Living not at home

THE MUSEUM IS DEAD - it’s a strong statement. Even more so when you nail it to a museum door.  This slogan, in a photo from 1974, is the i-dent for the current temporary exhibition at Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis. It’s click bait for anyone involved in institutional critique or cultural democracy. In the photo , the slogan has a second part, promising renewal: LONG LIVE A LIVING MUSEUM. The exhibition at Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis has a cumbersome title - Centre for Contemporary Art: 50 Years - Making Art Democratic - but it starts in a sprightly style with big, black and white photos beside the long entrance ramp. These were taken on 10th June 1974 when a group of artists, collaborative art groups and other activists commemorated what they claimed was the death of Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis. In the photos we see a crowd (some acting serious and some laughing), hand-painted placards, funeral clothes, banners, a hearse, a priest. One placard reads I WANT TO BE ALLOWED T...