By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter
Celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Korean museums this year, efforts are being made toward making them global institutions.
Alissandra Cummins, President of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), praised the achievement of Korean museums and their protection of intangible cultural heritage. She visited Seoul last week for the editorial and advisory meeting of the International Journal of Intangible Heritage of the ICOM-ICME ― International Committee for Museums of Ethnography ― which took place at the National Folk Museum of Korea.
``Over the last ten years, I have become more aware of the Korean system for protecting intangible cultural heritage and what has been impressive is their knowledge about what they have and what is important in terms of representing different aspects of cultural life in the country and then reflecting that in a number of different ways,'' Cummins said in an interview with The Korea Times.
The 51-year-old ICOM president said that a number of countries have appreciated the whole system of living human treasures, which is difficult to find in other countries.
``Only a few countries do it. It is a process that we think really it should deserve a lot of attention. Korea has been very good about informing other countries and helping them to become aware of these kinds of systems, indeed, developing knowledge about the importance of apprenticing younger people to learn from the master traditional bearers is the important aspect of that,'' she said.
Cummins is a member of the advisory committee for the International Journal of Intangible Heritage, now in its fourth edition.
The academic and professional journal is aimed at culture and heritage. First published in May 2006, it embraces theory and practice in relation to the study, preservation, interpretation and promotion of intangible heritage.
In recent years, academics, researchers and professionals in many different parts of the cultural and heritage sectors have increasingly been collecting, systematizing, documenting and communicating intangible heritage, and, in particular, supporting both its traditional and contemporary expressions.
Such an international publication was one of the significant outcomes of the 2004 ICOM Triennial General Conference, held in Seoul, under the theme ``Museums and Intangible Heritage.''
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism agreed to provide support for the journal through the National Folk Museum of Korea.
The president said that one of the key components in intangible cultural heritage is that no one can claim ownership of it.
``It's very important, as part of a people's identity, and that is why it's distinctive. It is something that is embodied in the community and in the people by being distinctive from tangible heritage in that respect,'' she said.
She said that what's important about protecting intangible heritage is first knowing about it and recognizing all of its forms, and realizing that intangible heritage which offers dynamic reflections on who we are and helps build knowledge, mutual respect and understanding.
As for more technical aspects, UNESCO has now created the International Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2003. Many countries became signatories, she said.
``That meant that those countries, I think, over 120 agreed to share responsibilities for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. How they do that is often through the institutions like the museums, libraries and archives. One of the best ways is to empower the institutions like this to work with communities and to evolve different methodologies that makes it possible to document to preserve the forms of expression and then to make that expression accessible through different forms of publications but also like documentaries and database to make it accessible again to the wider population,'' she said.
Asked about Korean museums' development over the last century, Cummins said that it's amazing for the country to have such a strong policy framework in which museums are recognized as institutions or agencies enhancing the cultural development and identity.
``For me, it's very impressive to the occasion to encounter the country's centenary museum's development but also if you look at where Korean museums are now, clearly, they have evolved and strengthened and developed overtime and continue to develop their relevance to the community,'' she added.
Cummins emphasized that museums should increase contact with local communities through programs and exhibitions revealing interesting aspects of local heritage to young people.
``There is something that says to people simply by the presence of the museum that there is something about values you have to share with the rest of the world. While you may not always visit, they're confident that it will play its role when it needs to. I think through the tragic loss of the South Gate (Sungnyemun), all of sudden, Koreans see this empty space they have been always trusted the heritage to be as a reflection of who they were historically and who they are today. In some sense, museums play a similar role,'' she said.
To make the museums global, she advised the exchanges between countries and the publication of journals to be transmitted to institutions, libraries and universities worldwide, along with heritage promotion online.
Cummins, from Barbados, was elected President of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) in 2004 in Seoul.
It is the first time that ICOM, created in 1946, has elected a woman as President. She succeeded Jacques Perot (France), President of ICOM from 1998 to 2004.
She will lead an organization with a network of 20,000 museums and museum professionals across five continents.