

Cusions

Reviews

Imagining Asia’s three-city comparative framework provides a new conceptual lens through which to examine these museum sites. The case studies are well chosen, as all three share similar legacies of British colonisation and Chinese hegemony. Furthermore, the museum focus extends the study of cultural agencies in Asia, as well as the way they shape formations of national identity.
— Audrey Yue, Professor of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore

Imagining Asia

Cultural Citizenship and Nation Building in the National Museums of Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau

Emily Stokes-Rees

Imagining Asia

Cultural Citizenship and Nation Building in the National Museums of Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau

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