New concepts needed to enliven museums<\/p>\n
Visiting museums is not what people here like to do. For them,
\nmuseums are dull and unattractive. Why do they have such an idea?
\nWhat should be done to improve their attitudes? The Jakarta
\nPost's team of writers Rita A. Widiadana, Bruce Emond, Tam
\nNotosusanto and Mehru Jaffer explore the issue.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Jakarta's museums are clearly losing out to more
\ndynamic and vibrant entertainments.<\/p>\n
Visit a museum over the weekend and you will find dozens of
\ncurious art lovers perhaps with families in tow plus a handful of
\nfirst-time visitors. By contrast, thousands of Jakartans flock to
\nshopping malls and other recreational spots to spend their
\nleisure time.<\/p>\n
For them, malls cater convenience and glitter, while museums
\nseem only places to store old, dusty artifacts.<\/p>\n
A lack of intellectual curiosity about the past is one factor
\nwhy people overlook museums. On the other hand, museum management
\nis also responsible for the poor image of the institutions.<\/p>\n
Luthfi Asiarto, director of the Ministry of National
\nEducation's Directorate of Museums, underlined that museum staff
\nmust work hard to improve the image of their institutions.<\/p>\n
\"I admit that most museums displays in Indonesia are
\nunattractive despite their priceless collections,\" he said.<\/p>\n
There are about 262 museums in Indonesia, state-owned and
\nprivately-managed, registered with the Directorate of Museums.
\nThe capital city of Jakarta houses no less than 56 museums
\nincluding the National Museum, Maritime Museum, Textile Museum,
\nHistory Museum, Fine Art and Ceramics Museums, Science and
\nTechnology Museum and Oil and Gas Museum.<\/p>\n
The National Museum alone houses more than 100,000 precious
\nobjects ranging from ceramics, numismatics and fine arts to gold
\njewelry, considered by world-class curators as among the best
\ncollections in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n
\"Museums are sources of knowledge and information. They bridge
\nthe past, present and future. It is a pity that they only draw a
\nvery few visitors,\" said Luthfi.<\/p>\n
The Oil and Gas Museum at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII)
\nin East Jakarta, for example, has seen an all-time low in the
\nnumber of visitors, with about 80,000 visitors last year, or half
\nof 1997's figure.<\/p>\n
\"Most people obviously don't know how to benefit from
\nmuseums,\" Luthfi added.<\/p>\n
He continued to stress the need for museum staff to change
\nboth their management and curatorial styles as well as to improve
\ntheir public orientation.<\/p>\n
One approach is through the selection of exhibition topics,
\nwhich often shift emphasis from a traditional object to issues of
\nspecial relevance for a particular group at a particular time.<\/p>\n
New ways to present collections are another strategy to serve
\nmuseum visitors better.<\/p>\n
\"A lot of museum curators are trapped in their own
\nperceptions. Often they hold exhibitions for their own
\nsatisfaction. Now we have to urge them to create programs and
\nexhibitions that are appealing to the public. That's a very tough
\njob,\" commented Luthfi.<\/p>\n
Nanang Iskandar, head of the Indonesian Museums Association,
\nadded that the media and related parties are also responsible for
\neducating the public about the importance of museums.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, some museum administrators are trying to
\nimprove themselves by taking part in advanced degree programs in
\nmuseum science here and abroad.<\/p>\n
Yet museums remain empty of visitors.<\/p>\n
In fact, the problem is quite complex. Sudarmadji Damais, the
\nformer head of the Jakarta History Museum, believes the problem
\nresides beyond museum management and the general public.<\/p>\n
The generally accepted concept of a museum, which is borrowed
\nfrom the West, is often adopted here regardless of what the
\nIndonesian public wants and needs.<\/p>\n
A museum, however, must also conceptually consider the
\nmanagement, culture and human resources comprising a particular
\nmuseum.<\/p>\n
According to the Encyclopedia Americana, the word museum
\nderives from the Greek mouseion, a building sacred to the muses
\n(goddesses of the arts and sciences) where the devout left
\nofferings.<\/p>\n
The first museum here was founded by the Dutch who wanted to
\nlearn more about the different islands, Sudarmadji said. The
\nNational Museum in Jakarta, for instance, was founded in 1778 by
\na Dutch science institution, the Bataviaasche Genootschap van
\nKunsten Wetenschappen, the Batavian Society for the Arts and
\nSciences.<\/p>\n
\"If Indonesians go to a temple or a traditional site, they
\nknow how to act, how to behave reverently. But a museum is
\nsomething else to them,\" Sudarmadji said.<\/p>\n
Creative attempts to reach laymen and to introduce museums to
\nstudents are being employed by the National Museum.<\/p>\n
\"We held an exhibition on traditional children's games last
\nyear. It really appealed to children, teachers and parents
\nalike,\" said Endang Sri Hardiati, director of the National
\nMuseum. It was one of the ways to attract children to the museum,
\nshe added.<\/p>\n
The Museum frequently holds field trip programs for students
\nfrom elementary to high schools in the greater Jakarta area. Last
\nyear, in cooperation with the United Nations Educational
\nScientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the National
\nMuseum organized a series of discussions, workshops and music
\ncontests for high school students.<\/p>\n
Endang said that visits to museums should be an integral part
\nof the country's school curriculum. Unfortunately, not all museum
\nprograms are stimulating to children. Many students find them
\ndull and unexciting.<\/p>\n
Children may sometimes view museums as lifeless and
\nfrightening places. \"When I entered the museum building, it was
\nso quiet. Nobody was there. It was like a haunted house,\" said a
\ngirl who had just visited a museum in TMII lately.<\/p>\n
Sudarmadji pointed out museum field trips are quite beneficial
\nbut must be well-prepared.<\/p>\n
\"It is good to see children roaming the museum corridors and
\nlearning about what they see on display,\" he commented. What is
\nhappening currently is that children tour a museum and are
\nobliged to take notes on information given by uninspiring guides
\nwithout any follow-up activity at home or school.<\/p>\n
\"I feel sorry for them. Their faces look as stiff and
\nuncomfortable as if facing a school examination. The atmosphere
\nshould accommodate a relaxed and easy learning process,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Creating such an atmosphere is one way to attract visitors.
\nThere are still myriad untried strategies to help museums attract
\nvisitors. Museum administrators can learn about museum management
\nfrom the West, but the concepts should be adapted to Indonesian
\nculture. Museums should inspire the public, otherwise they will
\nbe considered merely as storage rooms for old artifacts.<\/p>",
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