O Memorial do Instituto Federal da Bahia (IFBA): sistema em definição

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to reflect on the need for theoretical and methodological criteria for the realization of a memorial based on a hybrid institution, that is, composed of archival, bibliographic, and museological documentation, without being understood on the same level of knowledge and technique. It is disturbing to see how spaces of memory are called "memorial". They carry out the practices of similar memory institutions as if there were no differences, and sometimes leading to similar methodological criteria without distinguishing between them. According to the literature review and exploratory research on the concepts of memory and "places of memory", institutions that focus on issues related to the recording, storage, and preservation of documents and artifacts are called "places of memory" or "memory institutions". These include archives, libraries, museums, and other places of documentary record, considering these concepts as spaces where memory finds shelter. In this context, with the advancement of Information Science and Information and Communication Technology, institutions collect documents of different natures, genres, formats, species, and typologies to compose collections of greater scope. Amid these transformations, the documentation center emerges, among other institutions such as the cultural center, the memory center, houses museums and similar, and the memorial, often understood without distinction between them. This fact is the source of complex and highly controversial discussions, especially considering the conceptual breadth of what is meant by a memorial. Therefore, the empirical methodology of this study consists of a case study of the Memorial of the Instituto Federal da Bahia (IFBA). This research carried out quantitative and qualitative methodologies by consulting the Cadastro Nacional de Museus do Instituto Brasileiro de Museus (Ibram), the Cadastro Nacional de Entidades Custodiadoras de Acervos Arquivísticos do Conselho Nacional de Arquivos (Conarq) and the Cadastro do Sistema Nacional de Bibliotecas Públicas (SNBP). The results obtained highlight the conceptual and constitutive elements of a memorial as an institution and, at the same time, how it can be a driver of informational actions for internal and external users and for society in general, based on sources from "places of memory".