Kostas Arvanitis Email & Phone Number

My research interests cross the fields of museology, archaeology, cultural heritage, and digital media. My expertise lies in the areas of Trauma Museology and Digital Heritage. The former examines how museums collect, document and manage the material culture of trauma over time. Through this examination I contribute to the new field of Trauma Museology. In the latter I research the theory and practice of digital technology in museums, galleries and heritage sites. I'm particularly interested in the museology of technology, that is the critical analysis of the use of digital, social and mobile media in museums for purposes of curation, interpretation, evaluation and audience engagement.My current research activity includes: Museums and Spontaneous Memorials. A Museology of Trauma (https://research.manchester.ac.uk/en/projects/museums-and-spontaneous-memorials-a-museology-of-trauma). The project provides the first comprehensive, international study of the conceptual, practical, and ethical issues that the collection, documentation and curation of spontaneous memorials after traumatic events present to museums and other cultural and heritage organisations. It draws on "ethics of care" and "trauma-informed practice" to offer new theoretical and methodological tools for engaging with Trauma Museology. It will, also, develop a knowledge base, policy and practice resources and a global support network for cultural professionals and organisations responding urgently to large-scale traumatic events.Manchester Together Archive: ethics of care and spontaneous memorials in the aftermath of the 2017 Manchester Attack (https://research.manchester.ac.uk/en/projects/manchester-together-archive). Since 2017 I've been working with the Manchester Art Gallery and Archives+ in archiving and researching the material recovered from the spontaneous memorials after the Manchester Arena bombing on 22nd May 2017. This work explores the usefulness of an ethics of care approach in addressing ethical responsibilities in the contingent, adaptive and improvisational practice of collecting spontaneous memorials.The XR Museum. Merging physical and virtual interfaces to create eXtended Reality (XR) experiences for cultural audiences (https://research.manchester.ac.uk/en/projects/the-xr-museum-merging-physical-and-virtual-interfaces-to-create-e).

Listed skills include Museums, Cultural Heritage, Research, Lecturing, and 4 others.