Spåra tiden – To Walk in Someone Else’s Shoes

Ljusdalsbygdens museum is an indoors museum. We have no old houses set in an outdoor environment to help us interpret cultural heritage. Instead, we focus on what we do have – our archives and our collections. For the last twenty years we have developed ways of using them as interpretation for cultural heritage under the flag “Spåra tiden” (“Trace the time”).

“Spåra tiden” is not a fixed form of activity or program. It has been many different things over the years, but there has always been a core focus on participation, identification, empathy and cooperation. Using props, costumes and role-playing is a great way to achieving this, and in that sense “Spåra tiden” falls into the category of “living history”.

Metaphorically, “Spåra tiden” is the experience of “walking in someone else’s shoes”. To do that you need to know as much as possible about the person who once owned the shoes and fill in the gaps between these fragmented facts as best you can. As museum staff, our job is to help people find the pieces of the puzzle, and help set the arena for your walk. It is a learning process for everyone involved, going beyond mere historical facts.

Some of the things we have learnt along the way:

• Stress the difference between fact and interpretation. It is so fundamental to historical research, and any child can understand the difference between what they see and what they “fill in” when shown a small detail of a picture.
• “You already knew, so why did you ask?” to quote Pippi Longstocking – and there is great advice in that. Don’t do all the research beforehand. There is a world of difference between visitors being told something and having to discover it for themselves. Sometimes the professional thing is not to have a ready answer, but to say “I don’t know – but I’ll help you try to find out”.
• A hat is a great thing! Since we hardly wear hats at all in today’s society, it automatically puts you in another time, and makes it easier to “step into someone else’s shoes”. Whole outfits are also great, as is all kinds of props, but hats are just so easy!
• Trust the imagination. Historical correctness in every detail is not what creates the inner learning experience. Perfect environments, costumes and props are wonderful assets, but they are not what makes the whole thing work. You really just need enough to feed the imagination and to facilitate the experience.
• Do not be afraid to address all kind of matters beyond mere history. It is always easier to talk about things that really matter when you are wearing someone else’s shoes. After all, they were human beings in the past too. If it is not suitable within the experience, you can easily have these discussions afterwards too.
• Let the participants be producers, not just consumers. That is, create these activities together with the participants rather than for them, as much as is possible. Think of it as a cooperative endeavour, where you as a professional might have certain tasks and the participants can contribute with other things.
• If you work with children or young people, do not be afraid to let them do real work and lots of it. Find things that actually needs to be done – gardening, wood chopping, washing, cooking, mending, etc – and let the kids make a difference. “No work makes for no food” is a very healthy – and surprisingly appreciated – experience.