Current research projects
“QUEER IN THE PROVINCES”
Give Peter my regards and tell him he can have the Ævlerne for half price – and me too, but ask him to send me a wine list, which I forgot at his place on Christmas Day.
Aage, to Frederik Ernst, 1941
The life and actions of silversmith Frederik Ernst (1892-1976) as a homosexual in Assens form the concrete historical background for the research project "Queer in the Province," which will examine how queer practices have been carried out and understood in their geographical, historically specific contexts. Queer practices are understood broadly and include same-sex relationships and gender-transcending social practices. Queer in the Province will be the first contribution to focus on the analytical intersection between queer and province. Until now, Danish queer history has been explored with the big city as its starting point. The project will therefore generate new knowledge about a part of Danish history that we know very little about, namely queer practices in the provinces.
The project is anchored at Museum Vestfyn, which is currently developing the Museum ERNST attraction in Assens into a place that also communicates queer history. This is based on the homosexual silverware manufacturer Frederik Ernst. The project's objectives consist partly of the ultra-local ERNST case, which, based on letters to the manufacturer, illuminates the cultural understandings of male homosocial relationships in the period 1920-1970, and partly of opening up the field of queer history, generating new knowledge about queer practices in the provinces. The overall project will result in an anthology with contributions from leading researchers in the field.
The project is supported by the Ministry of Culture.
Contact: Museum curator, PhD Tea Dahl Christensen, tdc@museumvestfyn.dk, tel: 24801548
Museum Vestfyn's research strategy
For Museum Vestfyn, it is important to ensure a close connection between research and communication. We therefore incorporate the communication aspect into the planning of our research, just as our communication initiatives are based on our research as far as possible.
Museum Vestfyn's research is based on the museum's purpose. Together with the museum's work on other statutory tasks, our research expands, develops, and makes knowledge accessible.
In the coming years, our research focus areas will be:
Assens in the world: Assens in relation to local, regional, and international developments.
Local stories: Changes in development conditions in Assens Municipality, economically and culturally.
Specifically, the work will focus on the following topics:
- Communities and boundaries, including Assens 1920 and communities of memory, e.g. around the hero Peter Willemoes.
- Local industrial history. For example, silverware production from a sociological and economic perspective, as examined by Ernst, and the food industry throughout the municipality of Assens.
The work will result in specific projects in the coming years. Once the projects are underway, you can read more about them here on the website.
See our research plan here.