In the fibre collection of Naturalis Biodiversity Center, there is a selection of Panama hats stored under the taxonomic name of the plant that is used to make it; Carludovica Palmata. Between 1913–1947, in a Braiding School based in Mariapatronaat Catholic institution in Paramaribo, a group of Surinamese single mothers used to make these Panama hats, but the story of the makers is not present.

Beyond Taxonomic Narratives investigates how the retelling of “invisible” stories and rereading of archives should take place, questioning the role of institutions in acknowledging similar stories. The project explores how decolonial rereading of archives is currently taking place across Dutch institutions and looks into ways of counter-archiving. The weaving of personal and interview narratives reflects on how archival material and storytelling could be used as a tool to de-center the archival perspective.

back