National Maritime Museum Podcast: Recent Episodes
NMM Engagement Team
The National Maritime Museum houses the world's largest maritime collection. This is a series of podcasts created by the Museum Engagement team, working with communities to look into museum contemporary issues.
In this episode, Sharon is joined by Fiona Compton to discuss a number of different pieces from the museum collection. The discussion evokes conversations around propaganda, representation, beauty standards and violence. Be prepared to be taken on a rollercoaster of emotions in this episode, rounding the series off with a note on the importance of self-care. Fiona Compton @knowyourcaribbean
In this episode Sharon Walters, Serena Lee and Fiona Compton, visit pieces on display in the museum collections, including Yinka Shonibare’s ‘Ship in A Bottle’, Kehinde Wiley’s ‘Ship of Fools’ and the recent installation of the World Reimaged globes after the introduction through this podcast. This conversation highlights the importance of contemporary art by Black artists in predominantly white institutional spaces.
Serena Lee @georgiandiaspora
Fiona Compton @knowyourcaribbean
Ekow Eshun and Serena Lee join Sharon to look at two pieces from the collection, namely ‘An engraving of Billy Walters’ and a ‘Caricature of Greenwich Pensioners’. Ideas around representation, authenticity and Blackness are explored in this episode. Interesting observations around reclaiming narratives are made, and captioned depictions from objects are challenged, thus providing fresh, new interpretations.
Ekow Eshun @ekoweshun
Serena Lee @georgiandiaspora
In this episode, Sharon Walters is joined by Rudy Loewe and Jacob V Joyce, who are both queer visual artists and PHD students. This discussion explores the Monsier de St.George’ Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges portrait, and how ‘reimaginings’ can be a powerful way to engage with archives and collections. They talk about the cataloguing of objects, archives and the violence that can occur in dehumanising Black and marginalized people in institutions. The Huntley Archives and Saturday schools are also mentioned in this conversation and the impact they have more widely.Jacob V Joyce
@jacobvjoyce Rudy Loewe @rudyloewe
Trigger Warning! Themes of sexual violence and a disturbing nature.
In this conversation, historian and filmmaker, Nadia Denton and podcast host and artist , Sharon Walters centre their discussion on a collection piece featuring Saartje (Sara) Baartman. Sara is a well-known figure who has a disturbing and tragic story. Nadia offers a response to Sara’s life story focussing on female power and exploitation in context to enslaved African’s.
Nadia Denton @nadiajacintadenton
To kick off the second series, podcast host Sharon Walters is joined by Serena Lee and Fiona Compton. They review the outcomes of the first series and how impactful change is being made to reshape how stories are told as a result of the podcast. This episode is recorded at the collections Store and they look at a Georgian snuff box which references blackness through an image featured on the inside lid.
Serena Lee @georgiandiaspora
Fiona Compton @knowyourcaribbean
The Seeing Ourselves podcast is part of a multi-disciplinary arts project conceived by London-based artist Sharon Walters AKA (@London_Artist1) on Instagram. Supported by the National Maritime Museum, through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project, Sharon collaborates with historian Serena Lee (@Georgian Diaspora) and artist/historian Fiona Compton (@Know your Caribbean) to explore depictions of people of African descent in the museum collections. Their discussions are frank, open, and honest to offer a unique insight into how it feels to see ‘yourself’ represented and misrepresented in museum spaces.
The Seeing Ourselves podcast is part of a multi-disciplinary arts project conceived by London-based artist Sharon Walters AKA (@London_Artist1) on Instagram. Supported by the National Maritime Museum, through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project, Sharon collaborates with historian Serena Lee (@Georgian Diaspora) and artist/historian Fiona Compton (@Know your Caribbean) to explore depictions of people of African descent in the museum collections. Their discussions are frank, open, and honest to offer a unique insight into how it feels to see ‘yourself’ represented and misrepresented in museum spaces.
The Seeing Ourselves podcast is part of a multi-disciplinary arts project conceived by London-based artist Sharon Walters AKA (@London_Artist1) on Instagram. Supported by the National Maritime Museum, through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project, Sharon collaborates with historian Serena Lee (@Georgian Diaspora) and artist/historian Fiona Compton (@Know your Caribbean) to explore depictions of people of African descent in the museum collections. Their discussions are frank, open, and honest to offer a unique insight into how it feels to see ‘yourself’ represented and misrepresented in museum spaces.
The Seeing Ourselves podcast is part of a multi-disciplinary arts project conceived by London-based artist Sharon Walters AKA (@London_Artist1) on Instagram. Supported by the National Maritime Museum, through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project, Sharon collaborates with historian Serena Lee (@Georgian Diaspora) and artist/historian Fiona Compton (@Know your Caribbean) to explore depictions of people of African descent in the museum collections. Their discussions are frank, open, and honest to offer a unique insight into how it feels to see ‘yourself’ represented and misrepresented in museum spaces.
The Seeing Ourselves podcast is part of a multi-disciplinary arts project conceived by London-based artist Sharon Walters AKA (@London_Artist1) on Instagram. Supported by the National Maritime Museum, through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project, Sharon collaborates with historian Serena Lee (@Georgian Diaspora) and artist/historian Fiona Compton (@Know your Caribbean) to explore depictions of people of African descent in the museum collections. Their discussions are frank, open, and honest to offer a unique insight into how it feels to see ‘yourself’ represented and misrepresented in museum spaces.
The Seeing Ourselves podcast is part of a multi-disciplinary arts project conceived by London-based artist Sharon Walters AKA (@London_Artist1) on Instagram. Supported by the National Maritime Museum, through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project, Sharon collaborates with historian Serena Lee (@Georgian Diaspora) and artist/historian Fiona Compton (@Know your Caribbean) to explore depictions of people of African descent in the museum collections. Their discussions are frank, open, and honest to offer a unique insight into how it feels to see ‘yourself’ represented and misrepresented in museum spaces.