By looking at a range of museums in Germany, Britain, France and Belgium, which address a diverse spectrum of topics such as migration, difficult and dark heritage, war, slavery and the GDR, Arnold-de Simine outlines the paradigm shifts in exhibiting practices associated with the transformation of traditional history museums and heritage sites into 'spaces of memory' over the past thirty years.

This book examines one of the most important and intriguing themes in art today: the often obsessive relationship between artist and museum. From Marcel Duchamp’s “Portable Museum” (Boîte en valise) of the early 1940s to Damien Hirst’s distinctive use of vitrine displays in the 1990s, the artists of the past seventy years have often turned their attention—both creatively and critically—to a reappraisal of the ideas and systems of classification traditionally associated with curatorship and display.

With this book museum professionals can learn how to unleash creative potential throughout their institution. Drawing from a wide range of research on creativity as well as insights from today's most creative museum leaders, the authors present at a set of practical principles about how museum workers at any level-not just those in "creative positions"-can make a place for creativity in their daily practice. Replete with creativity exercises and stories from the field, they guide readers in developing an internal culture of creative learning, as well as delivering increased value to museum audiences.