OPEN HERITAGE. Increased public accessibility to multi-ethnic heritage values in ASTRA Museum

Project facts

Project promoter:
ASTRA National Museum Complex
Project Number:
RO12-0001
Target groups
Minorities,
Researchers or scientists
Status:
Completed
Initial project cost:
€2,933,517
Final project cost:
€2,826,063
From EEA Grants:
€ 2,402,154
The project is carried out in:
Romania

Description

The overall objective of the project is to enhance large audiences’ access to heritage-based lifelong education. The project is expected to achieve increased public accessibility to the multi-ethnic heritage in ASTRA Museum. The project ensures enhanced physical accessibility to this heritage as the cultural heritage is safeguarded for future generations in a new museum building and the open air exhibition becomes available to ever larger audiences. The New Museum of Transylvanian Civilization will start functioning and the entrance to the open air museum is brought to the standard currently needed for cultural facilities. Visitors' access to cultural heritage is enhanced symbolic accessibility through lively presentations such as cultural animation programs based on an indoor and outdoor „Path of ethnic minorities”. The buildings of multi-ethnic origin which have not yet been exhibited – such as the Roma household – and those already displayed outdoor but in need of safeguarding - will be reconstructed, restored and preserved. Bilateral activities will focus on documentation and and the valorisation of ethnic minorities` cultural heritage with a focus on Roma issues. The Museum of South-Trøndelag AS (MiST) (Norway) is involved in this project.

Summary of project results

The problem identified was that the multi-ethnic heritage from ASTRA Museum was little accessible to the public, this leading to poor availability. The open air museum didn’t have proper welcoming facilities to the largest ethnographic open air exhibition and the heritage from ASTRA Museum of Transylvanian Civilization lacked proper storage conditions and couldn’t be displayed and valorised through exhibitions. The project’s overall objective to create large audiences accessibility to multi-ethnic heritage values in ASTRA Museum was achieved by creating the necessary cultural infrastructure (the construction of PaMM and restoration and conservation activities – monuments and cultural goods) and a new cultural offer (a heritage interpretation program and an educational program). The project managed to develop cultural awareness of ethnic diversity and facilitate the access of a wider public, especially young people, to the multiethnic heritage collection exhibited conserved and restored on the Path of Ethnic Minorities. The Cultural infrastructure created – The Multicultural Museum Pavilion (PaMM) is the new access gate to the open air museum and, at the same time, the headquarters for ASTRA Museum of Transylvanian Civilization, hosting both heritage storage rooms, permanent and temporary exhibitions, Folk Art Galleries – multicultural museum shop and offices for curator and staff. It provides proper welcoming conditions for the visitors of the two museums, by modern amenities and facilities. Craftsmen and SMEs related to handicrafts are involved in the programs and offered a new location (Folk Art Galleries) for selling and displaying their products for the public. 38 jobs were created in ASTRA museum directly related to the project. Due to the new facilities and the cultural offer the number of visitors increased by 20% in the first year since the opening of the new building.

Summary of bilateral results

As part of the bilateral co-operation, each partner has undertaken to document, through cabinet and field research, the cultural heritage of ethnic minorities in its area. For ASTRA Museum the central point of the documentation was the rudens' community in Poiana, Perşani, while for the Trondheim Museum, the challenge was to understand the immigrant communities in the area. The two communities became the central theme of the bilateral exhibition Changes. Endring. Schimbari, displayed for both the Norwegian and Romanian audiences. Bilateral cooperation also involved some exchange of experience between the two institutions, to observe the other way of documenting the minority heritage, and to think of common methods through which these minorities can be better represented in museums in Romania and Norway. Shared volume Changing museums. Changing communities. Changing traditions is another result of the bilateral cooperation activity for which the specialists of the two institutions contributed with specialized works. Another result of bilateral co-operation is the seminar and workshop on "Disability, another form of diversity" that offered the perfect opportunity for people working in the field of accessibility of the heritage to be able to share the methods through which they manage to involve people with various disabilities in their activities.