Laetitia Lai MA

PhD candidate

Area(s) of interest: Colonialism & Postcolonialism, History of the Body, Museums & Collections

Cohort/Start PhD: 2024-2025

Edge Cases – Colonial Legacies of Collecting the Human Body

Open Universiteit
Supervisor(s): Prof. Dr. Sarah de Mul, Dr. Caroline Driëenhuizen
Duration of appointment: September 2024 – August 2028

This dissertation delves into the complex issue of objects which blur the boundaries between the categories “human” and “non-human” in colonial collections. It critically investigates the current understanding of human remains in academia and museum practice by introducing the framework of the ‘edge case’. This interdisciplinary project utilizes extended provenance research, novel academic concepts, and a collaborative course of action to address a vital gap in current approaches to research, display and restitution of objects which occupy a sphere adjacent to human remains.