MTC Reads 2024-2025: The Stories We Tell & The Objects We Keep

Objects Tell Stories Exhibit Catalog (Brown University): An exhibit catalog showcasing how objects can reveal historical and personal narratives.

Objects and Memories: Can Objects Tell Stories? (Boston Children’s Museum): This blog post explores how everyday objects can hold and convey memories and stories.

Telling a Story Through Ordinary Objects (Paul H. Paulino): Paul H. Paulino discusses how ordinary objects can be used to tell compelling stories, especially in artistic contexts.

Objects Tell Stories (The Jewish Museum): The Jewish Museum highlights various objects from its collection, each telling a unique story.

Material Objects Tell Stories We Just Have to Listen (University of Wisconsin Madison): This article examines how material objects can convey historical and cultural narratives.

Object Lessons in History (NYT): The New York Times explores the historical significance of everyday objects and the stories they tell.

Using Objects to Tell Stories Lesson Plan (Italian American Museum of Los Angeles): A lesson plan designed to teach students how to use objects to tell stories.

Your Story, Our Story Exhibit (Tenement Museum): An exhibit featuring objects and traditions that tell personal stories of American migration and cultural identity.

Excerpt from book Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World (Mark Minodownik): Mark Minodownik's book excerpt explores the fascinating materials that make up everyday objects and their stories.

Rocks Are Earth’s Greatest Storytellers: Learn about how Earth’s history is written in its rocks with this excerpt from “How to Read a Rock”.

Objects Tell Stories Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture, NY Historical Society: This exhibit explores how objects can tell stories, with a brief wordless video comparing different materials put out by museums and historical societies.

The Essence of Objects: How Material Finds Meaning: This article discusses how material objects hold meaning and tell stories.

Watch 🎬

Objects Tell Stories: The Legend of Leatherman (Connecticut Museum of Culture and History): This exhibit geared for children explores how objects tell stories, featuring a series including holiday seasonings.

How Can Objects Tell a Story (YouTube): A video explaining how objects can be used to tell stories, with examples from various contexts.

Listen 🎧

99% Invisible (podcast): A podcast that explores the unseen and overlooked aspects of design and architecture, including the stories behind objects.

Memory Palace (The Met): A performance piece (in the form of a podcast) exploring the connection between memory and physical objects in the context of a museum setting.