Preparing for Disasters

Preparing for Disasters

A specialist team from the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) are preparing to travel to Indonesia next week where they will deliver a two week training program in Museum Disaster Preparedness and Collections Management.

MAGNT’s Curator of Southeast Asian Art and Material Culture and the program director Joanna Barrkman said the training will be delivered to staff and members of the Yogyakarta Museum Association and the Gadjah MadaUniversity at the Sonobudoyo Museum in Yogyakarta.

“The collections in Yogyakarta are vulnerable to deterioration due to the harsh tropical climate of Indonesia and the threat of earthquakes and tsunamis in the region,” Ms Barrkman said.

Indonesia was affected by the December 2004 tsunami and in May 2006 the heart of Yogyakarta and nearby areas of Central and West Java were hit by a strong earthquake. 

Ms Barrkman said Indonesian museum staff will benefit from the workshop by developing awareness, skills, strategies and procedures for the protection of irreplaceable Indonesian cultural collections against disaster.

“The Sononobudoyo Museum of Yogyakarta is located in the heart of Java and is an especially apt museum and venue for this training program as it houses an outstanding and internationally recognised collection of ancient Javanese cultural material from as early as the 6th century,” she said.

Founded in 1935 and designed by Dutch architect Kersten the Sononobudoyo Museum exhibits literature, wooden puppets, weapons, statutes, old Javanese gamelan instruments, leather masks, textiles and curios.

“The limited training opportunities in museum practices within Indonesia that focus on preventative conservation and basic collection management techniques increase the vulnerability of these invaluable heritage collections,” Ms Barrkman said.

Ms Barrkman will be joined by MAGNT’s Conservator Sandra Yee and Arts SA, Art Lab Ms Kristin Phillips to deliver the program at the Sonobudoyo Museum from 27 January to 6 February 2009.

The Australian International Cultural Council and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade funded the project aimed at promoting international cultural exchange between Australia and partner nations.

Preparing for Disasters

A specialist team from the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) are preparing to travel to Indonesia next week where they will deliver a two week training program in Museum Disaster Preparedness and Collections Management.

MAGNT’s Curator of Southeast Asian Art and Material Culture and the program director Joanna Barrkman said the training will be delivered to staff and members of the Yogyakarta Museum Association and the Gadjah MadaUniversity at the Sonobudoyo Museum in Yogyakarta.

“The collections in Yogyakarta are vulnerable to deterioration due to the harsh tropical climate of Indonesia and the threat of earthquakes and tsunamis in the region,” Ms Barrkman said.

Indonesia was affected by the December 2004 tsunami and in May 2006 the heart of Yogyakarta and nearby areas of Central and West Java were hit by a strong earthquake. 

Ms Barrkman said Indonesian museum staff will benefit from the workshop by developing awareness, skills, strategies and procedures for the protection of irreplaceable Indonesian cultural collections against disaster.

“The Sononobudoyo Museum of Yogyakarta is located in the heart of Java and is an especially apt museum and venue for this training program as it houses an outstanding and internationally recognised collection of ancient Javanese cultural material from as early as the 6th century,” she said.

Founded in 1935 and designed by Dutch architect Kersten the Sononobudoyo Museum exhibits literature, wooden puppets, weapons, statutes, old Javanese gamelan instruments, leather masks, textiles and curios.

“The limited training opportunities in museum practices within Indonesia that focus on preventative conservation and basic collection management techniques increase the vulnerability of these invaluable heritage collections,” Ms Barrkman said.

Ms Barrkman will be joined by MAGNT’s Conservator Sandra Yee and Arts SA, Art Lab Ms Kristin Phillips to deliver the program at the Sonobudoyo Museum from 27 January to 6 February 2009.

The Australian International Cultural Council and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade funded the project aimed at promoting international cultural exchange between Australia and partner nations.