2013-04-25 Press Release
International Museum Day, 2013: Museums (Memory + Creativity) = Social Change
The richness of our historical heritage, preserved and displayed by museums, together with the inventiveness and vitality that have characterized the museum sector's action in recent years, are where the strength of museum institutions lies today. Reconciling their traditional mission of conservation with the creativity necessary for their revival and the development of their audiences - this is the evolution that museums are trying to undertake, with the strong belief that their presence and actions can transform society constructively.
This truly optimistic theme in the form of an equation dynamically gathers several concepts that are essential to define what a museum is today, highlighting the universal nature of those institutions and their positive influence on society. It summarizes the complexity of museum tasks and recalls that they are meant to contribute to community development and gathering together.
The International Museum Day, Macao 2013 will be adhering to the philosophy of the preservation of historical and cultural memory, and creativity in order to have a positive effect towards the transformation of the Macao society.
To celebrate the annual International Museum Day on May 18, admission to all the museums in Macao will be free on different dates of May. Each museum will prepare a series of special features and promotional activities in May, including seminars, thematic exhibitions and workshops, etc. in order to let residents and tourists feel the unlimited power of the museums to the society. For details of free admission and special activities, please refer to attachments or visit the portal of the Museums of Macao (http://www.museums.gov.mo).
The Seminars of International Museum Day, Macao 2013 will be held at Communications Museum on May 2 and 3. The objective is not only to allow local museum professionals to acquire new knowledge, broaden their vision in museum management and service provision, but also to provide a platform for the general public, especially teachers and students, to have a deeper understanding of museums' roles and, therefore, increase their influence in the community. In the first seminar for museum professionals on May 2, Ms. LAU Lesley, Ph.D., Chief Curator of the Art Promotion Office in Hong Kong and Ms. HUI Jeremy, Curator of the Hong Kong Heritage Museum will talk about "The new Oil Street Artspace of Hong Kong" and "Bruce Lee Exhibition: Cross boundaries' interpretation and presentation" respectively.
The public seminar held in May 3 mainly targets to the public, teachers and secondary school students. Mr. LIM Tit Meng, Ph.D., Chief Executive of the Science Centre Singapore will talk about "Science Centres and Museums Inspire Future Creativity through Past and Present Innovations", Mr. Wang Yusheng, Ph.D., Vice Chairman of the Beijing Association for Science and Technology will talk about "Science - Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" and, Mr. AN Laishun, Ph.D., Member of the Executive Council of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) will talk about "Museums: Cultural Institutes Coming Downstairs from Their Ivory Towers".
The Macao International Museum Day Fair 2013 will be held at the Tap Seac Square from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on May 5. To celebrate the most important joint event of the year, the organizers have invited many neighboring cultural institutions to participate in this special event, including 10 museums and cultural institutions from the Guangdong Province: Zhuhai Municipal Museum, Zhaoqing Municipal Museum, Fengkai Museum, etc.; Leisure and Cultural Services Department of Hong Kong Special Administration Region and its 20 subordinating museums: Hong Kong Science Museum, Hong Kong Museum of History, Hong Kong Heritage Museum, etc., all of them are going to send delegates to attend the event.
The opening ceremony of the fair will be held at 3:00 p.m., and there will be a great variety of dynamic activities such as prize-giving interactive games and workshops in the fair. The Macao Museum of Art is going to present "The Real Gorgeous" interactive game which allows participants to experience French art. The Grand Prix Museum and Wine Museum will prepare two games "Macau Guia circuit simulator" and "The Wine Aromas Game" respectively. The Macao Science Center is going to present a series of home-made exhibits and demonstrations, such as the all-new "Live Demonstration - Lightning Simulation".
The Maritime Museum will hold a "Booth Game - Learn more about maritime knowledge", while the Communications Museum will prepare interactive game "Standing Wave", "Fragrant Stamps" workshop and "The Fun of Sound & Wind Music" workshop. The Fire Services Museum will prepare a puzzle game with the information of the prevention of fire accidents, and Tung Sin Tong Historical Archive Exhibition Hall is going to prepare a puzzle game. The Macao Museum will prepare "The Soaring Dance - Paper Craft Workshop for Parents and Children" and the "Cartoon Drunken Dragon Dance". The Heritage Exhibition of a Traditional Pawnshop Business will introduce the "Traditional Chinese Tea Art Culture", while The Taipa Houses-Museum will hold a "Ceramic Tiles Painting in Portuguese Style Workshop". Lastly, the Museum of Taipa and Coloane History will present "Piecing the story of Taipa and Coloane", and the Macao Tea Culture House will hold a "Tea Set and Tea House Clay Flower Making Workshop".
In addition to the activities that show the characteristics and interactivity of museums from Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macao, the Fair will also include dancing, magic show and singing performance, etc. There will also be lucky draws with fabulous prizes, including iPad mini, digital cameras, book coupons, and Taiwan round-trip air tickets sponsored by TransAsia Airways.
International Museum Day Postcard
Macao Post will issue a commemorative postcard with circulation from May 2 to 18, and provide commemorative cancellation service for stamp collectors at the same period.
| Service timetable | Location | |
|---|---|---|
| May 2 to 18 (Tuesday to Sunday) | 9:00am - 5:30pm | Communications Museum |
| May 5 (Sunday) | 9:00am - 12:30am | |
| 2:00pm - 6:00pm | Tap Seac Square | |
As entidades organizadoras do Dia Internacional dos Museus, Macau 2013 incluem: o Museu Natural e Agrário, o Museu do Grande Prémio, o Núcleo Museológico da Santa Casa da Misericórida, a Galeria de Arquivo Histórico de Tung Sin Tong, o Museu dos Bombeiros, o Museu Marítimo, o Museu das Comunicações de Macau, o Museu da História da Taipa e de Coloane, o Museu das Ofertas sobre a Transferência de Soberania de Macau, o Museu Memorial Lin Zexu de Macau, o Centro de Ciência de Macau, a Casa Cultural de Chá de Macau, a Casa Memorial do Dr. Sun Yat Sen em Macau, o Museu de Macau, o Museu de Arte de Macau, o Museu do Vinho e as Casas-Museu da Taipa.