Curating the Ama museum for Taiwanese comfort women: a humanistic approach to traumatic memory and healing

As survivors of the Japanese military's sexual slavery system ('comfort women') have rapidly passed away, museums preserving their memories have been key for justice, advocacy, and memorialization. Taiwan's Ama Museum, established in Taipei in 2016, was dedicated to commemorating Taiwanese comfort women. This study documents the museum's curatorial approach between 2016 and 2018 at its original Dadaocheng site, focusing on how it embodied a humanistic discourse to aesthetically curate survivors' traumatic history and life resilience through architecture, exhibition design, and educational programming. We then draw on family and public perspectives to engage in collaborative storytelling about the museum's humanistic approach. Interviews with five family members of comfort women survivors revealed that the museum's content, approach, and legacy resonated deeply. Participants articulated that the museum offered inspiration and the potential for resilience, creating hope and strength. Yet its eventual closure in 2020 and relocation evoked deep sadness and regret. Additionally, 22 reviews of a travel website were analysed as triangulated responses to the Ama Museum and its overall impact. The findings highlight the marginalization of the issue and waning public support as essential challenges to operating a comfort women's museum in Taiwan, requiring greater support to safeguard and preserve survivors' legacy.