Impact case study database

Higgins’s research has shaped understanding of historical memory by engaging the public in active processes of memory work, creating spaces of commemoration and opening up conversations about the relationship between the past and present. The research has provided an interpretative framework for subjects ranging from the Easter Rising to the history of everyday objects. By challenging historical certainties and listening to multiple voices, the research has made room for participants to question cultural and social assumptions and to develop avenues for greater understanding between the north and south of Ireland and within Irish communities abroad.

The EUR10,000,000 GPO Museum is a permanent visitor attraction located within the historic GPO (General Post Office) building on O’Connell Street, Dublin. It was opened in 2016 and seeks to provide a highly immersive and engaging exhibition that tells the story of the events of Easter Week in 1916. Research undertaken at Teesside University on Irish history and commemoration informed directly the shape and concept of the museum’s Commemoration Gallery. Employed as a historical consultant, Higgins wrote the content for the gallery’s full-wall panel which charts the history of Ireland, North and South, in the decades after the Rising. (This was the only section of the exhibition that had government input, from the Department of Foreign Affairs, which reviewed and commented on the narrative to ensure it was a balanced and fair account) [5.1]. For the then Head of Content at Martello Media Ltd (who led the content team for the GPO Witness History exhibition), Roisín’s input ‘contributed to us improving the quality of evidence, enhancing public understanding and potentially challenging cultural values and social assumptions…Roisín played an essential role in bringing together such an important, and sensitive, narrative’ [5.1]. At the museum’s opening in Dublin in 2016 the Irish Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht described it as one of the flagship projects in the Centenary Programme and ‘a fantastic addition to Dublin’s bustling tourism sector, enhancing the city’s heritage offering for locals and visitors alike’ [5.2]. The GPO Museum received over 180,000 visitors in its first year [5.1b]. It won both the Best Cultural Experience at the 2017 Irish Tourism Industry Awards and the 2017 European Museum Academy Luigi Micheletti Award in 2017 [5.3]. The judges for the Luigi Micheletti Award said: ‘the Centre is a perfect example of 20th century history in retrospect, dealing in an even-handed way with a very emotive subject, which would have been impossible even a decade ago. It is an extraordinary achievement, an historical challenge [which] has been transformed into a reconciliation centre which also poses questions for the future. Our warmest congratulations go to the whole team’ [5.3]. For the then Education Manager at the GPO Museum: ‘the judges made specific reference to the fact that the narrative did not stop after the Irish Civil War, but in fact examined the contested recent history of the north of Ireland. They stated that [the GPO Museum] is a centre of peace and reconciliation. Roisín’s valuable contribution was pivotal to this’ [5.1].

Research on Irish history and commemoration undertaken by Higgins has also shaped public discourse through a range of different media. Higgins, for instance, was commissioned in 2016 by the Arts Council of Ireland to write a reflective essay which responded to the multi-layered memory traces in the musical programme of the televised centenary concert, A Nation’s Voice and was invited to write the explanatory text for a section of the multi-media online exhibition 1916: Weaving Private and Public Narratives [5.4]. Higgins’s contribution explained the significance of material objects in both anchoring the memory of the Rising and also providing symbols of potential resistance. The exhibition was hosted by the Digital Repository of Ireland in association with the National Archives, National Library and National Museum of Ireland [5.5].

In recognition of the fact that her research on issues of memory and commemoration in Irish history ‘commands enormous respect’, Higgins participated in the Department of Foreign Affairs-funded Easter Rising Centenary programme for the diaspora [5.6]. She was invited to speak at events in Rome (Roma Tre, Jan. 2016); Boston (Boston College, March 2016) Atlanta (Georgia State University, (April 2016) and Melbourne (University of Melbourne and Victoria University, April 2016) and, one host noted, ‘made a vital contribution to the overall success’ of the programme [5.6]. During the Centenary period, Higgins gave fifteen public talks on remembering the Rising in venues ranging from Dungiven Parish Hall (March 2016); Coolock Civic Centre, Dublin (April 2016); and Moyle District Council Buildings, Ballycastle (August 2016). In Ballymena, Co. Antrim (August, 2016), a local political representative noted that the audience had gained a new understanding of how it was possible to question some aspects of the past without feeling that everything important would unravel, an important reflection in a divided society [5.7].

Higgins’s work on material objects as receptacles of memory led to her role as presenter on National Treasures, a television programme broadcast on RTÉ in 2018. Described as ‘an anti-capitalist Antiques’ Roadshow’, it told the history of Ireland through objects brought by members of the public to televised events across the country [5.8]. It was an example of history being co-created by a number of constituencies. Items selected by Higgins and her co-presenters formed an exhibition at the National Museum of Ireland, Country Life. One of the producers of the show noted that Higgins’s ‘knowledge, research and expertise informed the roadshow, exhibition, television series, digital archive and follow-on book, providing the historical merit and emotional triggers to generate wide audience engagement. … she contributed to a huge degree in the success of the project’ [5.9]. The National Treasures project had significant reach. The viewing figures for the television series received a 25% audience share (380,000 viewers) which then increased to 30% by end of the four episodes. The expected viewership for RTÉ in this slot (6.30pm on a Sunday) is 15%. The number of visitors to the Country Life Museum increased by 25% after the television programme was broadcast [5.10] and it was noted that ‘an all-island project exploring the contentious history was a huge challenge and Roisín was a key to surmounting that challenge’ [5.10]. One viewer tweeted how they had enjoyed the show’s concept and that it had put history in hands of the people [5.12]. Another expressed how National Treasures had provided a platform for discussing objects with contested histories [5.12].

Higgins’s research on Irish history and the Easter Rising has led to a more nuanced and deeper public understanding and engagement with the complexities of commemorating the revolutionary period. The importance of this work is best reflected in a 2020 speech by the President of Ireland as part of a Centenary Commemorations Address which directly references Higgins’s research. As he states: ‘commemoration [is] an important aspect of ethical remembering. However, discretion is required with regard to how we mark important historical events, particularly those that may be exploited for narrow political or partisan purposes…Time and again, we have seen how history can be used and abused for insidious, morally dubious, purposes. As historian Roisín Higgins puts it, “[The] fractious nature of the revolutionary period has created many possibilities for commemorative events, as well as a great deal of potential for division”’ [5.12]. Higgins’s research, in acknowledging and understanding the divisive nature of certain aspects of the past, has shaped memory spaces and public conversations that are reflective and inclusive in the present.

Since 2014, McKeown’s research-led artworks, installations, and interventions have been exhibited internationally (UK, Ireland, Czech Republic, Greece, Germany, Australia) in 19 venues, as well as archived online (BFI Permanent Collection) and screened on national TV networks (BBC, Channel 4, Forces TV). Through engagement with a diverse range of venues, McKeown’s work has extended the reach of disability arts and history into mainstream television, city and town centres, and entertainment and culture venues bringing new audiences to disability arts and heritage. Venues have ranged from regional museums (Preston Park Museum and Grounds, Stockton-on-Tees) to open air heritage venues (Beamish, The Living Museum of the North), from town and city centres (St Helens, Cork) to prime time television (BBC, Channel 4), from the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (Mayor of London’s Liberty Festival) to events championing regional innovation (Great Exhibition of the North), and from cultural hubs and galleries (London South Bank Centre) to international art and film festivals (DaDaFest International, Adelaide Film Festival) [5.1].

The venues and platforms reflect the diverse audiences that have engaged with this research and the importance attributed by the organisers, commissioners, programmers and produces to engaging new audiences with disability arts and disability history. For the Director of Create, Ireland’s national development agency for collaborative arts, Cork Ignite ‘opened up a whole vista for people in terms of a compelling, unique public artwork, that spoke of inclusivity, spoke of ambition, it spoke of making our public spaces in the city alive and speak back to the public’. [5.2].

By preserving and documenting hidden histories of disability, this research has ensured continued representation within a range of cultural spaces. All for Claire (2010), for instance, was selected in 2019 for the BFI’s Disabled Britain on Film permanent collection, attesting to its importance in capturing and raising the visibility of disabled people [5.3]. The commissioning of Ghosts for Channel4 and the subsequent awards it has received signal the importance of this work in voicing and documenting disability history in a new and engaging ways. The five-part series (Does it matter?) that featured Ghosts received an award for Performance under Ten Minutes at the Picture This film festival (Calgary, Canada) in 2015. For the jury of the Picture This film festival, the five-part series was: ‘an eclectic series exploring war from a point of view seldom seen in mainstream media ... informing and entertaining ... very powerful and engaging’ [5.4, p. 7]. Ghosts has also won an award of merit for disability issues from the Accolade Global Film Completion 2016); an award from the Respect Human Rights Film Festival (Belfast, 2017); and award for first place in the Non-Documentary Division of the Cinema Touching Disability film festival (Texas USA, 2016). [5.5]

McKeown’s work on creatively recovering and resurfacing disability histories led to investment from HLF to preserve disability heritage in the form of living memories and artefacts, preventing loss of this history through destruction, neglect, or export. The project led to: McKeown becoming the Director of the Invalid Carriage Register and a modernisation of the Invalid Carriage Register (which maintains records of known invalid carriages); the first comprehensive list of disability vehicles in public ownership; and the retention by The Science Museum of rare and significant vehicles of disability history that were being considered for disinvestment of stock. [5.6]. The exhibition of these vehicles and their social histories has attracted audiences both new and old. The Chief Executive Officer of the Finchale Group remarked that: ‘it was certainly an object of curiosity and great interest for our more modern-day veterans and attendees…on every occasion, the display drew comments and generated a great deal of interest. As a result, Finchale Group has been inspired to investigate and preserve its own history: for example, we have recently uncovered some historical photographs of disability vehicles that have a clear and direct link to our organisation’s past’ [5.7].

McKeown’s research on invalid carriages has supported the development of three television programmes that have each sought to centre the almost forgotten history of the disability carriage within mainstream public consciousness. McKeown’s research contributed the BBC’s The NHS: A People’s History (2018), Channel 4’s Great British Car Journeys (2019), and to Forces TV’s Saving The Forgotten Invalid Carriage (2019) [5.8]. The interview for Forces TV was also made available on their TV website [5.8]. The dedicated airtime from national TV networks is reflective of both the emerging public interest in this space and the role McKeown’s research has played in generating and shaping content for these audiences. For the Director of the BBC’s The NHS: A People’s History, McKeown’s was work crucial to developing the narrative: ‘at the time of production we found it very difficult to determine a coherent narrative from normal sources such as Google, as there is very little online and quite a lot of it inaccurate. Simon's research has enabled 7Wonder to interpret and understand the complexities of the 1970's Invalid Carriage and to place their use within the context of the time’ [5.9].

In addition, events such as Cork Ignite and We Are Still Here have generated significant and transformative cultural moments that have helped to redefine space and place. For the Chief Executive of Heart of Glass, the charity that commissioned We Are Still Here for St Helen’s: ‘the event was a very bold statement that brought into focus those frequently marginalised within the arts and cultural sector. It enabled a disabled artist and learning disabled within St Helen's to take centre stage at the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the town in a bombastic way that's hard to ignore [5.10]. For the then Director of Corporate Affairs at Cork City Council: ‘Fans of digital technology and design are still talking about the detailed, painstaking work that it took to produce Ignite. Those who know nothing of that still talk about the entertainment value of the show. And the people with disabilities who were involved will always be proud, not only of their work, but of the fact that their abilities were recognised in such a public way in their city. Cork businesses took the project to their hearts, and used its impressive images to promote the city and their own place within it [5.11].

Significantly, the three part Ignite series of which Cork was a part has subsequently led to Arts Council Ireland (ACI) reflecting on their roles in supporting disability arts, particularly within public spaces, sparking institutional change. The Ignite series, for example, helped inform the development of a signed agreement between Cork County and City Management Association and the Arts Council [5.12]. As stated by the Arts Director for Performing and Local Arts at Arts Council Ireland (ACI): ‘this Framework for Collaboration was rooted in learning from the Ignite events and includes a commitment to focusing on arts and disability and details on how this work might be supported in the future’ [5.12]. The Ignite series also led ACI to reconsider the upper limit for their Arts Participation Project Award, which was increased to EUR60,000 post Ignite to facilitate great ambition demonstrated by these events [5.12]. More specifically, ACI have recognised the significance of Cork Ignite for disability arts: ‘the visibility of Simon’s project was also enormously valuable. It was a landmark initiative that built on years of work and practice. It demonstrated both the ambition and quality of disability arts and the importance of incorporating disability arts within mainstream arts and culture’ [5.12].

Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA) was incorporated into the University in 2014. It has provided the platform and mechanism for implementing this research into practice and for sharing practice-led research. In 2015, Hudson wrote a 2015-18 vision statement for MIMA that placed the idea of the “useful” museum at the heart of MIMA’s work. The aim was for MIMA to be ‘a place that is created and given meaning by the sum actions of all its users’ [5.1]. Through the exhibitions Localism, If All Relationships Were to Reach Equilibrium, This is Water, and Fragile Earth this ambition was tested, refined and realised, leading to MIMA’s 2019-22 Business Plan that articulates MIMA’s renewed focus on “art in action” and a constituent-engaged artistic programme [5.1]. Since 2015, MIMA has held 57 exhibitions and hosted 407 events. For context, MIMA receives 90,000 visitors a year.

Research-led exhibitions and events exploring the idea of a “useful”, constituent-led museum and held at MIMA have sought to provoke discussion on the role of museums, especially so in relation to community and place. MIMA’s work has led to representatives from both the Wellcome Collection and Museum of London visiting MIMA to learn more about their curatorial approach. For the Head of Engagement at the Museum of London, MIMA’s community board was particularly striking: ‘I was thinking about the community board and why it seems like such a radical thing to reach for – I’m glad to have it in my mind’s eye as an ambition to reach for’ [5.2]. According to the Acting Director of Moderna Galerija, Ljubljana, who led the EU New Mappings Project: ‘MIMA’s research into constituent-led approaches to creating public forums for discourse with diverse communities was key to the development of the project…the network of organisations learnt from MIMA’s community programmes, including Community Day and the Cultural Conversations programme with new communities. Through discussions and workshops, we adapted these methodologies and approaches in each of our projects’ [5.3]. For a formal reviewer from Arts Council England, the Localism exhibition ‘was intended to be a provocative exercise, one designed to whip up debate about both what the function of the museum is and can be and, more specifically, what mima’s role might be in the specific geographical and economic landscape within which it is located (and the challenges that come with that). In that respect, it was extremely successful’. [5.4]

As a result of this constituent-engaged approach to museum work, MIMA was included, in 2016, in the Calouste Gulbekian Foundation Inquiry into the Civic Role of Arts Organisations. MIMA was one of 80 international organisations to be featured in their case study bank that profiled best practice in civic engagement from around the world [5.5]. For the Director (North-North East) of Arts Council England: ‘MIMA’s research-informed approach to curatorial practice has led to a reinvention and challenging of the role of the museum, disrupting approaches within the sector. Seeing itself as a “useful museum”, MIMA seeks to influence society positively. For the Arts Council, this approach aligns well to our central mission of valuing the creativity of all, ensuring access to the arts and is one of the reasons for our continued investment in MIMA’ [5.6]. MIMA’s engaged approach was also cited by the Chair and Chief Executive (Sir Peter Bazalgette and Darren Henley) of Arts Council England in 2016 as part of the Countries of Culture inquiry, which launched in March to examine the wider cultural landscape. MIMA was selected as an example of the ‘growing contribution of universities, who want to make their local areas great places to work and study’ demonstrating the importance of MIMA’s work in rethinking not only the role of museums and galleries, but also the role Higher Education can play in community and civic engagement. This inquiry led to Arts Council shaping policies and approaches to building relationships with HEIs nationally. [5.6, 5.7].

The exhibitions and their associated events (talks, film club, lunches, and community days) have also enhanced cultural engagement with modern art through a curatorial approach that centres the interests and needs of the local community. For the senior editor at FREIZE, a leading magazine of contemporary art and culture, MIMA provides a ‘powerful rejection of how the art world, too often, reduces activism to radical cosplay. This is an era in which political culture is being reformed in ways that may well be far more dramatic than what happened in the 1980s, and that’s the context in which mima proposes an articulation, rather than imposition, of a democratic cosmopolitanism, charting a progressive path out of here’ [5.8]. For a reviewer for Art Agenda, an online ‘publisher of rigorous and engaging writing on contemporary art’, the curatorial approach to Fragile Earth enabled news of engaging with and thinking about climate change and ‘provides a welcome example of how to make a meaningful, thoughtful, and deeply humane exhibition about the complex and emotionally charged issue of climate change in the twenty-first century’ [5.8]. For a reviewer in the Gazette, Teesside’s local newspaper, If All Relations Were To Reach Equilibrium This Building Would spoke to the role museums can play in giving voice to marginalised communities: ‘For the many individuals fleeing Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa, parts of the Middle East and other regions this is a huge platform to give a voice and an understanding to a plight; and the humanity behind these people forming a part of a multi-cultured Teesside society’ [5.8]. This exhibition was subsequently featured on the Arts Council 2016/17 Annual Report as an example of an arts organisation ensuring ‘everyone has the opportunity to experience, and be inspired by, the arts, museums and libraries’. [5.9]

MIMA’s engaged approach has also contributed to the cultural offer of the Tees Valley, MIMA acting as an ‘important broker of sectoral discussion’. For the Creative Place Manager at Tees Valley Combined Authority: ‘Research undertaken by Teesside University researchers at the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art has made a significant contribution to our regional cultural offer, as well as local community engagement and cohesion. MIMA’s ethos as a museum owned and led by local communities drives positive change and the museum is a proactive hub where communities come together and reflect on ideas of place, culture, and identity. MIMA’s research-informed outreach programme goes beyond the museum’s walls, working with schools, THIRTEEN Housing Group, and nursing homes to develop a deep and meaningful engagement on issues of migration, climate change and regional industry’ [5.10].

MIMA’s role within the regional cultural economy of the Tees Valley is also seen through the continued investment and recognition of MIMA as a national portfolio organisation and for its important role within the North East [5.6]. Since 2014, Arts Council England have invested GBP4,086,056 in MIMA. More recently, an investment of GBP2,900,000 was made by Arts Council England’s Creative People and Places fund for a MIMA-led Borderlands programme. The programme seeks to build cultural engagement in two areas of Teesside with extremely low levels of participation [5.6].

Through sustained regional partnerships, research on post-industrial heritage and regional culture has been used to inform a suite of regional arts and culture projects that have sought, at once, to preserve Tees Valley heritage and also foster new understandings, interpretations, and futures for the region.

Working in partnership with Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council and the SSI Task Force (established in 2015 to help those affected by the closure of the SSI steel plant), research on industrial heritage by Vall has underpinned the design and delivery of an award-winning exhibition at Kirkleatham Museum that explored Redcar’s industrial past. For the Museum Manager at Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council: ‘research on the musealisation of the industrial past served as a key thought piece in helping us to navigate the complex landscape of post-industrial change and heritage practice. Through her research we were able to place the ambitions of the exhibition in a wider context of regional museum practice, which made it easier for us to understand both the pitfalls and opportunities of curating the industrial landscape’ [5.1]. For a reviewer from Arts Council England, the collaborative nature and research-informed approach was a key to the exhibition success: ‘the project was conceived with a number of partners locally, indeed without that involvement I doubt that the project could have come to fruition as it did, that indicates rigour and commitment from a number of key players including Teesside University’ [5.2]. The positive effect of University/Museum collaboration on museum audiences has also been recognised through the exhibitions receipt of the 2019 Museums Change Lives award. For the Museum’s Association, Kirkleatham museum won the award for its ‘co-curated project Steel Stories, celebrating local iron and steel heritage. Based on in-depth research and collaboration with local community groups, the project paid homage to the people who worked in the industry and prompted debate on the future of the area’ [5.3].

The ‘Steel Stories’ exhibition at Kirkleatham Museum launched in April 2019 and ran until Dec 2019. The innovative coproduced approach led to the museum attracting over 30,000 visitors in the period. Figures for April 2019 show an increase in visitor numbers of 28% when compared to figures from 2018 [5.4]. As well as exceeding expected visitor numbers, the exhibition also brought new audiences to the museum. According to the final report: ‘it is safe to assume that Steel Stories has both engaged and resonated with local audiences, particularly retired male steelworkers. This demonstrates that the community-led consultation aspect of the exhibition has been a resounding success; respondents would not have been universally positive to the exhibition had it not paid homage to local industry, in a manner that both respects and celebrates the region’s heritage. Furthermore, raw data suggests that the exhibition is pulling in large audiences, thereby boosting the local economy for Redcar and Cleveland as well as the cultural offer of Kirkleatham Museum’ [5.4].

Qualitative feedback also reinforced that the community-engaged approach devised at the outset resonated with visitors and supported the exhibition’s ambition to increase local pride and a positive sense of belonging: 86% of visitors reported that they ‘felt pride in Teesside’s heritage after viewing the exhibition’ [5.4]. Taking place at a time of intensified deindustrialisation on Teesside following the final closure of the coke ovens and blast furnaces in Redcar in autumn 2015, the exhibition supported attendees to negotiate feelings about the past. As one visitor remarked: ‘the exhibition really showed what it’s like to live somewhere like Teesside a while ago and shows how it’s affecting our lives today in this modern age’ [5.4]. For Arts Council England: ‘featuring as it does the decline of a once proud regional manufacturing tradition creates mixed emotions, on the one hand celebrating that history and the skills on Teesside whilst at the same time looking to find a new role for the area. Though not local I felt this quite keenly –it must be all the more emotional for those who live locally or who worked in the industry’ [5.2].

Research on cultural regeneration and the ‘settlement movement’ principle has also been used to underpin a large-scale cultural programme for the Tees Valley. As a result of a series of project meetings between Vall and Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) in 2016, a proposal was submitted to the Great Places Fund run by Arts Council England and National Heritage Lottery Fund. The proposal focused on five ‘settlement’ arts, heritage, and culture locations within the Tees Valley communities and the settlement principle was a key feature of the application [5.5]. For the Great Place Programme Manager at TVCA, Vall’s work ‘on regional culture and the settlement movement provided significant thought leadership for the bid’ [5.6]. Funding was secured in 2018 and the settlement principle developed by Vall provided the foundation for the delivery of the programme [5.7]. The programme evaluation shows that Great Place Tees Valley (GPTV) led to increased collaboration and partnership working across the Tees Valley, as well as the creation of training and employment opportunities for over 350 local artists and small businesses, supporting over 12,000 local people, children and families to create and enjoy cultural activities [5.8]. Perhaps more importantly, the settlement principle, and specifically the emphasis on the importance of authentic community involvement in cultural policy also ensured diverse population groups and geographies engaged with the project. Close to 50% of recorded participants live in some of the most deprived neighbourhoods in the country, running counter to national trends where engagement with arts and culture prevails in higher socio-economic groups [5.8].

Vall’s research also went on to inform the working practices of GPTV project partners. For the Managing Director of Tees Valley Arts, a charity that uses arts to create social change: ‘Vall’s research on how regional heritage can be used to reimagine a region’s future has directly informed our work. It led to the commissioning of three significant events as part of the Great Place Project that sought to actively foster and promote a positive sense of place through engagement with community groups, steelworkers, and young people, voices that have been side-lined in discussions of cultural regeneration’ [5.9].

As a result of the success of this research-informed programme, investment in culture for the Tees Valley Combined Authority has been expanded from £1.8m in 2016 to a planned investment of £20m in 2019 and a TVCA Creative Visitor Economy Recovery and Growth programme developed [5.10, 5.11]. For the TVCA programme manager for culture, Vall’s research has been central to this work: ‘The emphasis in this research on the importance of community engagement and authentic involvement as a prerequisite of effective regeneration (Vall, 2010) has informed the work done to date’ [5.6].