ConferenceIMP Concluding Symposium – Museums and intangible heritage: towards a third space in the heritage sector

On 26 February 2020, the Intangible Cultural Heritage and Museums Project is hosting its Concluding Symposium in Brussels.

The Symposium offers a public forum for key stakeholders from the fields of intangible heritage and museums, such as heritage practitioners, museum professionals, policy makers, academics and representatives of transnational networks. They will be summarizing the theoretical and practical insights that have been pooled throughout the years of cooperation in Europe around the topic of ICH and Museums since 2017. Based upon the IMP Project, future-oriented recommendations and methodologies for both policies and practice will be launched.

Among the project outcomes are a book, a toolbox, as well as a joint declaration on behalf of those engaged in the Intangible Cultural Heritage and Museums Project throughout the last three years. They will be presented for a first time at this one-day IMP Concluding Symposium.

The IMP Book, designed as an invitation to enrich heritage practices and provide support to everyone wishing to contribute to safeguarding intangible cultural heritage, is one of the many outcomes of the project. The IMP Book is expected to serve as a companion to discover transformative heritage practices for the 21st century, seeking alternative ways towards a third space in the heritage sector.

The Museums&ICH Toolbox provides museum professionals with inspirational and pragmatic methodological tools for engaging with safeguarding living heritage. Over the course of the project, in co-creation with the participants to its events, practical guidelines, recommendations and brainstorm exercises are developed as part of the toolbox.

With this Declaration, all parties will express insights and hopes and share inspiration in relation to the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage of communities, groups and individuals, through and together with museums.

Considering that tangible and intangible cultural heritage are intrinsically linked, this declaration will highlight that museums are privileged spaces for contributing to the safeguarding of intangible heritage.

The Intangible Cultural Heritage and Museums Project (IMP), which started in 2017, explores the variety of approaches and practices on ICH in museums in Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy and France. IMP fosters cross disciplinary peer learning, develops professional skills and tools and creates international networking possibilities for the exchange of good practices. ICOM contributes to the project as a member of the Think Tank, through its participation in the international conferences, expert meetings and technical meetings for the implementation of the toolbox. The Think Tank’s mission is to act as an advisory board and provide views, opinions and expertise.

Registering will be possible until and including 14 February 2020.

More about the IMP project

Photo : IMP conference in Berne, Switzerland, Copyright Joel Schweizer