The theme for the Week 2 of My Home is a Museum project will be – “What matters…”. This theme inspired by the social justice movement currently happening across the United States. I thought that it would be interesting to reflect on these happenings through the prism of our personal life. At the meantime, the response doesn’t need to include an object directly related to the current events. I encourage everyone to find an object/s which describe what matters to you personally.
How to respond?
Choose an object what fits the theme
Take 1-3 pictures of the object
How does the object exemplify what matters to you?
What experience in your life made this object matter to you?
Please include the answers to the following information when submitting your entry:
What it your name?
Where do you live?
What do you do?
P.S. Please note that by submitting your response for this project you give permission to share it later on the blog.
This week, I am very excited to be introducing another segment to our blog called My Home is a Museum, created by fellow Tufts master’s student Sayyara Huseynli. In preparation of its introduction to the Museum Studies Blog, Huseynli agreed to be interviewed in order to provide more information on what this project is and how it was developed.
What is My Home is a Museum?
My Home is a Museum is an online exhibition comprised of images related to a specified theme, depicting objects found within one’s home. Huseynli explains that after considering the objects in her own home, she wondered what other stories people would have about their belongings. She argues that many of the objects we possess we chose to bring into our home and there is likely an intentionality behind it even if we weren’t fully conscious of it at the time. By creating an online exhibition, Huseynli hopes that participants will look around their home as though it were a museum and submit images of everyday objects in relation to a given theme.
The initial inspiration for My Home is a Museum was a project in which Huseynli was asked to create an online outreach program for students. She continues, explaining that as a result of COVID-19 she had been spending a lot more time with the same, day-to-day objects and wanted to find a way to make her surroundings more interesting. After considering that an object which seem ordinary to her might be compelling and interesting to someone else, she came up with the idea to organize a blog where people could share aspects of their lives through the objects they own. After her project was approved, a version of My Home is a Museum was incorporated into the Tufts Education Department Newsletter. However, Huseynli wanted to share her project with more individuals and sought out additional avenues.
Interview with Sayyara Huseynli (at right), conducted by Abigail Lynn (at left)
How to Get Involved
Huseynli’s hope is to keep the submission process as simple as possible and not require too much extra work. To participate in the project, the first step is to access the My House is a Museum cite where an introductory video about the project is provided along with the theme of the week. After learning the theme, participants select an object to photograph in their home. The participant then sends 1-3 images of their object along with a short commentary on the object to Sayara.Huseynli@tufts.edu as their final submission. Anyone who submits a work will be included in the week’s post.
Hopes for the Future
The current goal for Huseynli is to increase the number of participants, to reach individuals across the United States and even internationally. Hopefully, as more individuals get involved, participants will begin submitting suggestions for future themes and the project will become more community driven. Huseynli envisions what she refers to as a “living website” where individuals will be able to comment on and discuss the objects included in each week’s post, suggesting that the blog could become a starting point for a video discussion. She also hopes that perhaps one day there will be an opportunity to bring My Home is a Museum into a physical museum or exhibition space.
