Institutional Liberation: Reimagining Museums as Counterpower Infrastructures

Abstract:Despite the limitations that pertain to the hierarchical nature and regulatory arrangements embodied in and through institutions, this article sets out to envisage museums as agonistic platforms that can contest the neoliberal hegemony and the predominant narratives of the West. To do so, it delves into the political presuppositions and organizing principles of Not An Alternative (a collective that works at the intersection of art, activism, and critical theory) and examines its theory of "institutional liberation" alongside other accounts of institutionality. By inventing a para-institution—the Natural History Museum—to infiltrate the natural history sector and by forging alliances with museum professionals and Indigenous-led campaigns, the article untangles Not An Alternative's understanding of museums as sites to be seized and turned into counterpower infrastructure. In this respect, this article aims to contribute to critical theories that engage with questions of institutionality by reimagining the role of museums in a time of mounting inequalities and climate emergency.