Some reflections on the first week

The museum of the Vietnamese Revolution has much interesting information and some small snippets of history that get little if any mention outside of Vietnam. However, the whole display simply says this is 'our' story with no room for alternative interpretation. There is no 'Why?' certain things happened. The Vietnamese people had a single minded objective and this is how it was achieved. That is fine as a statement but life and history is much messier than that. As a museum it fails, in my view, to interact with the visitor. This material may fare much better if the proposed merger with the National History Museum goes ahead and it is seen in a larger context.
If I understand it correctly such a proposal would free up space for contemporary art. An art form barely understood or represented in the Fine Art museum. A collection with some wonderful pieces, but is it budgetary constraints or mind set that make some of the lesser spaces dull and unimaginative?
This first week has shown that this mutual learning experience is a successful format and some genuine collaborative connections have been made, it is a privilege to be involved.
Part 2 to follow.