China News Service: Ying Ni
Since 1986, Anderson has worked for the International Council of Museums (ICOM) for nearly 40 years, and has been engaged in matters related to international cooperation of museums. As the chairman of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) Asia-Pacific Alliance, An Laishun gave an exclusive interview to China News Service's "East-West Question" on the occasion of the "International Museum Day on May 18", telling how museums, as educational and research institutions, assume the role of "non-governmental ambassadors" in exchanges and mutual learning between countries around the world.
The transcript of the interview is summarized below:
China News Service: How do you understand the theme of the 2024 International Museum Day, "Museums Committed to Education and Research"?
Ahn Lai Shun: The two keywords education and research appear in the theme of International Museum Day 2024, which is the first time in 32 years since the 1992 International Museum Day had a specific theme that the two words have been so explicitly proposed.
In an interesting vignette, ICOM released three keywords for the 2024 International Museum Day theme in January this year – museums, education, and research – separating the three juxtaposed keywords with commas. This has caused confusion and different interpretations among many researchers, including those in the Chinese museum industry. It wasn't until mid-February that ICOM updated the theme and released the poster, and the preposition "for" was used between the words "museum", "education", and "research" to make the meaning of the theme clear.
On May 16, 2024, on the eve of International Museum Day, parents and children view the jade (Shang Dynasty) on display at the National Museum of China in Beijing. Photo by Tian Yuhao
This change reflects the theme's emphasis on two dimensions – the consolidation of education and research as the relative "intrinsic" function of museums, and the relative "external" role of both in relation to society, in particular the reaffirmation of the role of International Museum Day in support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This is more in line with the original intention and tradition of the establishment of International Museum Day, which is not only an opportunity for academic self-reflection in the professional field of museums, but also a stage for communication between museums and the public, and promote people to face the changing internal and external environment of museums and respond to major social, economic, environmental and cultural issues.
China News Service: What is special about the education and research of museums?
An Laishun: The position of education and research in the internal functional system of museums is very core and critical, and all discussions around the specialization of museums should first solve the problem of consolidating the foundation of education and research.
The theme of International Museum Day 2024 highlights the critical role of cultural institutions, including museums, in providing a holistic educational experience for a more conscious, sustainable and inclusive world. Emphasizing museums as vibrant educational hubs that foster curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking.
In recent years, the concept of museum education has developed differently around the world. In some countries, the concept of "learning" in museums is increasingly used, which reflects a shift in position – the "supply" from the point of view of the museum institution and the "process" experience from the point of view of the learner.
One of the important goals of the museum is to allow the public of different ages and backgrounds to share the museum's collections and knowledge, so that they can participate in the learning of knowledge and cultural exchange. At the same time, museum education has a special value: it is informal, as distinct from the formal school curriculum; It is voluntary and chosen by the learner; is affective, although often with some cognitive features; is transformative, and the experience influences the learner's attitudes, interests, or values.
As for museum research, object-oriented and collection-based research has always occupied a dominant position in museums. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the interest in cultural heritage has been increasing in various countries, especially the prosperity of museums, the development of historical sites, and the emergence of heritage protection activities. These developments contribute to the construction of collective memory, enhance social cohesion, generate a sense of belonging to groups and individuals, and open up new perspectives for museum research.
While the physical presence and symbolism of the objects in the museum space are still amazing, more and more people are looking to the museum to explain the process behind all this, to get in touch with the intangible nature of heritage in the museum experience, and to feel its emotional appeal. Although museums have long incorporated the concept of heritage into practice, the new recognition of the value of cultural heritage has triggered a profound change in museum research.
In the "Blessed State Museum Night" event held in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, the actors performed in the small yellow building of the three lanes and seven lanes. Photo by Lu Ming
China News Service: What do you think of the "museum fever" phenomenon in China in recent years?
An Laishun: It can be said that China is the country with the fastest growth in the number of museums in the world in the past 20 years, both in terms of the number of newly registered museums in the past 10 years and the number of exhibitions held by museums in the country every year in the past five years, both ranking among the top in the world. International peers say that Chinese museums are experiencing a "blowout" era.
The driving forces behind the "museum fever" phenomenon are manifold:
At the national level, China is steadily promoting the construction of a cultural power, and the hardware and software level of museums has been greatly improved. From the perspective of the industry, people's awareness of the value of cultural heritage is also increasing, and more and more exhibitions and educational projects with rich connotations and down-to-earth feelings have been planned, which has changed the relatively stereotypical image of museums in the past and attracted more audiences. From the perspective of the audience, the phenomenon of a large number of young people entering the museum is particularly representative, which is actually the natural demand of young people for a high-quality spiritual life, and they hope to draw the essence and absorb creative inspiration from traditional culture.
"Museum fever" also gives us the opportunity to re-examine the characteristics of museums as public cultural institutions. Promoting the dissemination and sharing of cultural resources is an obligation that museums must fulfill.
Today's museums are more open and inclusive, facing and accepting new things in a positive manner, and even cool, but at the same time they still have to find a reasonable "boundary". Are they the disseminators and cultivators of the museum's profound cultural connotation, or are they a kind of consumer goods that are pan-entertainment or even "eyeball economy"? If it is not handled well, it is actually a loss for the museum, and in some cases it may even dilute the public's sense of reverence for the precious cultural heritage left to us by our ancestors.
Visitors enjoy the Liezi-style Luwangqin at the "Guqin Culture Exhibition". Photo by Yu Haiyang
China News Service: How should we understand the role of museums as "non-governmental ambassadors"?
An Laishun: As a cultural heritage and museum worker, I have had the privilege of working and cooperating with several international organizations in the field of cultural and museum affairs for nearly 40 years, especially personally participating in many of the work of the International Council of Museums.
First of all, cultural heritage is the most primitive, direct and authentic witness to the development and evolution of history and culture of various countries. They unite the recognition of peoples in their own cultural traditions, and help people find answers to questions such as "who we are" and "where do we come from"; They have precipitated many achievements of mutual attraction and reference between their own national culture and other different cultures; They embody the richness of cultural diversity and the potential that this diversity holds; They inspire enthusiasm for the creation of new cultures; They rely on public institutions such as museums to enable the flow of a wealth of meaningful information and knowledge in the service of the goal of creating a common good for humanity.
It is increasingly recognized in the international heritage community that cultural heritage is the creation of ancestors, the cultural wealth left by history to the present and needs to be passed on to the future, the medium through which human beings understand themselves and establish connections in time and space, and an important source of inspiration for new culture and new art. This has led to a consensus among the people of all countries on the protection and inheritance of the common cultural heritage of mankind.
Second, the growing humanism and value-based focus on cultural heritage is one of the most distinctive features of the evolution of the concept of cultural heritage over the past few decades. Cultural heritage is no longer an interesting time capsule, it has the value of historical witness, the aesthetic value of art and the value of scientific research. People pay attention not only to the form and way of existence of cultural heritage at the material level, but also to cultural heritage as a bridge between the past, the present and the future, which opens up a new way for people from all countries to know each other.
More than 20 students from the Russian State Pedagogical University experienced Taishan shadow puppetry in Tai'an, Shandong Province. Photo by Chen Yang
Cultural identity is the deepest level of identity. As an important platform for the exchange and mutual learning of the world's diverse cultures, museums should not only pay attention to the protection, display and publicity of their country's outstanding cultural relics, but also attach importance to and respect the protection of cultural relics from different countries and nationalities. In the exchange and mutual learning of civilizations around the world, museums play the role of "people's ambassadors", where the cultures and knowledge of different countries flow, exchange and integrate, and make the world a better place.
Interviewee Profile:
An Laishun is a professor at Shanghai University, an academic leader and doctoral supervisor of the School of Cultural Heritage and Information Management of Shanghai University, the chairman of the Asia-Pacific Alliance of the International Council of Museums, the director of the Research and Exchange Center of the International Museum Association, the vice chairman of the Chinese Museums Association, and the editor-in-chief of the museum discipline of the Encyclopedia of China. He has served as Vice President of the International Council of Museums, Vice President and Secretary-General of the Chinese Museums Association, and Editor-in-Chief of the magazine "Chinese Museums". He has been engaged in cultural heritage and museum research for many years, presided over or participated in more than 10 national or international research projects, and published more than 100 related academic papers. Member of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) enjoys special government allowances from the State Council.
Original title: "An Lai Shun: How to use the power of museums to make the world a better place? | Stuff Ask》
Source: China News Service