Herstory in Asia-Pacific: a virtual museum collection project by MLA (Museums Link Asia-Pacific)

Presented by LAI Ying-Ying

Graduate School of Arts Management and Cultural Policy

National Taiwan University of Arts

Background: Human Dignity in a Migration Society

As at the end of 2017, demographic data of the Immigration Department, the

Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Labor show that Taiwan’s

Southeast Asian newcomers, their new second generation and migrant

workers have exceeded 1 million. In a society of migration, they are

resources of cultural diversity and dynamics to the society. However,

they are not mutually respected in the society by their family members

and hosts.

Museum have been trying to welcome them to step into the museums,

and programs of exhibition and education were organized.

However, how can museums welcome the newcomers when our

understanding towards the region's people, histories and cultures is limited.

What roles can museums play in to welcome them?

Encouraged by the then ICOM President, Prof. Hans-Martin

HINZ visited Taiwan in 2015, he suggested Taiwan to work on

"East Asian museum link".

By experience sharing and resources pooling, with the aim of collectively promoting the professional development of the museums, museums professionals and local communities in the Asia-Pacific region are connected, such that constructing a regional cultural identity and cooperation network.

Story Museum: the writing project of MLA Can museum serve as the vehicle for cultural exchange? Yes, writing project can be a platform to start with.

MLA is an "Asia-Pacific knowledge and information

sharing platform” made up of writings, we treat articles as alternative collection, and think about how to revitalize museum collections, inherit knowledge and experience, so as to construct cultural geographical identities, as well as a network for cooperation and communication. MLA is operated by the Chinese Association of Museums in Taiwan and supported by the Ministry of Culture in Taiwan.

14 COUNTRIES/REGIONS COVERED, 2017-

Taiwan, Japan,

Hong Kong, Macau,

Singapore, Malaysia,

Philippines, Indonesia,

Cambodia, Thailand,

Australia, New Zealand,

United States, United

Kingdom, Netherlands

Writers by invitation are

graduate researchers,

museum workers,

directors, curators

and friends and friends.

The MLA writing column has generated… in the official web-site of the Museum Association

2017 2018

Featured articles 25 pieces 25 pieces to come

No. of author 21 23

Articles written by overseas authors

8 7

Themes • National related topics • Interpretation and exhibition • Cultural Assets and innovation • Museum and future prospects

• Interpretation of War • Cultural heritage • Herstories

Writers with diverse background and Style of writing, ideally, Sincere and touchy personal stories or experience, project or research based but not too academical. Photos are included as visual document.

http://www.cam.org.tw/category/column/

museum-link-aspac/ Chinese Association of

Museums, Taiwan (CAM)

關鍵字分析

Multi-interpretation and display of historical events

In the past 100 years, most countries in the Asia-Pacific region have

suffered from wars, colonization and authoritarian ruling. These not only

left many historical relics, but also caused irreparable persecution and

trauma to people across races and beliefs. The museums born under such

historical context should not shy from history but to play a key role to

preserve physical evidence, mediate disputes and open communication.

MLA contains a number of articles on wars from the perspective of

memorial museums, public forums and human rights exhibitions, to

reflect on history and think about our future.

WAR: a shared destiny of the people

The Great but the Wrong War – “Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War” by Wang Szu-ting Master student of National Taiwan University of Arts, Graduate School of Art Management and Culture Policy

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa organized the special exhibition, “Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War” in commemorate the 100 year war history. With personal stories of characters participated in the war, we are reminded by the emotional personal stories so to reflect on the impact of war, a war participated by the New Zealanders in Turkey during the WWI.

Hopes for Cambodia, Fears for Khmer Rouge: The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia by Lin Dao-hsuan Graduate student of Department of Art and Culture, National Taiwan University of Arts

Under the theme of dark tourism , explore how heritage sites interpret and present the painful history of negative heritage, the genocide of Cambodia in 1975. Its exhibition design connects the tangible monument with intangible memories, it encourages visitors to transform pain and conflict into positive energy with empathy, and revitalize the historical value of this event by contemporary perspectives.

Whose War? Whose Museum? Accusations from War Remnants Museum, Vietnam by Tan Yi-fang Researcher, Construction and Planning Agency of Minister of the Interior

This article introduced two museums on Vietnam War, War Remnants Museum at Ho Chi Minh City and the National Vietnam War Museum in Taxes, and explain their different interpretations towards the same war, thus explore the significance of War memorials (Reflection for Peace?) .

• In Nguyen Viet Thank’s novel,

• Nothing Ever Dies: Vietnam and the Memory of War, 2016, described

• ”People suffer twice from wars, one in the field and the other one in memory.”

Museum of Living Memory: The Story of a Chinese Filipino Family Marina Yapski Former Commissioner, International Council of Museums (ICOM) National Committee

This is a history of a Chinese family in the Philippines. Marina Yap is a Filipino and one quarter of Chinese in blood. Marina’s grandfather came from Xiamen, China, to Philippines seeking for better life. For passing on his cultural tradition, he donated land to cover hospitals, provided refugee shelters and founded the Chinese school in Cebu. Marina told us her family story of her immigrant ancestors and how they tried to migrated into a new country while preserving their cultural legacy.

A Nation’s Silhouette and Women in Wartime: Vietnamese Women’s Museum by Xu Shu-xian

PhD student of National Institute of Literature, Tsinghua University

Vietnamese Women’s Museum showcases the beauty of the Vietnamese women and their close and long-lasting ties with the country across three main exhibition areas: 1. Women’s Fashion, 2. Women in Family and 3. Women in History. It not only tells the story of the Vietnamese women and their determination but also testifies how Vietnam finds her originating root amidst the colonization and wars.

AMA Museum - The Necessity of Remembering Traumas of the Comfort Women by Liu Ting-yu, Master student of National Taiwan University of Arts

Comfort Women is a dark part of war history of WWII, not yet officially apologized by the Japanese government. Opened to public since December 2016, AMA Museum helps the society to understand the unspoken history of the Comfort Women: female victims of violence and abuse. There were totally 2000 from Taiwan, many more from Korea, Indonesia, Philippines, etc. As a space for remembrance and reflection, the important thing is to help the victimsto take back their subjectivi ty from secondary victimization of discrimination.

• In Nguyen Trinh Thi’s art work, Eleven Men,

• “Time has done so much to lessen the pain.” • in A Visionary- An Essay on the Woman in Nguyen Trinh

Thi’s Moving Images by Bui Kim Dinh, 2018.

• Can women only liberate themselves through Buddhist incarnation but not from daily reality?

HER STORIES History from Women’s Perspectives

Why HISTORY, but not HERSTORY? Most Asia-Pacific

countries are patriarchal societies, leading to a lack of

women’s perspectives over the history. Women's autonomy

and rights gradually emerged after the 20th century. What are

the women voices in Asia-Pacific region? Through more

museum projects, It is hoped that the situations of women in

various historical contexts can be better appreciated.

OUTLOOK of MLA: to learn, to reflect, and to take actions

• Reflect and subvert the dominate and official discourse.

• Herstory as a perspective, or emotional museum approach

• Welcome more contributions from different countries

• Quality writings

• Fanpage posts and IG promotion

• Future possibility: Sustainability

Promotion and Marketing: Facebook“Open Museum”

Facebook Fanpage

•Monday Museum

exhibition sharing

•Lucky Draw for 518 International Museum Day & MLA Column Promotion

Top 10 Posts (up to 2018/9/8) Type Reach

1 Lucky Draw for 518 International Museum Day Lucky Draw

5673

2 “Mobile Museum” Explore a Sustainable Approach for Museum Management 4243

3 Cultural Encounters on the Colonizers and the Colonized: Public Forum and Colonial Trauma in Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

MLA column

2967

4 Curation training project sharing Exhibition/ activity info

2172

5 Yilan Zhongxing Cultural And Creative Park: The Evolution of Paper 2063

6 Museum mini tour: Summer Night Wandering in the National Palace Museum Travel Journal

1860

7 Absent and Present: Analysis of the Meandering Exhibition in Taipei 228 Memorial Museum

MLA column

1799

8 The Red Bloc 2014-1949: Thinking about the Diversity and Display of White Terror Victims

1723

9 Digital Technology Redefine Outlook of Museum Visit 1591

10 Digital Technology as a Tool rather than a Purpose 1584

Team members: left to right

LIN Yi-Syuan, Marina Yapski, LAI Ying-Ying,

Sally Sz Yu TIAN, Bella Yu Ting CIOU, Abby Hsin Ai YU,

OUR WORK TEAM

Through the writing collection project to encourage

Museum Philosophy and Attitude: Be open, friendly and social relevant so to attract diverse museum users.

Regional Cultural Studies: Focus more on regional cultural exchanges so to better appreciate the people, history, culture of our neighboring countries. Promotion and Sustainability: Through readers and writers word of mouth, and new technology, i.e. Facebook, IG, and campaigns while listen to the feedback of readers and writers Building up commitment: Team work, through learning, sharing, sense of belonging, the team stays in good spirit for the task.

HERSTORY is not only about female stories in history, but can also be a virtual museum collection project for the future. With new technology, we can build up new collections, and in hope to embrace and to respect human dignity in the society.

MLA Column

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