Growing Connections
A Case Study on the Museum Engagement of Ainu People in Japan View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Marrianne Ubalde
This research explores how museums serve as platform for community engagement, through a case study on the participation of the Ainu people and the local community at Nibutani, a town in Hokkaido, Japan where majority of the population is of Ainu ancestry. The study employed surveys, interviews, and museum internship at the Nibutani Ainu Culture Museum. The study argues that with the development of Nibutani kotan, it can be considered as an ecomuseum since Ainu-related cultural institutions and natural sites, along with the cultural activities in the area, are introduced and linked together. The unique feature of Nibutani also made this possible since the museums and the local community are compactly situated within the same vicinity. Using the participatory museum approach, it was uncovered that the Nibutani Ainu Culture Museum is involved in different levels of engagement with non-museum stakeholders. Moreover, while there are some forms of collaboration with Ainu and the locals in the exhibition room, the main space where the local community actively participate is through the intangible cultural heritage, in the form of the experiential learning menu offered by the museum to its visitors. A number of issues related to Ainu and local peoples’ participation in museums is discussed.
(Re)presenting Community Heritage with the Community: Singapore’s Street Corner Heritage Galleries View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Alvin Tan
Inspired by the concept of the “ecomuseum” and as part of its efforts to increase museum touchpoints in different parts of Singapore, the National Heritage Board of Singapore has experimented with a “decentralized museum network” approach fueled by strong community participation with the introduction of its Street Corner Heritage Galleries project. In a nutshell, the project aims to showcase heritage businesses, encourage stronger community participation, and activate public spaces in historic precincts. It involves the co-creation of a network of “mini-museums” which are co-curated with participating heritage businesses and located within their premises. These heritage galleries comprise showcases which feature community assets contributed by participating heritage businesses, content which highlight the history of these businesses and their trades, as well as regular programming such as guided tours and workshops. As part of NHB’s efforts to increase accessibility to heritage content, the content of all such heritage galleries is available in English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil online. The project also involves building the capabilities of participating heritage businesses in basic curation, research and programming, in order to empower these businesses and position them as cultural co-creators and co-presenters. This paper focuses on Singapore’s Street Corner Heritage Galleries project and highlights the challenges and the key learning points arising from the conceptualization, development, and implementation of the project.
Featured Hybrid Collaborative Curation and Creation in Museums: A University Art Museum's Path from Constructivist to Third Place Museum for the Community View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Zida Wang
Museum participation that builds community has been discussed by many professionals (Falk & Dierking, 2012; Hein, 1998; Simon, 2017; Villeneuve & Love, 2017) from the perspective of museum education, education curation, visitor-centered curation, socially-engaged art, etc. Co-curation and co-creation practices are artwork creation practices that emphasize collaboration works among curators and creators transited from passive participation to active collaboration. Yet, many scholars concentrate on traditional onsite museum learning (Falk & Dierking, 2012; Hein, 1998; Kothe, 2016; Simon, 2017). The third place theory (Oldenburg, 1998) has been applied to many onsite museum practices as well to improve social interactions. With the emergence of the virtual museum, digital exhibition platform, and technological advancement, the demand for formal digital and hybrid exhibitions that accelerate community collaborative curation and creation study evolved. The FSU Museum of Fine Arts is a dynamic institution that utilizes its exhibitions to foster a sense of community engagement and collaboration. Through the varied exhibitions and programming, the museum seeks to provide visitors with a deep understanding of the curation and creation process. The exhibitions hosted at the museum feature collaborations between multiple artists, visitor participants, community stakeholders, and curators, showcasing the diverse perspectives and voices of the community. The museum provides a safety hybrid third place for museum all participants and community stakeholders.
In Their Own Voice: Centering Communities at the Peranakan Museum, Singapore View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Malvika Agarwal, Heryanti Jamal
The Peranakan Museum in Singapore is dedicated to showcasing the culture of the Peranakans – a diverse community who trace their ancestry to foreign traders from China, India and the Middle East who married locally and settled in Southeast Asia from the 16th century onwards. The culture of the Peranakans is as cross-cultural as their origins suggest, and is evidenced in their food, language, clothing and lifestyle. While often called “Straits Chinese” and commonly believed to be mainly of Chinese descent, the community also comprises of smaller sub-ethnic groups such as the Indian and Arab Peranakans, who have retained their own unique cultural traditions and identities. The newly reopened Peranakan Museum centers these cross-cultural, multi-ethnic communities not just through the objects on display, but by also deepening engagement through innovative public programmes that feature them front and centre. This paper focuses on the Peranakan Museum’s approach towards co-creating programmes and experiences with its community partners, specifically exploring the outcomes observed and recorded during the conceptualisation, execution and aftermath of two major programmes at the Peranakan Museum in 2023, titled “Armenian Street Party” and “Community Voices”. We examine the impact that this approach has had on the museum’s practice, on the community’s efforts toward cultural preservation, and on our audience’s levels of engagement with our subject matter, and its potential impact on the future of our work.
The Concept of Social Inclusion in Chilean Art Museums View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Kata Springinzeisz
Social inclusion understood as a process and purpose that must receive special attention from museums and their educational practices, in order to attract and support a more diverse public. The objective of this study is to describe the ways in which the concept of social inclusion is manifested in the educational practices of educators, curators, and directors of Chilean art museums and the way in which this concept is defined. The research arises from qualitative method based on Grounded Theory and the paradigm of Interpretivism. The instruments used to collect information were semi-structured interviews and the study participants were 14 educators, five curators, three directors and a curator-director, in a total of nine art museums. Through coding and data comparison, eight categories were identified in relation to the concept of social inclusion: accessibility, diversity, relevance of security, communication awareness, political awareness, relevant skills, non-traditional educational practices, and work structure in the museum. The results show the adaptation of the categories to the practices and operation of museums for an effective achievement of social inclusion.
