Museum reforms and Children activities in India; Practice and Implications

Sayan BhattacharyaCentre for Archaeological Studies & Training,

Eastern India

Towards a Global Network? Outcomes and Legacy Of the International Training Programme (2006-2009)

About my work

WorkshopChildren activities

Archiving Training Courses

Architecture Iconography

Seminars and Lectures

Museum Reforms Project

COMMUNICATION SPACE WITH THE

UNDERPRIVILEGED AND STREET CHILDREN

Implementing the ideas which I have gained from British Museum International Curatorial Training Programme-2009

About the projectSri. Jawahar Sircar (Honourable Secretary, Ministry of Culture) has proposed a document on Museums in India; Problems and Prospects: A Global Perspective. The fundamental goal of this project is to study the various problems and prospects of the museums in India through a global perspective.

This project has compiled all the data available on the internet and some information from the published documents as well.

Sri. Jawahar Sircar generously proposed fourteen issues about the museum management among which we have selected three issues.

This project was funded by the Indian Museum and the Ministry of Culture and executed through the Center for Archaeological Studies and Training, Eastern India. Dr. Gautam Sengupta, Director General, Archaeological Survey of India and myself have coordinated this project with Mr. Debanjan Mitra, Miss.Kazima Khan and Miss. Rupsa Munsi as project assistants.

Museum Reforms Project

1. Collection & Stores

Management.

2. Proper/Scientific

Display of Artefacts.

3. Information, Signages, Floor Plans & Visitor

Facilities.

4. Museum Shops and Souvenirs.

5. Multi-Media, Audio Visuals & Guide Facilities.

6. Attract Various Audience

Segments, including

Students/Children.

7. Image Building,

Publicity and Cultural Events

8. Visiting & Travelling

Exhibitions

9. Expansion & Acquisition of

Collections

10. Professional Development of

Museum Personnel

11. Implementation of Plan Schemes

12. Security: Modern

Techniques

13. Conservation and Restoration

14. Interactions with Academics,

Archaeologists and Artists

14 listed issues by the Secretary, Ministry of Culture, GOI

Collection & Stores Management

• Introduce Collection & Stores Management

• Collection policy• Acquisition & Accessioning

• Significance Assessment

• Accessioning & Documentation

• Computer Cataloguing

• Deaccession & Disposal

• Loans (in & out)• Preventive Conservation Overview

• Develop Adequate Storage Facilities

• Storage Space• Cultural Object Stores

• Encapsulation• Framing• Handling or Moving of Artifacts

• Packing an Artifact

Museum Shops and Souvenirs

• Defining Museum Shop

• Shop Vs Store• Set-up proper museum shop/store

• Physical plans of the store

• Location of a store• Size & revenue• Additional requisites for planning a store

• Atmosphere & decoration

• Developing a merchandise plan

• Merchandise professional selected museum items

• Product development

• Product marketing (including PPP model)

• Promote/market heritage as a brand

Attract Various Audience Segments, including Students/Children

• A vision• Calendar• Children• Differently-abled people

• Networking• E-newsletters and mailing lists

• Outreach• Flyers, posters and brochures

The National Museum of Nature and Science, Japan

The Palace Museum, China

The Singapore Art Museum, Singapore

The Smithsonian Institution, U.S.A.

The Victoria and Albert Museum, U.K.

The Tate Modern, U.K.

The Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, U.K.

The British Museum, U.K.Selected Museums for the project

We have submitted our report to the Indian Museum and Ministry of Culture , Government of India.

About the project:This project is mainly for heritage awareness among the underprivileged and street children, in both the urban and rural areas, with the help of Indian Museum, West Bengal State Archaeological Museum and other District Museums of West Bengal. The events or programs will include underprivileged and street children of an age-group of 9 - 16 years. The venue will be mobile and will change with the changing region and locality of the project, but preferably museums (local) and also be the Indian Museum and State Archaeological Museum, Kolkata.

Activity Kits:

In addition to the drawing and clay-modeling kit they will also be presented some souvenirs, which will include school bag , some graphic booklets, Certificate, Drawing books-pencils, and T-shirts and caps . They will also be provided with lunch and refreshments. Initially, we are planning to host this programme twenty times in a year with 30 children each time.

COMMUNICATION SPACE WITH THE UNDERPRIVILEGED AND STREET CHILDREN

Learning (Presentat

ions, movie, books etc.)

Interactive (Interaction

with the children during gallery visit and also hands on

training)

Creative (Clay

modeling and

painting )

Event Structure

2009: Actively participated and lectured (human evolution) with Dr. Suchira Roychoudhury on the workshop for STREET CHILDREN at the State Archaeological Museum, Kolkata supported by the Centre for Archaeological Studies & Training, Eastern India on 23rd November,2009 and 30th December, 2010.

Two Workshops on Children Activities in theState Archaeological Museum, Kolkata

Children Activities Workshop

Interactive

CreativeLearning

Creative

Interactive & learning

Archiving

This year we are working on the collections from North East (Total number of pictures: 1213) gifted by Dr. Gautam Sengupta, Director General, ASI. We have applied for some financial grant from the National Archives of India, Government of India.

IconographyCoordinated the one month course on Hindu and Buddhist Iconography combined with the related Epigraphic Studies between 27.01.2010 & 26.02.2010.

ArchitectureCentre for Archaeological Studies and Training, Eastern India presently hosting three month course on History of Indian Architecture, to be conducted between 23rd February & 31st May, 2010. Fifteen students from archaeology, ancient history, museology and Islamic history background participating in the course. The students will also attend a short field trip to Bishnupur between 3rd & 6th April,2010. I am Coordinating this course and also lectured on Protohistoric Architecture.

Training Courses

Seminars and Lectures

TARAPADA SANTRA MEMORIAL LECTUREConfronting the Present Archiving the Past - by Prof: Lotika Varadarajan, December11, 2009. OCCASIONAL LECTURES:

• Cultural Transfer between India and Cambodia by Prof. Adalbert Gail 2010 on 9th March, 2010.

• Creation of a database on the history of the knowledge and restoration of Greek vases in the 18th and 19th centuries by Ariane de Sacxe on 9th March, 2010.

Exhibitions:Centre had hosted two photographic exhibitions on Indian Architecture through the lens of Prof N.K.Bose in Kolkata and Delhi. We are now planning to materialize two exhibitions in collaboration with Archaeological Survey of India very soon. The first exhibition will be the North East Collection from our photo archive and second will be the pictures drawn by the children at the children workshop.

Attended Seminar/Workshop/Meeting-

• Presented a paper on “Cultural Resources and Heritage means of Indic Studies Interaction between Children and Museum” in the International INDOLOGY CONFERENCE (TRADITION AND MODERNITY IN INDIAN CULTURE, INDOLOGY & EDUCATION ABOUT INDIA) supported by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Sofia University, Bulgaria and Indian Mission between 25 & 26th September,2009 in Sofia, Bulgaria. The participation was supported by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

• 2009: Attended a Workshop on Museum Reforms organized by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India as a Resource person in Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA) New Delhi on 2nd November, 2009.

• 2009: Participated in a meeting with the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India and his team in Delhi with regard to discussion on future collaboration of the Centre with Archaeological Survey of India.

Attended Excavations:

2010: Participated in Mangalkot Excavation, excavated by Centre for Archaeological Studies & Training, Eastern India.

2010: Participated in Manikpatna Excavation, excavated by Deccan College Post Graduate & Research Institute, Pune.

Attended Explorations

2010: Exploration at Dihar and surrounding area with Mrs. Sharmistha Chatterjee.

2009: Exploration at Kotasur and surrounding places, Birbhum, West Bengal as a part of PhD research programme.  2009: Explored sand dune ridges (Contai formation) in March 2009 with Mr. Kaushik Gangopadhyay.

Publication

2009: (Co-author- Sharmistha Chatterjee), A Preliminary Note on Archaeological Investigation in Dantan and Its Adjoining Region, West Medinipur, Jahan, Shahnaj Husne (Ed) Abhijñān: Studies in South Asian Archaeology and Art History of Artefacts, Felicitating A.K.M. Zakariah. (British Archaeological Reports, International Series S1974) Oxford, pp: 21-27.

Mangalkot, West Bengal

Dihar, West Bengal

Manikpatna, Orissa

Kotasur, Birbhum

Thank you