from People's Daily Online -
China establishes initial database for intangible cultural heritage
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Another effort in the Herculean challenge of preserving cultural expressions. Documentation and database lists are but an initial aspect of the overall effort. The long-term goal is for such cultural expressions to find contemporary relevance. And this daunting task can be a bit less so if we see such cultural expressions as a kind of "commons" which must entail the responsible use and preservation by everyone.

This long-term goal of preservation might run counter to current notions of intellectual property, which hinges on legislative measures to facilitate commercial exploitation in the first instance (see related links on WIPO site on "Traditional Knowledge" and "Traditional Cultural Expressions"). The dilemma could arise, say in a hypothetical situation, when an original ethnic group could not continue its intangible cultural expressions, but another public institution or non-profit organisation wishes to, then would this mean that the effort would have to be cleared through an endless series of legislative measures and commercial licenses? This sounds like a death knell for intangible heritage preservation efforts.
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from San Francisco Chronicle -
Human knowledge eroded as endangered languages die
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With the disappearance of languages, not only is knowledge lost, but a vital indication of a vibrant human existence - diversity. And the up keeping of diversity cannot be achieved by decrees or institutionalising a set of protocols. It has to be a "grass-root" effort involving the community. See also previous post on the UNESCO project to put together a handbook on the documentation and preservation of languages.
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from Toronto Star
Pirouette preservation
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Preservation is an act which seeks to negate or slow the effects of time. However, when it comes to cultural expressions which embraces the dimension of time itself - as in a dance performance - then, preservation of such (intangible) art-forms becomes a challenge.

from ICOM News
International Journal of Intangible Heritage
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A new journal, published by the National Folk Museum of Korea, which focuses on issues relating to the preservation of intangible heritage. (Also see previous posts on the subject).

from UNESCO
Intangible Heritage Messenger
go to newsletter - Issue 1 (PDF version, 276 KB)
go to newsletter - Issue 2 (PDF version, 358 KB)

It is timely that UNESCO has launched its Intangible Heritage Messenger newsletter in February 2006, which covers various global effort in preserving intangible heritage. This will boost awareness of the issue which had been previously highlighted on this weblog (see various previous posts).

[Thanks to World Heritage Forum for the link.]

from Rolex Awards News Update
Reviving Silk Tradition
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An update on Kikuo Morimoto, who had helped to revived the traditions of hand-made silk in Cambodia in the local community (see previous post). The project has now expanded to included a village, in Chot Sam, which complements the original silk factory, in Siem Reap, all based on a sustainable model of development. This would be without doubt a model of preservation (of heritage and the environment) par excellence.

from Guradian
The death of handwriting
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An interesting thought - what if penmanship, or calligraphy, was to go the way of endangered intangible heritage? Then, again, maybe not ...

from Guardian
Good dramas need protection, just like historic buildings
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One interesting suggestion which seeks to list dramatic literature works according to their merit and rarity. The idea is to help theatre groups focus attention and resources on a range of possible productions based on artistic value rather than exclusively on market (or audience-size) value. As the "rare" dramas are being produced and staged with regular frequency, they are then "preserved", in the intangible sense.

Closing the year with links to 3 articles, each covering an issue which could be seen as pointing to emerging trends in heritage preservation and conservation.

from CBC
U.S. artifacts at risk because of poor storage
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The recent Heritage Health Index Report on the state of storage of heritage collections in the United States may be a depressive read, but the underlying forces resulting in such a state of affairs began much earlier, when pressure to reign in costs in museums often resulted in support functions being sidelined. In moving forward, there must be renewed recognition (and funding) for the essential long-term nature of the care of tangible heritage artefacts - building both (in-house) professional expertise and infra-structure for processes and physical spaces.

from New York Times
If Cambodia Can Learn to Sing Again
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With intangible heritage, the picture seems rosier, with increasing levels of awareness and number of initiatives in documenting, recording and making available various reference resources of intangible traditional heritage, which might otherwise be lost due to a break in transmission. Disruptive acts of war or political apathy, notwithstanding.

from BBC news
Classic poets' voices go online
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Advances in digital technologies have made the realisation of a separate category of heritage materials inevitable. Digital collections, which often incorporate references to either tangible or intangible heritage, are increasingly seen as the next frontier in heritage preservation. Although not likely to supersede tangible or intangible forms of heritage materials, digital collections will nevertheless fulfill the role of enhancing the long-term effort in preserving the memory of human civilisations across the world.

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Wishing one and all a Happy and Peaceful New Year!

from BBC News
Clothes of 1924 head for Everest
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An interesting way to understand history by re-creating in faithful detail of what was known. And using that recreation in the way it was meant to function. With the increasing focus on the need to preserve intangible heritage (as opposed to the more established work in tangible heritage), perhaps more recognition may be given to that extremely interesting terrain in between the two - that of making tangible what was previously intangible through recreation or reconstruction in a manner as close to the original as possible.

from China Daily
Can hi-tech save Peking Opera?
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Yet another example of the usefulness of information technology in dealing with the practicalities of preserving intangible heritage. However, it is also important to note that besides the use of technology, it is the active participation from the "grassroots" that would help determine the success or failure of such a vast undertaking. Preservation by central decree will most definitely be a surefire way to fail.

from The International Committee for Museums of Ethnography (ICME-ICOM)
Museums and Intangible Heritage
go to listing of papers

Several online papers that were presented during ICOM 2004 in Seoul are made available on the above web-page. It is also interesting to see how the concept of "Intangible Heritage", which is the theme for the ICOM meeting in Seoul, has begun to take off with increasing references made to it.

from Wired News
Oral History on the Go
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An interesting project which captures oral histories using limited resources in a highly effective and engaging way. Using digital recording technologies in a mobile setting, the intangible aspects of a community's shared history are recorded, archived and selections shared via local public radio broadcasts. There is also less of a top-down approach but relies on the active involvement of the local community in deciding what is significant.

from Noticias.info
UNESCO to Publish Handbook on Language Preservation and Documentation
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There is always something ennobling about grassroot efforts, and the preservation of intangible heritage in the form of endangered languages is no exception. Imagine if this ground-up approach to preservation could be extended to all efforts in preservation - where we see non-specialists volunteers from all walks of life working together with specialists in documenting, condition checking and even working on simple conservation treatments. Now, that would truly shift the sense of ownership and responsibility of heritage to a wider group of people, thus making long-term preservation efforts more sustainable.

from The New York Times
Preserve Performance Art? Can You Preserve the Wind?
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Towards the end of the article, the writer attempts - in a throw-away manner - to link "conservatism" to efforts in the conservation of contemporary art - such as performance, conceptual, and ephemeral art - which are created specifically to negate the notion of direct material significance and preservation (in a museum). Even if we allow for that comment - which must be said to be uncritical and unsubstantiated - it should still give us, who are in the field of art and heritage conservation, pause for thought. Perhaps, such throw-away remarks arise because we have missed opportunities in articulating what is it that drives our work - not some broad empty label of "conservatism" or even "preservation", but a more nuanced and considered understanding of materials, significance and interventions. There is surely a need to enter into an introspection of what is it that we assume that we do.

from The Times of Malta
Heritage Malta defends language museum project
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An interesting idea to have a language museum, which exemplifies how cultural identity can be forged through a concerted effort in preserving the intangible heritage of a community. It would also be helpful to bear in mind that tangible materials and resources are needed in showcasing and recording the otherwise intangible aspects of heritage. Hence, to draw a rigid distinction between tangible and intangible heritage might not be terribly helpful in the larger picture of preservation.

from Xinhua Online
2,000-year-old shadow play still popular
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A clear illustration that the preservation of intangible heritage must also entail the need for re-enactment and adaptation - as an instance of living heritage. This would surely give rise to interesting debates on what constitutes the original, authentic or accurate version to be preserved.

from The New York Times
Art That Speaks to You. Literally.
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Another example of the increasing prevalence of intangible art medium. There is also an article on NewMusicBox outlining a brief history of Sound Art.

from BBC News
Traditional knowledge 'in peril'
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This report reiterated a call for the preservation of traditional knowledge by modifying an aspect of the international law on the protection of intellectual property. It is also interesting to note that the notion of the public domain, which promotes the diversity and propagation of knowledge, can be detrimental to the very survival of traditional knowledge, which is often the preserve of a ritually selected few.

from The New York Times
Rockers at an Exhibition
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The rise of music museums points to an increased appreciation of the need to preserve one's intangible cultural heritage. It also recalls an earlier book review which give a glimpse into the fascinating world of Mickey Hart, an ardent songcatcher and sound preservationist.