UNDERSTANDING THE PAST

Why look at the past?

Understanding the past gives meaning to the present and plays an important role in the community. Engaging with the past fosters a sense of cultural ownership, empowerment, and encourages the sharing of knowledge resulting in a heightened sense of community and shared culture.

It is the role of a professional historian to help the general public engage with the past.

What forms can history take?

Historical exhibitions, commissioned histories, walking tours, commemorative plaques, installations and interpretive panels are all common examples of how history can be communicated.

Commissioned histories are one of the most popular and effective ways to represent the past. They are often inspired by a significant event, anniversary or commemorative milestone. A written history involves the professional historian carrying out large-scale research and writing to the brief of the commissioning agent. Commissioned histories are often published in book form and made available commercially or for distribution within the community.

Exhibitions are another way of representing the past. A combination of objects, images, text and in some cases multimedia installations are used to tell a story in an engaging and accessible manner, providing multiple access points for the audience.

Plaques, interpretive panels and walking tours of particular localities and neighbourhoods are other forms of communicating aspects of the past. These types of historical representation often appear at prominent landmarks, buildings or in places of community significance where there is a strong link between popular culture and the past. The purpose of this type of presentation of history is to communicate the past in a way that is interesting, useful, relevant to the present and future, and accessible to a wide audience.

These are just a few examples of the diverse and dynamic ways professional historians can represent the past in the public sphere. Histories can always be tailored to meet specific needs and objectives.