Pratiche istituzionali per la reinvenzione culturale dei monumenti controversi

Monuments exist in many different forms, but what is common among them is that they have both commemorative and political functions. While articulating specific historical narratives, monuments convey the worldviews of those in power. As such, they encompass a set of meanings, identities and events, while concealing others. National elites are aware of the power of monuments and use them as tools to spread dominant worldviews, reinforce political power and set off social dynamics of inclusion and exclusion. However, individuals interpret monuments in ways that can be different to the intentions of those in power. Monuments are meant to be stable over times in their physical forms, but their meanings are dynamic, reflecting changes in culture, social relations and views on the past. For this reason, monuments representing outdated cultural values or reflecting the ideology of a begone regime often become controversial and their permanence in public space problematic. This article proposes a typology of institutional practices for the cultural reinvention of controversial monuments. Before this, it completes a review of the semiotic and cultural geographical approach to monuments and presents a theoretical and methodological framework for the analysis of the multiple interpretations of monuments.