Marking yesterday’s International Museum Day, Macau’s 25 museums launched a series of activities with a special at the Mount Fortress Corridor. This year’s theme is “The Future of Museums in a Rapidly Changing Society”, which aims to reinterpret the contemporary value of cultural heritage through digital technology and community participation, according to a statement by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) which oversees Macau’s public museums.
A series of activities will take place through June 15, including the “Museum Gallery” themed exhibition at the Mount Fortress Corridor; the “Joint Museum Stamps” interaction in which visitors can collect stamps from each museum for creating commemorative postcards; the immersive “Escape from Museum Time” puzzle game; and selected guided tour routes: connecting special venues such as the Kiang Wu Hospital History Heritage Museum and the Macau Fire Services Museum.
Ho Hong Pan, acting vice-president of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), said at yesterday’s launch that this year’s special emphasis is placed on the application of technology and social participation, and that historical relics will be “brought to life” through innovative forms such as augmented reality (AR) guided tours and digital interactions.
According to an IC statement, in order to promote Macau’s museums, virtual exhibition technology is being used to break the limitations of time and space, interactive education projects are being used to cultivate young audiences, community cooperation programmes are being used to deepen cultural identity, and immersive experiences are being used to enhance the fun of visiting.
During the ongoing International Museum Day events, the Macau Fire Services Museum will open its digital archives for the first time, General Ye Ting’s Former Residence will launch AR historical scene reconstructions, and many venues will set up “cultural decoding” interactive devices, inviting the public to explore the city’s memory through games, according to the statement.
Ho said in his speech his bureau hopes to attract more than 100,000 participants through the month-long series of activities, turning the 25 museums into a cultural cluster connecting the past and the future.
Ho Hong Pan, the acting vice-president of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), delivers a speech during the launching of the “Macau International Museum Day” at the Mount Fortress Corridor yesterday . – Photo by Armindo Neves
