TAG2024

Storytelling and narrative construction has long been a topic of interest to archaeology both in understanding the evolutionary role of stories in past societies, and in using archaeological data to create narratives about the past in the present. Contemporary archaeological theory acknowledges the need for diversity, multivocality and constructivism in interpretations of archaeological pasts presents and futures.

Diverse narrative and creative approaches can enhance impact and engagement, offering subversive, fictive, and alternative perspectives. With the inexorable rise of self-publishing, social media, bots, and AI, we are inundated with stories and content designed to evoke emotional responses or effect change. The power of the past, heritage, and material culture provided by archaeology offer a rich source of inspiration. But are archaeologists engaging effectively in this arena? If so, how can we do so ethically and responsibly, while maintaining academic integrity?

Questions we’re eager to explore include:

Were there compromises made between research rigour and the demands of story, worldbuilding and plot?
What do you create and why?
What are the challenges and what are the benefits of a creative approach?
What challenges did you face responding creatively to your own or others’ research?
What practical and ethical decisions did you have to make?

11:30am | Developing new interdisciplinary approaches for engagement in the Caucasus: Reflections from the Caucasus Through Time Network (CTTN) | Narmin Ismayilova/Caucasus Through Time Network

11:45am | METSEMEGOLOGOLO: of fragmented archives and story-mapping for the exploration of ancient African urbanism | Stefania Merlo, Justine Wintjies & Anton Coetzee

12:00pm | Journeys on the Tavistock Canal: navigating multivocal narratives of industrial Improvement | Andrew Thompson

12:15pm | Stories of stone and soil – the intersection of materiality, landscape learning and human-environment interactions | Emma Stockley

12:30pm | Recovering and reimagining absent archaeologies through creative engagement? | Claire Nolan & Ben Gearey

12:45pm | The past fizzes and trembles in the present | Alice Clough

2:00pm | “Shards of the Past, Meanings of the Present” Bridging distant and recent memories by researching-exhibiting relationships | Mauro Puddo

2:15pm | Animating the Narrative: Artefacts and their Adventures | Aaron Clarke

2:30pm | Playing - with - Light and Time | Laura Basell

3:00pm | Ice-bound Discoveries: An archaeological voyage to Antarctica | Felix Pedrotti, grant Cox, Michael Grant and Jack Pink

3:15pm | Lifeless Things? Archaeological Roleplay in Nothing Beside Remains | Florence Nicholls

3:30pm | Participants as Designers: What Neighbourhood-Led Digital Heritage Storytelling Can Teach Us about Place-Based and Urban Heritage Relationships. | Claire Boardman

3:45pm | Encountering movement: embodied perspectives on the “dancing stone”  | Fiona Coward, Derek Pitman, Richard Potter and Megan Russell

4:00pm | Discussion |

Full paper abstracts available here:
https://tag2024.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/tag-2024-session-abstracts-1.pdf