tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32764840848115329642024-03-21T22:38:53.779+08:00NUS MUSEUMmuseum@nus.edu.sgNUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.comBlogger584125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-55332107673430005542021-10-11T11:54:00.002+08:002021-10-11T11:56:04.307+08:00NUS Museum & NUS Baba House Summer Internship 2021<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/get-involved/for-students/" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><p><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span face="helvetica neue,helvetica,arial,verdana,sans-serif">-</span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span face="helvetica neue,helvetica,arial,verdana,sans-serif">Wondering what the NUS Museum internship experience at the NUS Museum and NUS Baba House last summer was like? Find out more about the insights and takeaways our various interns have gleaned from the programme through their Microsoft Sway posts!</span></span><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span face="helvetica neue,helvetica,arial,verdana,sans-serif"><br /></span></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/tyqRFUojQO6IWqAD?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="640" height="270" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8ATc7fyCQlM/YWAOT40HPFI/AAAAAAAAPBY/IaU0gVj8aaAarTYQxLlUdbwWc-N_YdRBwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h270/0L2hZn9dubLluB.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/tyqRFUojQO6IWqAD?ref=Link">Curatorial Research Intern: Ian Hong</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">"<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; text-align: left; white-space: pre;">to play a part in educating</span></span></i></div><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">and inspiring its visitors, to create, present and conserve cultures which may have been</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">silenced by dominant discourses, and to have important conversations that no one else is</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">having"</span></i></div><div style="font-family: yumin_s, yumin_s2, serif; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="font-family: yumin_s, yumin_s2, serif; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="font-family: yumin_s, yumin_s2, serif; text-align: center;"><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/mtskdgvqx4pLlG3o?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="732" data-original-width="1024" height="458" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9JtWSnUfB-A/YWAPRnpdddI/AAAAAAAAPBg/WKwIqL24nYkwozE-DS1nKFoLqyKzk8jkwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h458/b9oL5HBo6Hvslt.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></i></div></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/mtskdgvqx4pLlG3o?ref=Link">Publications Intern: Nguyen Le Thuy Tien</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;">"<span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;">I remember going home from the last day of my first week, telling my mother that I</span></span></i></div><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>probably just had the best week of my life, and I never expected that my first internship</i></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>would be such a wholesome experience."</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div></i></span></span><div style="text-align: center;"><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/p6dF7Vies2JaEOvZ?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="653" height="438" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7U_iEynG99s/YWOumN0xt_I/AAAAAAAAPBo/YDVH_AHuvA8SCI-T1N3KXp7VB_P0GIeiACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h438/Screenshot%2B2021-10-11%2Bat%2B10.41.21%2BAM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /></i><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/p6dF7Vies2JaEOvZ?ref=Link" target="_blank">Collections Intern: Rachel Oh</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;">"</span></i><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">Everybody is in a rush to digitise, especially with what the pandemic has revealed to</span></div><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;"><span><i><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;">us: go online or risk dying out! I digitised Peranakan family portraits, and I researched
on digital archival methods. I debated on the merits of a digital museum space with
other interns. And all the while I was thinking – can a Collections role be translated
into the online sphere?"</span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/2mKCiQFvW1MXIqOJ?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="291" data-original-width="405" height="460" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jFTSO1dNW5Y/YWOvR3pADUI/AAAAAAAAPBw/Qbj9eEg0vpgOmAlOxN99zrAqWK-4zxBwwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h460/Screenshot%2B2021-10-11%2Bat%2B11.27.54%2BAM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href=". The fact that this much could be explored truly fascinates me, and leaves me excited to see how many more such connections can be made from the house and its previous inhabitants, to the communities around them - now that we have kickstarted this process!" target="_blank">Baba House Curatorial Intern: Christabel Tan</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">"</span></i><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">The fact that this much could be explored truly</span></div><span style="text-align: left;"><span><i><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;">fascinates me, and leaves me excited to see how many more such connections
can be made from the house and its previous inhabitants, to the communities
around them - now that we have kickstarted this process!"</span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/catLv6ZxAYPGh3Tc?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="600" height="360" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nFtSDVqxmdg/YWOwr1jiwcI/AAAAAAAAPB4/8mm4El4Bs4krgutAkR1kWga5jrEsevjhgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/G9-ZWK5_dzFR6g.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/catLv6ZxAYPGh3Tc?ref=Link" target="_blank">Museum Outreach (Programmes) Intern: Tharun Suresh</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">"</span></i><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">Therefore, our capacity to actively critique the narratives we</span></div><span style="text-align: left;"><span><i><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;">construct of the past constantly reminds us of the interpretive and subjective moves
that invariably underpin all historical accounts."</span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/auEB8DwYD3iWwgJa?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="480" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uDhbddyL9hE/YWOxOMQW-rI/AAAAAAAAPCA/mvGjwqFlziYdJNbYVgW0h8KjoF_8_2i4ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/bBotve5vQvlgc6.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/auEB8DwYD3iWwgJa?ref=Link" target="_blank">Public Art Programmes Intern: Yip Sze Kay</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">"</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">My research on the history of Kent</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">Ridge, for instance, has made it possible for me to see Our Heritage differently. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; white-space: pre;">When I </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;">look at these stones, I think also of other milestones in our institutional history."</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/acXYWNQ21hKsflCs?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="219" data-original-width="371" height="378" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-v3AhmMHGSoM/YWOyNLFaPqI/AAAAAAAAPCI/-98onOCGhD0tlj50xjIJqt1cLuuQ8z3TwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h378/Screenshot%2B2021-10-11%2Bat%2B11.39.57%2BAM.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><i style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/acXYWNQ21hKsflCs?ref=Link" target="_blank">Baba House Curatorial Intern: Meg Chew</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;">"From conception to launch, the NUS Baba House Neighbourhood Project has been</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; white-space: pre;">molded by the hands of countless people. In this first phase of the project, we hope</span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); white-space: pre;">to take a step in remembering the many lives—visible and invisible—that laid hand</span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: center; white-space: pre;">on this ground. There is still much to include and explore."</div><div style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: center; white-space: pre;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: center; white-space: pre;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: center; white-space: pre;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; text-align: center; white-space: pre;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/1BFwQQdaPsTXFNB9?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CLfdE5J8nds/YWOzM3iKHgI/AAAAAAAAPCQ/bqTPj-6v7VsXjhlKXV2YNEQ7uWBmtSG1QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/0QyUBvmlNLuQ-b.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/1BFwQQdaPsTXFNB9?ref=Link" target="_blank">Museum Outreach (Marketing & Publicity) Intern: Nuha Zalman</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal; white-space: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;">"</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;">However, being given a chance to explore and learn about the</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;">museum has allowed me to appreciate better what it offers (especially the
Radio Malaya exhibition which I was admittedly a little dismissive of before
joining this internship) and has made me love the art scene even more, no
matter how small and difficult the industry is to work in. If anyone's looking for
an internship in the museum scene that seeks to develop you holistically, then
this is definitely the right place to look."</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/IfHCUA5J9lXa1Rv7?ref=Link" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aR0ZLHXoHj0/YWOzw0lzDaI/AAAAAAAAPCY/EJkWv94gWNchBkALEhgm6uTHHkllXTsfQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/e9acDTQfco5kee.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><a href="https://sway.office.com/IfHCUA5J9lXa1Rv7?ref=Link" target="_blank"><br /></a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sway.office.com/IfHCUA5J9lXa1Rv7?ref=Link" target="_blank">GIS & Storymaps Vietnam war time art Intern: Wee Han</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;">"For me, it has always been the personal question of figuring out how we know what we</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;">know, no matter if it was the sciences or humanities. But can we be so certain of the past
particularly when what we know about history mere remnants?"</span></div></span></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div></span></div></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: center; white-space: pre;"><br /></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); text-align: center; white-space: pre;"><br /></div></span></div></div></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times; font-style: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(178, 178, 178); font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div></div></i></span></span></div></i></span></span></div></i></span></span></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-4181593409258530932021-03-01T17:11:00.006+08:002021-10-20T09:46:42.110+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Casselyn Chin<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/get-involved/for-students/" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="text-align: left;"><b>Casselyn Chin </b></span><b><span style="background-color: white;">shares her experience at NUS Museum as part </span>Tampines Meridian Junior College's Intern Attachment Programme (IAP). During her time here, Casselyn has provided assistance in cataloguing books donated by T.K. Sabapathy in our <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/explore/about/resource-library/">Resource Library</a>.</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #666666;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I signed up for this internship not knowing a single thing about Southeast Asian art. Quite frankly, as someone who had freshly graduated from junior college and had just been through the mania of ‘A’ levels, I hoped to join an internship pertaining to history, a subject I took and one I was fairly interested in. Just like any other person who made generalisations about school courses and their eventual job prospects, I figured: What better institution to pursue history than a museum? Thus, my two-month long journey began.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M5mN3X07d_M/YDyupchbtBI/AAAAAAAAO7M/aVuEThr_-ycVVEb_96-1V4DZSlhbGP-GwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/A9860E93-9172-4DD6-96B7-66C579A38BAB.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M5mN3X07d_M/YDyupchbtBI/AAAAAAAAO7M/aVuEThr_-ycVVEb_96-1V4DZSlhbGP-GwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h640/A9860E93-9172-4DD6-96B7-66C579A38BAB.JPEG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;">work in progress: welcome!</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">My intern mate and I entered the programme in an awkward phase and timing. While technically of age to learn at a more in depth level, we lacked the necessary skill and knowledge to delve into the area of work that I had initially hoped for: to be involved in exhibitions, curation and restoration. Nonetheless, we were involved in other important activities that needed to be done: the cataloging and sorting of new donations of resources from Professor T.K. Sabapathy, rearranging them into their appropriate storage facilities, and subsequently, transcribing lectures on archaeology in Singapore by Professor John Miksic. At times, we were even stationed as wardens for the museum whenever they needed extra helping hands. The work in the Resource Library was really a way for me to appreciate the little things we take for granted; keying in data for every single article in question, one by one, was mundane yet gruelling, but this was all to ensure that the new donations(alongside the others) could be easily and more accurately found, aiding researchers and students alike. Subtitles and learning materials had to be prepared by somebody, and the job was never as simple as merely “copy-and-paste”. In fact, the transcription of lectures brought me back to a time not so long ago, reminiscent of my time in JC (except this time I actually am taking notes word for word), and learned several interesting facts about Singapore’s history through archaeology. I never knew that there were definitive layers of dirt from which an artifact’s age and time period can be determined; the struggles of excavating relics were practical problems, rather than dramatic: having to dig for relics near the ocean meant racing against time, because time and literally tide waits for no man, instead of fighting off pirates who hoped to raid and steal the treasures (which was what Indiana Jones had promised me!).</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Moe1ZXE5HEM/YDyu2rqJexI/AAAAAAAAO7Q/qTIEDuDUzQQKf7qvwHme35bjBJ1J1zJZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/8FAB4F19-6C45-4F35-9EA2-BF649BF596A8.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Moe1ZXE5HEM/YDyu2rqJexI/AAAAAAAAO7Q/qTIEDuDUzQQKf7qvwHme35bjBJ1J1zJZQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h640/8FAB4F19-6C45-4F35-9EA2-BF649BF596A8.JPEG" width="640" /></a></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;">eye-catchers</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Working in the museum has exposed me to the world of Southeast Asian art, expanding my knowledge of art which was previously limited to the classic artists like Van Gogh. Going through Professor T.K. Sabapathy’s donations, popular names kept resurfacing: Ng Eng Teng, Khoo Sui Hoe, Latiff Mohidin, Pacita Abad… the list goes on (I’ve even found my new favourite artist, Natee Utarit, upon reading about his exhibition Optimism Is Ridiculous). It made me wonder: Why have I never encountered their names and works up till now? It seemed as if I had to take a formal course in art for their names to be made known to me, to be taught to me, as it was taught to my intern mate when she had taken art as a legitimate examinable subject. But why must that be so? Perhaps Singapore still has miles to go before it fully assumes its title as a cultural hub, given its nature to prioritise ‘pragmatic’ endeavors of science and technology for economic goals. Isn’t it also ironic how the enjoyment of art is commonly associated with rich elites, not for the common man (and sadly still isn’t very accessible), yet the go-to phrase to describe budding creators of art remains ‘starving artists’? </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQnMMAHTdc4/YDyu_jaeAWI/AAAAAAAAO7Y/oXF2wH71TE45Wf5ZqWbRn5KUawOySMwMQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/F3B19718-D97B-444F-85AE-4440A113F2CC.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQnMMAHTdc4/YDyu_jaeAWI/AAAAAAAAO7Y/oXF2wH71TE45Wf5ZqWbRn5KUawOySMwMQCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/F3B19718-D97B-444F-85AE-4440A113F2CC.JPEG" width="480" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;">wholesome™️ adventures</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Fret not, the internship was never all work and no play. In fact, it was colourful, both literally and metaphorically. There were internal events within the UCC such as a lion dance performance to usher in the new year, a staff lunch, and a variety of external events (that we did not participate in but have had the pleasure of witnessing) when the UCC was booked as a party venue.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> The visit to the NUS Baba House gave me a taste of the difficulties in restoration works, the preservation of cultural artefacts and significant sites were definitely a challenge, a challenge that persists throughout time. It shone light on how so many different types of expertise were needed for the task— you may be an archaeologist, or a historian, but you are neither an architect nor a chemist all in one. A concerted effort was needed, alongside the willingness to experiment, for trial and error, and success certainly did not come easy. In addition, the tour of the NUS Baba House made it clear to me what I believed: that being a Peranakan is not so much a biological inheritance through the mixing of ethnicities, but more so a culture that people choose to identify with, if they had “met the criteria”(which is still highly debatable).</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">My intern mate and I were also allowed to hitch onto an existing batch of interns’ programme, which enabled us to participate in thought-provoking debates on the museum definition (as well as snag an opportunity to visit the Science Centre for free). The debate showcased their depth of understanding of the concerns of a museum, including various different aspects I have never stopped to think about until then, giving me a chance to experience and see for myself the difference between junior college graduates and university student, showing me a new benchmark to aspire to surpass, let alone achieve.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">An experience unique to my internship’s time period would definitely be the changes of procedures, due to the outbreak of COVID-19. The NUS Museum had to be closed for the public, and our usual routine faced a thorough and systemic upheaval: From sending temperature readings to Ms Kuek twice daily and amassing a portfolio of thermometer pictures, to being denied food at stores and subsequently requiring daily stickers and an intern pass to be allowed to purchase my needed sustenance. To put it simply, it was a whole lot of work and definitely inconvenient, but in dire times of an ongoing health crisis, these precautionary and preventive measures were needed to ensure the safety of the majority. Of course, the new system was sure to have its loopholes and flaws, but it made me realise how every organisation, museums included, had to respond to unfamiliar crises as quickly as they can, and constantly learn and improve on the implemented measures to make them as airtight as possible.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Overall, interning with the museum has been a pleasure. The museum staff were welcoming, understanding and friendly, always ready to help a clueless intern in need (and feeding us little tidbits in the pantry on gloomier days), which made my internship journey one that was smooth sailing and enjoyable. I will definitely cherish the warmth of the community from these two months, and I hope to apply the wisdom I have gained into my future endeavours.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MyOhzYB5nig/YDyvj7f3K4I/AAAAAAAAO7k/Tmj-5JZg5dIcC6mAryo6SxE3xveC3v4SgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG-1003-Facetune-18-02-2020-10-50-06.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1456" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MyOhzYB5nig/YDyvj7f3K4I/AAAAAAAAO7k/Tmj-5JZg5dIcC6mAryo6SxE3xveC3v4SgCLcBGAsYHQ/w456-h640/IMG-1003-Facetune-18-02-2020-10-50-06.JPG" width="456" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;">vainpot attempts to pose in the midst of work, circa 2020</span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-18028818222134492632021-02-24T14:00:00.001+08:002021-02-24T14:00:07.927+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Simone Tam<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/get-involved/for-students/" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Simone Tam is a third-year Literature major and Arts and Humanities minor at Yale-NUS College. During her time here as a Film Programming Intern, Simone assisted Outreach Senior Executive (Programmes), Mary Ann, in the execution of </b><b style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/film-series-turf-wars-the-tropics-and-cinema-in-southeast-asia/">Turf Wars</a></b><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"> — an online film programme organised around the antecedent exhibition, </b><b style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/tropics-a-many-consequence/">tropics, a many (con)sequence</a></b><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">. </b></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>As part of the internship experience, we were part of a parallel program that was centered around the politics and materiality of display, specifically concerning the organic nature of film slides and various approaches to its preservation. The material we got to work with were a collection of positive film slides from T.K. Sabapathy’s teaching repository.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1-Qk36IoaJM/YDRon1y-h6I/AAAAAAAAO6I/V6ARIZYJw8oReG6hLljaT4e69moDSBq3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s936/Picture%2B1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="624" data-original-width="936" height="324" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1-Qk36IoaJM/YDRon1y-h6I/AAAAAAAAO6I/V6ARIZYJw8oReG6hLljaT4e69moDSBq3ACLcBGAsYHQ/w486-h324/Picture%2B1.png" width="486" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Digitized image of “reclining” Buddha, captured by T.K. Sabapathy.</i></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I feel like he is looking at me. Phra Buddha Sai Yat (reclining Buddha), an expanse of mass that lies in stillness, 37 meters long, 8 meters tall. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The reclining Buddha is a major iconographic theme in Buddhist art that pictures the death of Sākyamuni and his entering into the parinirvāna (final nirvāna). This is a monolith that represents the interstitial Buddha, designed to remind its viewers of Buddhist truths that should shape the way one understands, appreciates, and interacts with the finitude of life. Its presence also serves as a record of the historicity of Sākyamuni’s death, a material artefact created posthumously in remembrance. When he died, his body was reabsorbed whence it had come, leaving an abrupt absence in place of what was once a beloved teacher. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In other pictorial imaginations it is embellished with surrounding detail to evoke a greater sense of homecoming, aimed at inspiring some universal desire to see the Buddha again. It is a product of both grief and hope, and within this tension a question arises: In the space between intangible concept and concrete materiality, life and death, how does meaning move? </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In this picture, I see both Phra Buddha Sai Yat and the image of a man who moves through time with his instrument of documentation: the analog film camera. Behind the lens is art historian and educator T.K. Sabapathy, documenting this visual centrepiece of Wat Lokaya Sutha, Ayutthaya, Thailand. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In a time preceding Shutterstock and more modern technological implements, positive film slides were the teaching material of choice. Its archival ability to reproduce an image from a specific time and place made this mode of remembrance and display a reliable source of presenting visual information. However, it is fragile in its organicity, taking after human processes of decay and fallibility. I think Buddha was on to something in his warnings against (material) attachment and the impermanence of life.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-loSMKx5tEaw/YDRpoQY1y2I/AAAAAAAAO6Q/zvPsc7abvhgG0GLEVDj6SgVRuwpeHSyRwCLcBGAsYHQ/s594/Picture%2B2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="594" height="340" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-loSMKx5tEaw/YDRpoQY1y2I/AAAAAAAAO6Q/zvPsc7abvhgG0GLEVDj6SgVRuwpeHSyRwCLcBGAsYHQ/w352-h340/Picture%2B2.png" width="352" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;"><i>A positive film slide from T.K. Sabapathy’s collection.</i></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As something that is supposed to capture an unchanging image, the slides are not as inert as they seem. While the structure of the image (in terms of its composition, subject matter, and geometry) remains intact, there are many slippages and organic drifts in information over time. Changes in temperature and light cause colour and matter to degrade, displacing the image from its “original”. In the image’s shifting visual resonance, it opens up fears of expiration and possibilities for reimagination. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Film restoration is a resource that thus aims to mend the disappearing visual information contained within the slide. But even in restoration, these updated images will circle around the original and never overlap. The artistic interpretation of the restorer allows for some individual agency in choices of colour correction, one that may never fully replicate the original. The act of capturing Phra Buddha Sai Yat on camera, for example, is already an act of reproduction — it is a shrunken image in a 35mm frame that merely signifies the concept of the original. It is not the original but a copy of it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dCaBtnnY7Y8/YDRqE3UjmdI/AAAAAAAAO6Y/c4Ine82aDMUj9maZvYP5eY4rF2TFfAEogCLcBGAsYHQ/s950/Picture%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="776" data-original-width="950" height="334" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dCaBtnnY7Y8/YDRqE3UjmdI/AAAAAAAAO6Y/c4Ine82aDMUj9maZvYP5eY4rF2TFfAEogCLcBGAsYHQ/w409-h334/Picture%2B3.jpg" width="409" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;"><i>Positive film slides documenting snake species </i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;"><i>from Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum.</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In a similar way, each colour correction is the restorer’s attempt to reproduce the concept of what the image is supposed to represent. However, this is fundamentally a product of extrapolation and projection, no matter how scientifically or archaeologically informed the process of colour matching is. As a result, each restoration effort is an approximation of the original master copy. We thus found ourselves asking what the term “original” even means. And in this age of technological reproducibility, why should the master copy still continue to be important when digitisation takes over? </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Walter Benjamin once said that the master copy has an “aura”, and that with increasing reproduction (and therefore, access) to the original, the master copy loses its “aura”. As more copies are made, the original becomes symbolically more identical to its copies. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">These slides are a collection of landmarks, people, and artefacts that are currently being transcribed into pixels, copied into virtual archives. I don’t know what Walter Benjamin might say about this, but I think it is beautiful that the slides embody the aesthetics of disappearance in both its image-content and antiquated materiality. I think it is also beautiful that digitised versions can remind us of this as it always holds the reminder of provenance.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">We have different practices of remembrance: Buddhists in Thailand may erect a 37 meter long and 8 meter tall statue of Sākyamuni, lovers may keep ticket stubs, and here at NUS Museum we may digitise slides to remember our foremost art historian’s travels and the reminders of disappearance captured within. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">These slides are a map of their own becoming, situated in the Museum as a space which outlasts its bygone worlds. As I leave, a particularly resonant thought that I find has tacitly informed museological practice is this: </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">How do we prepare for — and respond to — death and disappearance?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A3xUbj4ROI0/YDRqmA3H04I/AAAAAAAAO6g/-KN9SOTsjm46tztOkKRX7Y_SPEmlTeZHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s715/Picture%2B4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="715" height="341" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A3xUbj4ROI0/YDRqmA3H04I/AAAAAAAAO6g/-KN9SOTsjm46tztOkKRX7Y_SPEmlTeZHwCLcBGAsYHQ/w419-h341/Picture%2B4.jpg" width="419" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;"><i>Fake film shot of my working space during the internship.</i></span></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I’d like to thank the NUS Museum for this internship opportunity. To my supervisor, Mary Ann: thank you for your grace and wisdom — in the space and trust I have been given I have had room to grow. To my fellow intern friends: thank you for being on this journey with me. I often found myself recharged by the kindness and laughter that you all brought. To all the other Museum staff I have interacted with, I will keep in fond memory the warmth of our encounters.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-36015975623323008692021-02-23T14:00:00.012+08:002021-02-23T14:00:02.753+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Wong Li Fang<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/get-involved/for-students/" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Wong Li Fang is a third-year student majoring in English Language at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social sciences. During her time here as our Archiving Assistant, Li Fang was tasked to look into the archival materials of artist Jimmy Ong, whose body of works and archives are currently exhibiting in our </b><b style="text-align: justify;">prep-room</b><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"> space through <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/prep-room-visual-notes-actions-and-imaginings-2/">'Visual Notes: Actions and Imaginings'</a>.</b></i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The universality of archiving</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">When I first opened Jimmy Ong’s memorabilia box, it struck me how much the idea of Instagram has long predated social media itself. The urge to collect bits and scraps of memory manifested as physical photo collections then, and as cloud storage now. And these memorabilia have travelled through time and space to fall into my hands as I sift through candid photos and postcards, getting a glimpse into the private life of a stranger. Where is that line between private and public? What is the function or meaning in a museum keeping these items? How should one archive such things? </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M57-6Og31-g/YDN4XR0HkBI/AAAAAAAAO4w/-1MxgnmpqzAcs0arf-jwX6iq6yzSNT4iwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1480/Screenshot%2B2021-02-22%2Bat%2B17.24.15.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1480" height="422" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M57-6Og31-g/YDN4XR0HkBI/AAAAAAAAO4w/-1MxgnmpqzAcs0arf-jwX6iq6yzSNT4iwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h422/Screenshot%2B2021-02-22%2Bat%2B17.24.15.png" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>What archiving means for museums (and us)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Memorabilia are not just personal keepsakes, but also a form of identity-making. And so – to use loosely – curated materials even before the archivist obtains it. The selection itself, some more careful than others, can reveal much about a person, like the inclusion of the notebook pages where a young Jimmy imperviously declares that he will not become an artist, decades before becoming one. Beyond the person, archives can reassemble a peek into context where these materials came from - the socio-political climate and material practices of the time – offering an intimate look that extends beyond the artist’s works and forming a broader sense of identity and place.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h9Iolm-_F44/YDN5OjTjl-I/AAAAAAAAO5U/eJ2HoLTOnxYeitwED3-aHaGXbHZtn2VWQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/reflection%2Bphoto%2B1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="853" data-original-width="1280" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h9Iolm-_F44/YDN5OjTjl-I/AAAAAAAAO5U/eJ2HoLTOnxYeitwED3-aHaGXbHZtn2VWQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h426/reflection%2Bphoto%2B1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Going digital (and beyond) / archives transposed</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial;">On some days, I use the film scanner to transpose Jimmy’s film negatives and slides into a digital catalogue. In today’s context, archiving also entails some digitisation. Going digital then begs the question: is there a point in keeping all these physical materials? Materials that take up space, materials that will degrade over time, materials that are limited in physical access. Yet archival work is a space where digital and analogue collide. And it is here where we see reason to hold onto the physical items. In experiencing the materiality of these film slides, the sense of a time beyond us will hit you in a way looking at its digital counterpart cannot reproduce. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-szr4a2qYy-U/YDN5saarsUI/AAAAAAAAO5g/6blSaCkafg4Ctok5SjHSUHwaRkThRDFxQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/reflection%2Bphoto%2B7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="853" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-szr4a2qYy-U/YDN5saarsUI/AAAAAAAAO5g/6blSaCkafg4Ctok5SjHSUHwaRkThRDFxQCLcBGAsYHQ/w426-h640/reflection%2Bphoto%2B7.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Into the rabbit hole of archives</i></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">How should one even begin making sense of an archive yet-to-be? Archival materials tend fall naturally into categories demarcated by space, time, or materiality – like USA, 2001, or charcoal on paper. Less obvious are the thematic categories – do we go with portraits, croquis… or something else? The task of cataloguing and documenting information may be tedious, but archives are the seeds of where a new inquiry begins – not just for research, but even for an exhibition or art project. It is not just that museums are transformative sites of personal to collective identity, memory, culture, heritage, something. The archive also brings home the idea that the heart of museums lies in the personal. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7qIccu0Pg8g/YDN6gZY4esI/AAAAAAAAO5s/sL53cfMEDC0COR4RfGqNqWldaMUsUE9BACLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/reflection%2Bphoto%2B2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="853" data-original-width="1280" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7qIccu0Pg8g/YDN6gZY4esI/AAAAAAAAO5s/sL53cfMEDC0COR4RfGqNqWldaMUsUE9BACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h426/reflection%2Bphoto%2B2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Politics of archiving (archives, not archives, and yet-to-be archives)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In my first week at the museum, my supervisor Sidd sent me off with readings on archival work. Here and elsewhere, the idea of archiving as political cut a continuing current across different texts. Its politics is inextricable no matter how objective the archivist strives to be, an idea poignantly summed up as “the relation between professing one’s craft and professing one’s humanity”.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If archives are repositories of identity and history, what we choose to include, what we choose to exclude, how we choose to organise it for possible interpretations – each choice becomes salient in constructing that repository. It is an awareness that may need to extend beyond just the archivist and to whomever looks at an archive. I invite you to do bring this awareness into reading this internship reflection, which perhaps may form part of an archive for NUS Museum’s history one day.</span></div><div><br /></div></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div></div><p></p>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-10533313130007012992021-02-22T16:59:00.008+08:002021-03-16T15:04:13.058+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Chao Keang Yin<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/get-involved/for-students/" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Chao Keang Yin is a third-year student studying Architecture at the NUS School of Design and Environment. During his time with us as a Collections and Exhibitions Management Intern, Keang Yin assisted our Collections department, learning more about processes such as accession and risk assessment as well as the technical considerations that go into the management of our artworks.</b></i></p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">I still remember on the first day, I couldn’t give a proper answer when my supervisor, Kang Ho, asked me what my expectations are for this internship programme. As a non-frequent museum-goer, I know very little about art and museology, let alone the specific field of collections management that I was supposed to engage in as a new intern. All I knew back then was that I was curious to find answers to some questions on my mind – what goes on behind the scenes? How does the process of getting a piece of work up on the wall look like? Throughout the course of the five-week period, my supervisor introduced me to collections management, including a whole range of processes from accession to risk assessment. I slowly realised that the answers to my questions are not as simple as I thought; it is a long list of procedures, involving many people with different expertise. Looking back now, I have learnt not only the answer I pursued, but so much more about conservation and display. The following is my attempt to summarise the whole experience as a museum intern, highlighting some of my favourite moments in the past month. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gI-qiJ8uULg/YDNww9-AY1I/AAAAAAAAO3c/fG487i8WI2II5t3JNvzDIE_zXeph98_ewCLcBGAsYHQ/s1277/Picture%2B1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="791" data-original-width="1277" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gI-qiJ8uULg/YDNww9-AY1I/AAAAAAAAO3c/fG487i8WI2II5t3JNvzDIE_zXeph98_ewCLcBGAsYHQ/w387-h240/Picture%2B1.jpg" width="387" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Resource Gallery at the NUS Museum </i></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">As a visitor, we are welcomed by that shinning piece of artefact inside the glass cabinet, or the captivating painting hung on the wall. For them to get here on display, they first have go through conservation processes, proper handling, storage, and many other decisions and agreements prior. I got to explore more of this field when I attended the conservation workshop conducted by Lawrence, a museum conservator. I recall being so intrigued by some of the hands-on activities presented, as if he was performing magic. Conservation is where science meets art. It involves the understanding of materiality, texture, property, chemical reactions, and other considerations such as artwork integrity, ethics and artist’s intention. During the session, Lawrence showed us how paints with different compositions react differently under the UV light and Infrared. One fascinating example was that the Infrared is able to penetrate the top paint layer of a painting, thus revealing some of the alterations done at the bottom layer due to the artist’s change of mind. This kind of study and analysis will inform the decision of how the conservator chooses to preserve or restore the artwork. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">On the more technical side of things, I have learnt from my supervisor that, be it on display or in storage, all these art objects require very specific environmental conditions in order to minimise degradation, prolonging their race against time. The relative humidity, temperature, and light have to be controlled and carefully monitored, with each material having its own set of optimal conditions. For handling and storing of art objects, there are step-by-step measures, with some points seemingly trivial and commonsensical, but a careless mistake or a misstep would result in costly and irreversible damages. This has got me thinking about how each of us are just like an artwork – delicate, precious, fragile – thus, we also require the right environment to grow and strive. If we can learn how to care for artworks, maybe we should learn how to better take care of ourselves as well. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">These are some of the things happening behind that gallery wall. The experience of viewing an artwork is not simply about the curatorial decision alone. It is a combination of assessment from the collections manager, conservator, curator and artist, just to ensure that we get the best experience possible. Perhaps knowing this fact will teach me to see beyond what is visible the next time I visit a museum. Perhaps the next time I am standing in a gallery space, I will be reminded of all these newly found answers, which allow me to look at the artwork in a slightly different way – as an art in itself, and an artistic and technical production in a totality. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Besides the learning and researching on collection management, the almost-weekly organized visits, presentations and workshops also exposed me to many other questions. One of which is this: why do we preserve and archive an artist’s works? While it is true that they tell us more about the artist, these works also carry sociopolitical significance, reflecting not only his/her personal principles and ideals but also the society’s values at that particular point in time. This aptly captures the notion of microhistory which encapsulates personal narratives, intimate experiences, and presents them as a reflection of time and voices from the perspective of individuals. </span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sgc9H9U1Tik/YDNw9tDd2jI/AAAAAAAAO3g/UH0l3g7lpkcu_bbs399Z15ZmTBu4CKigACLcBGAsYHQ/s1222/Picture%2B2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="1222" height="261" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sgc9H9U1Tik/YDNw9tDd2jI/AAAAAAAAO3g/UH0l3g7lpkcu_bbs399Z15ZmTBu4CKigACLcBGAsYHQ/w406-h261/Picture%2B2.jpg" width="406" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Wartime Artists of Vietnam exhibition at the NUS Museum </i></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">This concept of microhistory can be observed to play out in the <i>Wartime Artists of Vietnam</i> exhibition which I was particularly drawn to during our early museum tour. Beyond my appreciation and admiration for the fluidity of the brush strokes, the mastery of the pen and pencil sketches, and the overall artistic excellence, most of the artworks vividly portray the people’s daily lives and their interactions, while “war” only appears as a backdrop. These recounts capture emotions and shared experiences, introducing us to the everyday scene of the locals, and bringing us on a journey alongside the artists. They are snippets of the wartime depicting the other angle of the story from collective memories, and juxtaposing it to the historical records of pure numbers, statistics, and facts. If these artworks were not to be preserved, this story would have been simply a faded memory, without finding their way as part of the war story. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Reflecting on this short journey, I realise that I might have found answers to my initial questions; however, there are still so many unanswered questions that popped up along the way. Nonetheless, I have grown to have a deeper understanding of the roles of a museum in preserving, showcasing, and educating. This learning opportunity is only possible thanks to all the NUS Museum staff. Specifically, I would like to extend this gratitude to my supervisor, Kang Ho, for his constant guidance and always going out of his way to carefully explain many new things, making sure that I gain the most enriching experience possible. </span></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-88423676425444059552020-10-02T14:56:00.002+08:002020-10-02T15:02:50.847+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Tu Jie Min<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><br /><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: #666666;">Tu Jie Min is a second-year student studying Philosophy with a Minor in China Studies at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. During her time here as a Curatorial Intern, Jie Min worked alongside our curator Hsu Fang-Tze on the <a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/explore/collections/the-lee-kong-chian-collection/">Lee Kong Chian Collection</a>, conducting research on contemporary scholarship in the field of Chinese paintings. </b></div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><i>In other words, we do not live in a kind of void, inside of which we could place individuals and things. We do not live inside a void that could be colored with diverse shades of light, we live inside a set of relations that delineates sites which are irreducible to one another and absolutely not superimposable on one another. </i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">- Michel Foucault, Of Other Spaces: Utopias and Heterotopias</span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-csLkU7WQoXI/X3bOQZbfQ4I/AAAAAAAAOzc/EEQb5M7OOoI_GHDTXzRKUDXGue1idsshwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/photo1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1700" data-original-width="2048" height="499" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-csLkU7WQoXI/X3bOQZbfQ4I/AAAAAAAAOzc/EEQb5M7OOoI_GHDTXzRKUDXGue1idsshwCLcBGAsYHQ/w601-h499/photo1.jpg" width="601" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>An old photo of an exhibit taken at the National Palace Museum, Taipei</i></div></i><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">What is space? </span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Earlier in the summer break, the internship had its initiation on a Zoom meeting. Very aptly, the interns were introduced to the idea of placemaking and were challenged to imagine the various possibilities for spaces. We all took turns to speak about what spaces meant to each of us, but it was more than just a conceptual exercise. After all, we were all sitting in front of our screens trying to emulate what would have been a physical meeting held at the NUS Museum. As we found ourselves necessitated by the new reality to repurpose the physical spaces we inhabited, it became evident that engaging with the alternative possibilities for spaces has an urgent place in real life.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Are spaces merely its manifestations? </span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Through the weeks, it became increasingly certain that the only space we would share was the online space. The initial hopes of being able to return to the museum dwindled and the focus turned to how we could settle into a new rhythm to better collaborate while working from our respective homes. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The space that I call my bedroom gradually took on a second role as a workspace. In the day, it became a place where I did my readings, research, and held meetings with everyone I worked with. At night, the space returns to a private place where I can retreat for rest and solitude. In this sense, relegating spaces to its manifestations seems inadequate. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Late into the internship, my supervisor, Fang-Tze, shared a chapter for me to read, and in it, I found the mention of a heterotopia. A quick Google search led me to Foucault’s mentions of heterotopias as well as its surrounding literature. Interestingly, Foucault’s elaboration on heterotopias as ‘other’ spaces eventually found itself in ‘placeless places’ amidst other paradoxical analogies.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jn7iwhEr1M8/X3bOb4oEMTI/AAAAAAAAOzg/ECHyFjSWSMg76t3mvgacQXwsgwTbQZr7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/photo1%2B3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1283" data-original-width="2048" height="389" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jn7iwhEr1M8/X3bOb4oEMTI/AAAAAAAAOzg/ECHyFjSWSMg76t3mvgacQXwsgwTbQZr7wCLcBGAsYHQ/w623-h389/photo1%2B3.jpg" width="623" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">An old photo of an exhibit taken at the Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul</span></span></i></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></i></div></span></i></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Here, our struggles to put an identity to spaces seem to resonate with each other. We have recognised the alternatives that are too obvious to be dismissed and yet too unfamiliar to be accorded with accustomed epithets. The efforts to navigate the ambiguous topographies of physical and abstract cavities seem to no longer suffice for the project of identifying spaces. Without a thing to put our fingers on, what we trace are hence the patterns and relationships we associate spaces with people, cultures, and time. To borrow Kelvin T. Knight’s words, the methodology used to identify spaces changes from archaeological to genealogical. Perhaps, this is where we can rightly begin our search for what spaces are. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As this internship experience nears its end, I wish to thank everyone who has made this virtual internship possible. The online workspace was not easy to navigate, but I was glad to find myself in an enriching space held generously by the other museum mentors and interns. It was delightful to have been able to work with the kindest and most brilliant people. I am especially grateful to Fang-Tze and Gladys for holding space for me to learn and accomplish things I would not have been able to on my own.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-12303472605629526792020-10-02T14:29:00.006+08:002020-10-02T14:31:47.479+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Tan Wei Xin<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span></div><div><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Tan Wei Xin is a fourth-year student studying English Literature at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. As an Outreach Intern, Wei Xin was involved in the planning of NUS Museum's programmes for the annual HERE! Arts Carnival as well as social media marketing.</b></div></div><div><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div><div><span style="text-align: justify;"><div style="color: black; font-weight: 400;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Having limited knowledge of art history and being largely unfamiliar with aspects of museology, I went into the NUS Museum internship with a slight degree of anxiety and a good dose of curiosity. I was keen on learning more about the NUS Museum’s collections as I had never been to the museum prior to the internship – a result of my procrastination, despite passing by the place countless times – as well as understanding the general behind-the-scenes operations of a museum. </span></span></span></div><div style="color: black; font-weight: 400;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="color: black; font-weight: 400;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">COVID-19 threw a wrench into many plans, including any hopes of being at the museum physically for the internship – and so began my first ever experience of a virtual internship, accompanied with the idiosyncrasies of online meetings, including the roaring sounds of planes flying over someone’s house, mics left on mute, and choppy internet connection.</span></span></span></div><div style="color: black; font-weight: 400;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">As an Outreach Intern, most of my tasks revolved around the planning of programmes for the annual HERE! Arts Carnival as well as social media strategies. This was of course set against the backdrop of the circuit breaker and the urgent question that many artists and art institutions faced: how are we to engage with art in these times? As museums, galleries and theatres closed around the world, arts institutions had to pivot online and rethink outreach strategies. This opened up a whole plethora of opportunities, and as an audience member on the receiving end of all these online content, it was lovely revisiting recordings of plays staged in the past and exploring virtual tours of galleries overseas. On the flip end of this, however, was the challenge I faced in having to create such virtual engagement myself while devising outreach programmes and strategies.</span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ewn8puEqFhY/X3bG-p44dFI/AAAAAAAAOys/HXmcxwjbYL87TLEsH_zDcmk-MW2SnB1CgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="441" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ewn8puEqFhY/X3bG-p44dFI/AAAAAAAAOys/HXmcxwjbYL87TLEsH_zDcmk-MW2SnB1CgCLcBGAsYHQ/w587-h441/2.jpg" width="587" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Behind</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">the</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">scenes of our virtual tour </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">filming </span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">session for </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW148652775 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">the HERE! Arts Carnival</span></span></div></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">At the NUS Museum, we tried to sustain our outreach efforts despite the closure of the museum by ramping up social media engagement and showcasing gallery impressions of exhibitions as well as past prep-room projects and curatorial histories. With social media as the main platform of outreach, however, came the usual pitfalls and challenges: the threat of digital burnout, the inundation of content, and the passivity of mere information-sharing on our end. With so much going on in social media, how do we capture attention – and hold it? At the same time, how does one ensure the accessibility of information, yet probe and push for deeper and more critical thinking? </span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">An interesting series we did was a two-week social media lead-up to an online conversation conceived in relation to Jimmy Ong’s prep-room <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/visual-notes-actions-and-imaginings/">Visual Notes: Actions and Imaginings</a></i>. In this lead-up, we posted various images and video clips of the artist’s works and gave prompts for our followers to submit questions on Instagram, which would then be taken up with the artist during the conversation. While this task was no doubt difficult due to some of the aforementioned challenges, it was an attempt to build a more dialogic approach with our followers on social media. </span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">The internship also opened up various spaces for critical inquiries, with weekly sessions where interns from different departments got together and discussed the broader issue of arts spaces in Singapore. This was primarily anchored on the <i>Space, Spaces and Spacing</i> conference held at The Substation in 1995 and was informed by thoughts and reflections on the present. Meanwhile, events such as the debate on the ‘essential’ versus ‘non-essential’ nature of artists and more urgently, news of the Intercultural Theatre Institute and The Necessary Stage losing their homes, brought to bear the continued relevance of issues we were discussing.</span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y6dLCU3SfUs/X3bHTnFKZMI/AAAAAAAAOy4/hQ-TiQCGg7E3YQxq2Cry-cW9HEacwxsMwCLcBGAsYHQ/s914/3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="762" data-original-width="914" height="455" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y6dLCU3SfUs/X3bHTnFKZMI/AAAAAAAAOy4/hQ-TiQCGg7E3YQxq2Cry-cW9HEacwxsMwCLcBGAsYHQ/w545-h455/3.png" width="545" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">We had the honour of hearing from Prof T.K. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Sabapathy</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">during one of these sessions</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-SG" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-SG"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW153305773 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">!</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW153305773 BCX9" data-ccp-props="{}" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; user-select: text;"> </span></span></div><br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">On my own, I went down a little rabbit hole while working on the short film programme conceived in relation to the exhibition, <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/tropics-a-many-consequence/">tropics: a many (con)sequence</a></i>. The short film programme was part of the HERE! Arts Carnival and was positioned as an inquiry into the tropics as portrayed in the cinematic imagination. As I began to look for short films related to the tropics, I began reading into the related topics of tropicality in the colonial imagination, slow cinema and eco-cinema, as well as post-Anthropocentric concerns. One of the highlights was getting to hear from the filmmaker Danech San on her inspiration, craft, and process behind the making of the film we planned to screen, <i>A Million Years </i>(2018).</span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h8c965J_bsg/X3bHitSBQgI/AAAAAAAAOy8/rVQJY_ln_7Uouc_5q1g3puLHtevIQBmZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/4.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="1280" height="343" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h8c965J_bsg/X3bHitSBQgI/AAAAAAAAOy8/rVQJY_ln_7Uouc_5q1g3puLHtevIQBmZgCLcBGAsYHQ/w610-h343/4.jpeg" width="610" /></a></div><span class="TextRun SCXW155722317 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" face="Calibri, Calibri_EmbeddedFont, Calibri_MSFontService, sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; font-family: arial; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="TextRun SCXW155722317 BCX9" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW155722317 BCX9" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">One of the installations in tropics, a many (con)sequence</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW155722317 BCX9" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 18.3458px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></div></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">While a virtual internship has its limitations, this experience has nevertheless opened up many spaces for learning, dialogue, and new perspectives, for which I am thankful. A shoutout to all NUS staff who made this possible and my fellow interns for being part of this experience!</span></span></span></div></span></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-10080948798796204102020-10-01T18:31:00.006+08:002020-10-01T18:31:49.515+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Seng Yu Ying<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div></div><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><br /><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: #666666;">Seng Yu Ying is a second-year student studying Philosophy and English Literature at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. During her time here as our Film Programming intern, Yu Ying primarily assisted in the conceptualisation and execution of <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/film-series-whisper-of-history-echoes-of-the-cold-war-in-asia/">Whisper of History</a></i>, an online film programme organised around two exhibitions, <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/wartime-artists-of-vietnam-drawings-and-posters-from-the-ambassador-dato-n-parameswaran-collection/">Wartime Artists of Vietnam</a></i> and <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/exhibition-wishful-images-when-microhistories-take-form/">Wishful Images: When Microhistories Take Form</a></i>. </b><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: #666666;"><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: #666666;"><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">23 January: Confirmation of the first case of COVID-19 in Singapore </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">7 April: First day of the circuit breaker </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">11 May - 31 July: NUS Museum internship </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">First: the elephant in the room. Over the course of three months, we witnessed </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">1. The most devastating pandemic in living memory </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">2. The resurgence of the Black Lives Matter civil rights movement </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">3. A historic General Election </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">4. The release of Lady Gaga’s Chromatica </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">5. The escalation of riots in Hong Kong </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">6. and so on </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Most of it was spent working from home. This blog post will hopefully serve as a piece of extelligence and remember what it was like, even after I forget. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The past three months of this internship with the NUS Museum passed in a constant stream of information—books and lectures and virtual tours and movies (so many movies)—on old wars and living museums, filtered through the recollections and theories of other people. The three months spent holed up at home and watching other worlds pass by felt like a dream where I was digesting someone else’s memories. Whenever it felt as though things were about to get overwhelming, I found that there was an anchor in the presence of the museum staff, guest speakers, and fellow interns. Through the regularly scheduled workshops and meetings, loosely connected information on the nature of space and the mechanics of film programming took shape into solid ideas and new theories. Professor T. K Sabapathy’s guest lecture was one of the more memorable talks, partly due to the fascinating look into Singapore’s art scene in the 90s. It later inspired a long conversation with a fellow intern which began with marvelling over the nostalgia for a time in Singaporean art which we had never witnessed, and ended with calls for revolution. These days, most conversations about art and its institutions tend to end that way.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="445" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yGmYyq0mRJY/X3Wt-ELRZ1I/AAAAAAAAOyI/SxpoDz-20n0-rArOLV_TR5XD0kP9eCckgCLcBGAsYHQ/w445-h445/2.png" width="445" /><br /><i style="font-family: arial;">Screenshots from Far From Vietnam and </i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Future Cries Beneath Our Soil</i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;">One of my main tasks was to help with the planning of the film programme surrounding the exhibit Wartime Artists of Vietnam. During the process of preparation, I spent a week watching several films on the Vietnam War in a row. It came as no surprise when, after watching several hours’ worth of war movies, I emerged with an unshakeable sense of unease. The ruminations of other veterans, the power fantasies of their descendants, and the bleeding-heart documentarians had dislodged the centrality of my own family’s account of the war and situated it within a wider constellation of stories. It is one thing to read in an academic paper that history is hermeneutic, interpretive, subjective—and it is another entirely to feel it shifting and expanding in your own memory.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KS_0dzsxe7k/X3Wueev1ICI/AAAAAAAAOyU/KQ5bbnZBwc0NgdqcUDfdbA9xi5a7Ua1FwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KS_0dzsxe7k/X3Wueev1ICI/AAAAAAAAOyU/KQ5bbnZBwc0NgdqcUDfdbA9xi5a7Ua1FwCLcBGAsYHQ/w500-h500/3.png" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Screenshots from Far From Vietnam, Em Be Ha Noi, </span></i></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">and The Future Cries Beneath Our Soil</span></i></div></i><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;">Over the course of the internship, being involved with the planning of this digital film programme has prompted me to reconsider the nature of space—both digital and physical—and the power dynamics therein. My own undertaking had occurred voluntarily and on my own terms, but it was still a unidirectional experience, and it was not unlike receiving a lecture from a grandparent on Vietnam back in the good old days. The challenge, then, became one of intentionally averting passive consumption and prompting genuine engagement with the topic at hand. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;">Without the physical presence of a wide screen, other audience members, or the propriety that comes with being in a public space, audiences find themselves re-orienting in a digital medium according to new, non-physical cues, and this will need to be accounted for in the planning process. The museum, as the event host, has the authority to direct the public’s attention, even if only for the duration and purpose of a digital event. Does this constitute a loss of autonomy on the part of the participant? What is the practical difference between control over digital displays and galleries which employ lighting techniques and physical displays to direct a museumgoer’s gaze? Should the boundaries of digital space even be defined by the distributor-consumer relationship? Each node of information is bracketed by other artists, contradictory art, and unrelated work from featured auteurs. What constitutes the field of vision in such a scenario? </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;">At present, I do not have certain answers to any of these questions. I am certain, however, that I would like to thank my supervisor Mary Ann for her guidance and patience, as well as Fangtze and Michelle for their support and advice. Special mention to my group members in the CFA placemaking project for coming up with “museum as lizard playground” and “science centre chicken carousel”—if any of this is still comprehensible in a few years. When we think of this strange, suspended summer, I hope that our recollection will not be defined by absence or distance, but by the space we held for each other.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v3fdb5lfxmQ/X3WvkqqWj_I/AAAAAAAAOyg/T8BTmD6orqImxEvse9WphO_mNJHYVLP0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1747/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1240" data-original-width="1747" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v3fdb5lfxmQ/X3WvkqqWj_I/AAAAAAAAOyg/T8BTmD6orqImxEvse9WphO_mNJHYVLP0gCLcBGAsYHQ/w599-h424/1.png" width="599" /></a></div><br /><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-41676468875883357172020-10-01T18:12:00.005+08:002020-10-01T18:12:34.718+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Marcus Yee<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Marcus Yee is a second-year student studying History and Earth Systems Science at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). During his time here as our Curatorial Intern, he assisted our curator Siddharta Perez, working on artist research and looking into notions of art and pedagogy. <br /><br /></b></p><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-6ee8acb5-7fff-9012-6e07-ac4601ebce8a"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 270px; overflow: hidden; width: 480px;"><img height="273" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_cIQDRAce5eObfHDBC-ADhzxGy8M5DdLadPZxIsF2g4uGIkSCWg4_l6OebUg3ZphwqmFEVZTaXA5Az4CsY6hrUd2ubnFRZUOMvwnkiBgm9zowE2XYCYtvFkx_Wms0NceyAEj7fUl=w486-h273" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="486" /></span></span></p><div><br /></div></span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">A marsh is a museum in that they are both anthromes, or anthropogenic biomes, to different degrees. Community ecologies live in both zones, they ride on the crests of waves, beating along with the rain, following the path of rivers. At intermittent grooves along the stream of life, they find respite, however briefly. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">A museum is a marsh since they are both archives for atoms, each saturated with an entangled history, histories that overflow beyond our narrative containers. But these histories are never quite past, they persist quite well into the present, sometimes, on frequencies insensible, inscrutable.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-7ef9c543-7fff-9be8-1c6f-bccaecec89ff"> </span><img height="320" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/pOy28IiG2OT822pRQ0StssXTebSvd0G2jrj_NQ9Wwl46cNLHKrBaJFUOpIQigKZSGpv2nGmGJiWjyzx7aoBEc0DmNpvC556TUfjJeowMU8Fx0MW_5IiR6GnU2R5xLSZq3NTwWMiv" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center; white-space: pre-wrap;" width="480" /><br /><br /></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A museum is a marsh where there are leaks beyond categorical boundaries, which provide a domesticized comfort to the untamed substratum of contaminated becomings, mutating shapes, unsettling motions. On the surface, these zones uphold the pristine order of colonial taxonomy, that pasts are relegated into the past, life evacuated from the mausolean museum; but as their custodians are well aware, the bleeds and flows are a continuous, albeit unspectacular rhythm. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A marsh is a museum with their reciprocal demands: they demand our care, curiosity, and patience, as we ask from them nourishment. Meeting these demands extend well beyond the principles of management, but rather, an attentiveness towards maintaining worldly connections, as worlds nested within other worlds, a fragile persistence predicated on such intimate ties.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-7270248d-7fff-0770-812d-088a486c79c4"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 270px; overflow: hidden; width: 480px;"><img height="270" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Oh4OVZv-GagSa103MBWKqzaZ2kY8Katl37WlhW0eXPzz2z457UVT6v71D1oQB8I2NdhsbaY5illitmWqOLOCghfSI9tbF5ZPCQ3Dp789mSYS6WfuqpocAVQWgJZmWYpjrgFZFzyR" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="480" />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-c2a9e396-7fff-66f1-47d7-ebf4135a21b8"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A marsh is a museum, or a museum is a marsh where the staccato of impending crises knows no disciplinary, epistemological, institutional or geographical boundaries. As urgencies short-circuit habituated scripts and roles, learning is not an uphill curve towards mastery, but a jagged, capricious path with no salvific teleology, except, perhaps more modest horizons, shared and inhabitable. </span></span></span></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-50652238890925952172020-10-01T14:15:00.004+08:002020-10-01T14:16:25.570+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Deborah Lim<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Deborah Lim is currently doing a Master of Arts in Museum Studies and Curatorial Practices at the Nanyang Technological University. As a Curatorial Intern, she worked alongside curator Siddharta Perez, researching on art and pedagogy and looking into archival materials from the exhibition “There are too many episodes of people coming here…” to create a speculative curriculum of creative exercises.</b><a href="http://www.headlands.org/artist/siddharta-perez/" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.headlands.org/artist/siddharta-perez/&ved=2ahUKEwiJk7H43ZLsAhU86XMBHSgPDtAQFjACegQIAxAC" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1); background-color: white; color: #660099; cursor: pointer; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-decoration-line: none;"></a></p><br /><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">This NUS Museum internship experience has been an enriching and generative one. Coming into the internship, I was excited about the possibilities of working within the space of the museum and being able to be a part of its processes. However, working from home has proven to be interesting in other ways – there were many opportunities to learn from others through conversations, engage with the museum’s archives, and deeply reflect on exhibition-making, the institution of the museum, and my own beliefs about art and pedagogy.</span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kyLnl-MNd6U/X3VzUPL2VbI/AAAAAAAAOxQ/EiDxHBijgDEzCxJsXhOFqr67mDvbh-nGQCLcBGAsYHQ/s384/01.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="384" height="535" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kyLnl-MNd6U/X3VzUPL2VbI/AAAAAAAAOxQ/EiDxHBijgDEzCxJsXhOFqr67mDvbh-nGQCLcBGAsYHQ/w535-h535/01.png" width="535" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">My colleague, Poesy, in her cubicle</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">Alongside our supervisor, Sidd, the curatorial interns embarked on an experimental programme that was inspired by a book titled “How Art Can be Thought” by Allan deSouza. Revolving around the intersecting fields of art and pedagogy, the programme initially seemed as if it was modelled after a module or course – a format that I am used to as a student – but later on took on a more personal and creative form of learning. We began by interrogating some of the assumptions or beliefs that we held about education and art. Then diving into a set of primary readings, we shared provocations and speculations, and went on to look into other interesting strands and ideas. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">Through these discussions, we explored alternatives to formal or mainstream education, questioned the “curatorial turn” and its possibilities, examined the ways artists and curators resist colonial histories and navigate present sociocultural contexts through independent, parasitic or parainstitutional (and many other) pedagogical efforts, and considered how art institutions can be at the forefront of public education and change. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">The culmination of these discussions took shape in a group project, a think tank on Instagram which documents our reading sessions and continuing group conversations (follow us on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/a_bibliography_artandeducation/">@a_bibliography_artandeducation</a>!), as well as an individual project, in which I looked into the archival material from the exhibition “There are too many episodes of people coming here…” to create a speculative curriculum of creative exercises. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">I have learnt so much from this experience at NUS Museum. Thank you to everyone who has been so generous with their time to share about their work at the museum, and especially Sidd, Anh and Marcus for inspiring me!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></i></div><p></p>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-43823502617406258292020-09-30T16:25:00.006+08:002021-03-16T10:47:59.660+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Christal Wee<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Christal Wee is a fourth-year student studying Geography at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. As a Baba House Outreach Intern, she helped put together a new syllabus for the Baba House's Docent Training Programme and conceptualised a virtual tour series for Instagram based on past exhibitions. </b></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">During the Circuit Breaker period, my father had just finished his research on our family history and how our first ancestors came to Singapore in the 1800s, settled down and began a local Singaporean life. My father spoke with pride about our family being Straits Chinese and while I had always known I was Peranakan, all I knew about it was that we ate Nyonya food at Chinese New Year and sometimes we wore the Sarong Kebaya during special occasions. Alongside my love for museums, especially living museums, I decided to check out the NUS Museum internship at the Baba House. This has to be one of the most unique periods of time we are living in. I never imagined myself graduating and entering into the workforce in this manner! Sitting in my bedroom/living room, attending team meetings over Zoom and even going on virtual museum tours. Nonetheless, it has been an enriching experience.</span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TXwXjrXXhVI/X3Qww4s7RQI/AAAAAAAAOwI/F5mLRDbTX7cJJ1GRj8pAZmJshovLqAwBQCLcBGAsYHQ/s754/01.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="754" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TXwXjrXXhVI/X3Qww4s7RQI/AAAAAAAAOwI/F5mLRDbTX7cJJ1GRj8pAZmJshovLqAwBQCLcBGAsYHQ/w603-h360/01.png" width="603" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Makeshift home-work spaces</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uxxPHvthY84/X3Qw7yDn2VI/AAAAAAAAOwQ/FaXw6p5U4UU0Q7Q3TbXTbOxe5R-juFEZACLcBGAsYHQ/s642/02.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="642" height="367" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uxxPHvthY84/X3Qw7yDn2VI/AAAAAAAAOwQ/FaXw6p5U4UU0Q7Q3TbXTbOxe5R-juFEZACLcBGAsYHQ/w537-h367/02.png" width="537" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Attending meetings online from my makeshift workspace</span></i></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">Connecting with my family: </span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">I’ve always associated Peranakan culture with material wealth, beautiful houses in Katong and the delicious cuisine. However, from my recent dealings in cultural geography, I learnt that culture is not about the spectacular, but more so the routines and the ordinary-ness of daily life. The instance of the Baba House could not be a more perfect example of this. Thinking about my own family, yes we were Peranakans, the first ‘Wee’ of my family had indeed hailed from China in the 1820s, settled in Singapore and likely married a local lady. But we didn’t have a family home - my grandfather’s village was long gone. We didn’t have any heirlooms, no big ancestral portraits or stunning furniture. What we had were my great-grandfather’s humble ayam sio and chap chye recipes, my grandfather teaching us how to play Chubit-chubit semat, learning some Baba Malay words at a young age and listening to my grand uncles and aunts speaking about Ah Kong. These nuggets of oldness was part of my Peranakan culture that I began to appreciate while researching on themes such as language, entertainment and games, and cuisine for our upcoming Docent Training Programme.</span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">Another task I undertook was to examine the past exhibitions from the Baba House and develop the content into a virtual tour on Instagram. While the first and second floor of the Baba House are curated to display domestic life and living conditions of the family home in the 1920s, the third story gallery presents a space for contemporary projects and conversations about the house and its architecture and conservation, the Peranakan lineage, history and evolution, and even wider dialogue on the Straits Settlements. The exhibition that resonated most with me was Chris Yap’s "Fingerbowls and Hankies":</span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><i>“[My grandparents] lived a life that was not lavishly wealthy, but very honestly grounded in traditions. Those are the memories, the ‘oldness’ that I hold tightly to.” - Chris Yap</i></span></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: justify;">I also enjoyed the exhibition “Dressing the Baba”. As I read up about the Nyonya’s Baju Panjang and the men’s hybrid style of dressing, I was able to relate what I read to my own family history photographs. It made me more curious about my own great grandparents, of whom my Dad managed to find these gems of pictures. Connecting with my own family and ancestry has been an incredible part of my journey interning at the Baba House.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ObR6NBIIR1E/X3Q_ZDsPI9I/AAAAAAAAOwg/fV8TA4xI5SEZc0BX_LivmOBtw79GZEOKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s526/03.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="298" data-original-width="526" height="348" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ObR6NBIIR1E/X3Q_ZDsPI9I/AAAAAAAAOwg/fV8TA4xI5SEZc0BX_LivmOBtw79GZEOKQCLcBGAsYHQ/w615-h348/03.png" width="615" /></a></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">My great-grandfather in western suit (1925) while my great-great-grandmother </span></span></i><i><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">wears the humble Baju Panjang (1967)</span></span></i></div></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;"><br /></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d3fef47oTkk/X3Q_rLhS8WI/AAAAAAAAOwo/2dntB_dg7N0vJjY8GVtACyGM91Cq2zk1gCLcBGAsYHQ/s488/04.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="488" data-original-width="288" height="490" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d3fef47oTkk/X3Q_rLhS8WI/AAAAAAAAOwo/2dntB_dg7N0vJjY8GVtACyGM91Cq2zk1gCLcBGAsYHQ/w290-h490/04.png" width="290" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>My phone gallery is now full of the slides I do for the Baba House IG virtual tours</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The two rare occasions I got the chance to visit the Baba House were for the filming of the virtual tour for the HERE! Arts Carnival. For the past few months, all I knew of the Baba House was whatever I read in the guidebook, and this was finally coming to life. Danielle and I opened the Baba House early in the morning and the more windows we opened, the more sunlight flooded the house, enlivening the space. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">One challenge for me was imagining the spatiality of the house and the Neil Road Neighbourhood. Where is this calligraphy panel? Is it on the wall? On the altar? It can’t be here, there’s not enough space to fit it there. Oh wait, maybe it isn’t as big as I imagined it? I found it difficult to develop spatial awareness of the Baba House from a 2D point of view and so my trip to the Baba House helped me place all the rooms, artefacts and the house layout into their context. Ironically, another aspect of my job involved the conceptualisation of a neighbourhood map for the Baba House. While sitting at home, I’d spend my afternoons ‘walking’ around the Neil Road neighbourhood on Google Maps. Going on site meant that I could finally explore the area on foot and enjoy the beautiful architecture of the houses there!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-inHYnVzsY90/X3Q_-fdR4WI/AAAAAAAAOw0/fcdcxAVoCsQT0s3ew66JxWy3n_OEG-RygCLcBGAsYHQ/s580/05.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="580" height="388" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-inHYnVzsY90/X3Q_-fdR4WI/AAAAAAAAOw0/fcdcxAVoCsQT0s3ew66JxWy3n_OEG-RygCLcBGAsYHQ/w526-h388/05.png" width="526" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: arial;">Neighbourhood walks on the way to buy lunch</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5R4XoJOL3aU/X3RALMX49FI/AAAAAAAAOw8/yTSocgzzKFc03INuZFVJSQbiwI_vsiOeACLcBGAsYHQ/s492/06.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="278" height="617" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5R4XoJOL3aU/X3RALMX49FI/AAAAAAAAOw8/yTSocgzzKFc03INuZFVJSQbiwI_vsiOeACLcBGAsYHQ/w349-h617/06.png" width="349" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Soaking in the atmosphere of the Baba House while eating lunch at the tok panjang, a long table in Peranakan houses typically used for serving feasts</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As I have extended my stint at the Baba House, I’m anticipating plans we have in store at the Baba House as we reopen next month to visitors. I’m looking forward to finally going back to Baba House on a more regular basis and meeting our docents and visitors! In addition, the restoration works that are upcoming will be an eye-opening experience to learn about heritage conservation in Singapore.</span></div><br />NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-50829827496080677102020-09-29T15:42:00.006+08:002020-10-02T14:05:21.305+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Beverly Anne Devakishen<div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Beverly Anne Devakishen is a Master's student taking Southeast Asian studies at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. During her time at the NUS Museum, she worked under Sung Yunwen, the curator of the <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/wartime-artists-of-vietnam-drawings-and-posters-from-the-ambassador-dato-n-parameswaran-collection/">Wartime Artists of Vietnam</a> </i>exhibition<i>, </i>and assisted with the upcoming publication on the collection. </b></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">As an intern, I was working under Sung Yunwen, the curator of the exhibition <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/wartime-artists-of-vietnam-drawings-and-posters-from-the-ambassador-dato-n-parameswaran-collection/">Wartime Artists of Vietnam</a></i>, which showcased pieces from Ambassador Dato’ N. Parameswaran’s collection of Vietnamese art. As I was tasked with helping with the upcoming publication on the collection, I had to familiarise myself with the material and think about the issues their art brought to the forefront. Yunwen sent me brochures of the exhibition, and as I pored through their pages, I found myself yearning to see many of these art pieces in real life. I found it frustrating not to be in the same space as the artworks I was supposed to be working on. </span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">The NUS Museum staff had organised a virtual tour of the museum for the interns one morning, and I was able to see the Vietnamese paintings and posters displayed on the whitewashed walls of the museum space. Although I still was not physically present with the art pieces, just seeing them in the museum space was enough to prompt me to think about these paintings and posters as objects with their own pasts. These art pieces had been bought from Northern Vietnamese artists who had survived the Vietnam war, who had lived experiences of the suffering that came with the conflict. Many of these pieces had been painted during the war itself. They had then been collected by Parameswaran, the Malaysian Ambassador who had developed a fascination with Vietnamese war art. Now, here they were, glistening behind polished frames in the NUS Museum. Did art transcend the mundane, messy reality of the history foreign relations between Vietnam and Singapore? I began to think about Singapore's role in the Vietnam war. </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">It is no secret that Singapore supported American intervention in the Vietnam conflict. Lee Kuan Yew had openly declared that ‘if American troops were withdrawn from South Vietnam it would not be the South Vietnamese people who would be determining their destiny, but armed terrorists' [1]. His support for U.S intervention stemmed from his perception of communism as a threat to Singapore and to his leadership. When Lee Kuan Yew agreed to let Singapore be used by American soldiers as a location for Rest and Relax during the war, there were protests led by the Barisan Socialist Party. Such anti-American sentiments were clamped down upon. On 26 August 1966, the Singapore Parliament passed a Punishment for Vandalism Bill. In his speech in Parliament, Lee singled out those who 'went about shouting and carrying anti-American, anti-British, and pro-Vietcong slogans' [2].</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bZG58pN3bU0/X3LlDmIJNsI/AAAAAAAAOvw/tTapD2aSdzEgrJAzybFTiDILZ0aN6BxcgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1500/image-20200729-100302-b354c741.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1500" height="569" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bZG58pN3bU0/X3LlDmIJNsI/AAAAAAAAOvw/tTapD2aSdzEgrJAzybFTiDILZ0aN6BxcgCLcBGAsYHQ/w569-h569/image-20200729-100302-b354c741.jpg" width="569" /></a></span></div><span><br /><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><p></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Unearthing this information made me think about the kind of posters that protesters in Singapore must have been carrying. If signs with ‘pro-Vietcong slogans’ [3] were made illegal in Singapore during the war, what is the implication of the fact that one of our universities now housed paintings and posters from North Vietnamese artists who would have been fighting on the side of the Vietcong? These artists were part of the group that Lee Kuan Yew had branded as ‘armed terrorists’ [4]. In declaring support for the South Vietnamese people, the image of the North Vietnamese in Singapore's foreign policy was not constructed with empathy and compassion, only with a strong sense that Singapore was on the right side of history. These 'armed terrorists' [5], whose memories had found their way into our museum, had produced paintings of scenes of death, of triumph and even of tender moments between lovers during the war. The ones that struck me the most, however, were the portraits. Staring at the viewer from their behind frames, hung on that pristine NUS Museum wall, the portraits were uncompromising and bold — I felt as if, in a country that was complicit in their erasure and suffering, some form of agency had been returned to the North Vietnamese people.</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Thinking about space was an important part of the internship experience for me. Mary Ann ran a programme titled <i>Space, Spacing and Spaces</i> for the NUS Museum interns, in which we thought about the relationships we have to different spaces. Coupled with my reflections on the Vietnam war art pieces, I thought about the issue of a museum space’s connection to the wider nation state. I often find that being in a museum takes me out of the context of everyday life. Enclosed, presenting a coherent narrative, a museum fills your mind with carefully curated narratives presented from selected artefacts and art works. In the case of the Vietnam War art, one could get immersed in the world of Vietnamese wartime artists without thinking of the streets of Singapore, right outside the museum door, and the Singaporean institution the museum is part of. In this sense, the NUS Museum fulfills its purposes of fully immersing its visitors in narrative portrayed by the North Vietnamese wartime artists. Does a museum necessarily have a duty to ensure that connections between the artefacts and the country they are being displayed in are explored? Is it the duty of the viewer to draw these links? Are these connections important, or should the focus of the exhibition always only be on the art works and not on a wider, nationwide or regional history? </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rtm2l8yydjM/X3LlN0yNFkI/AAAAAAAAOv0/JuBHuqfPrIgzZUbjptw4JWwpnljCWMscQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1500/image-20200729-100302-20ef7c4a.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1500" height="568" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rtm2l8yydjM/X3LlN0yNFkI/AAAAAAAAOv0/JuBHuqfPrIgzZUbjptw4JWwpnljCWMscQCLcBGAsYHQ/w568-h568/image-20200729-100302-20ef7c4a.jpg" width="568" /></a></span></div><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><p></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">While I do not have the answers to those questions, thinking about North Vietnamese wartime art in relation to Singapore's position on the opposing side of the war to these artists was eye-opening. In one of the seminars held, we were asked to write a list of demands in relation to an ideal space. My group and I wrote a letter that outlined what we envisioned would be a useful, utopian space. We wanted a space for unlearning harmful ideologies, a space for conversation and debate. For me, part of opening up a dialogue would be acknowledging a complicated past, no matter how unsanitary, and the part that these histories played in creating us and the spaces which we currently occupy. I believe that the art pieces I worked with have a valuable role in prompting questions and debate on Singapore's history as well as the nation’s foreign policy. This internship has held that space for me to reflect deeply on how I feel about Singapore’s entanglements with other Southeast Asian countries' histories. Yunwen was generous in letting me interpret the art in whatever ways I found useful, and she always encouraged me to do my own further reading. I am hopeful that there are spaces in Singapore that allow for reinterpretation and revisionist historical exploration. </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">I would like to thank all the museum people for creating an intellectually stimulating and engaging programme for us interns and for giving us all your effort, despite the setbacks that COVID-19 has caused. The internship gave me a framework to think deeply about conservation, heritage and art. This is what I will take from the experience and hopefully apply to other jobs and aspects of my life.</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">References</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">1. Ang Cheng Guan, "Singapore and the Vietnam War," Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 40, no. 2 (2009): 364.</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">2. Ibid., 364. </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">3. Ibid., 364. </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">4. Ibid. 364.</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">5. Ibid., 364.</span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-59594868553212042042020-09-29T14:04:00.009+08:002020-10-27T15:03:53.874+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Nguyen Thi Hoang Anh<div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div></div><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><br /><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div></div><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Nguyen Thi Hoang Anh is a fourth-year student studying Industrial Design at the NUS School of Design and Environment. During her time as a Curatorial Intern working on exhibition management, she provided assistance to the curatorial team and researched on museum experience design in the digital realm.</b></p><p><b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></p><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-variant-ligatures: none;">My decision to join the NUS Museum Internship programme was motivated by my aspiration to be part of the museum industry one day. My expectations were to get the chance to do in-depth researches about museum-related topics, as well as to gain a deeper understanding of the behind-the-scene works in a museum. </span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Coming from the Industrial Design Division, research was a practice where I lacked both experiences and skills. During my NUS course, I was mostly trained in conducting primary research, while guidance or chances to exercise secondary research were rarer. Hence, when I was given the reading list at the very beginning of the internship, I was very excited, knowing that these are the kinds of resource that normally I will not be able to find just by Googling. However, once I got started, it became clear that reading comprehension was not my strongest suit, as I struggled with processing and understanding all the new information.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{168}" paraid="1974627235" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{174}" paraid="1919157023" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PhQn5-u45tc/X3Lb7av5lLI/AAAAAAAAOs0/wdfY714GDVAD1E7i4X19Kl7TNA8i8qQSACLcBGAsYHQ/s926/1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="926" height="248" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PhQn5-u45tc/X3Lb7av5lLI/AAAAAAAAOs0/wdfY714GDVAD1E7i4X19Kl7TNA8i8qQSACLcBGAsYHQ/w597-h248/1.jpg" width="597" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{179}" paraid="670562214" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">Since Arts, Education and Museology were all foreign territories for me, I also felt quite intimidated during the first few discussions with my Curatorial team. However, my teammates and supervisor – people who I believe are highly experienced and knowledgeable in this field – were always very supportive.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{179}" paraid="670562214" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{183}" paraid="1959566670" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qD6c2rYJbTE/X3LcMv3C6_I/AAAAAAAAOtQ/Csc_xYeonDMJ5in0UyW7yJ85H5b1cOwJwCLcBGAsYHQ/s644/2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="593" data-original-width="644" height="462" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qD6c2rYJbTE/X3LcMv3C6_I/AAAAAAAAOtQ/Csc_xYeonDMJ5in0UyW7yJ85H5b1cOwJwCLcBGAsYHQ/w501-h462/2.jpg" width="501" /></a></span><span color="windowtext" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: arial;"> </span></div></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{188}" paraid="536061947" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">They never dismissed my opinions, always showed appreciation for the point of view I offer (although it probably came from somewhere far </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2 BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml;base64,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"); background-position: 0% 100%; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom-color: transparent; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">far</span></span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"> away from theirs), and constantly gave further suggestions or inquiries for me to expand on my own thinking. </span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{188}" paraid="536061947" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{198}" paraid="2074620326" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Even when I had nothing to say, I still learnt so much just by listening to their experiences and perspectives. Every day, I felt like I was gaining a bit more understanding about art, education and the world around me.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{198}" paraid="2074620326" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{204}" paraid="2068251883" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ILqdDWhntCI/X3LcS_ogSNI/AAAAAAAAOtk/WolpDt6wWrsd0GAtZU_0YHKPSoJqXpD2QCLcBGAsYHQ/s599/3%2B%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="564" height="503" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ILqdDWhntCI/X3LcS_ogSNI/AAAAAAAAOtk/WolpDt6wWrsd0GAtZU_0YHKPSoJqXpD2QCLcBGAsYHQ/w473-h503/3%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="473" /></a></span></span></div><br /><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{213}" paraid="1308304741" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">In the later stage of the internship, we were given the opportunity to research in-depth about a topic of our personal interest. For me, I chose to explore the principles behind museum experience design, and how they can be applied into the virtual realm. As a designer, I have always had an affinity with digitality. My personal goal is to change users’ perspective regarding the virtual realm, such that it is no longer viewed as an imperfect counterpart of reality, but a unique entity with great potential to explore. </span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{213}" paraid="1308304741" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{219}" paraid="920026839" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Moreover, there just seems to be so much thought and effort that the museum professionals put into any museum exhibition, programme or experience. Yet, I feel that the majority of visitors may not be equipped with sufficient prior knowledge to recognize this. Designing a museum experience that is able to bridge the gap between the experts and the visitors – that is something I wish to work on if I one day join the industry.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{219}" paraid="920026839" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{225}" paraid="1109872102" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">The final form of my project is a handbook that provides basic information about several frameworks of museum experience design, as well as specific examples illustrating how they can be applied to the digital context. I believe this can be a useful tool for design students or designer who want to start projects </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">related to the museum sector, or for visitors who wish to know a bit more about the thought processes behind their museum experiences.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{225}" paraid="1109872102" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{233}" paraid="1917439866" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1YrNRmIvJFk/X3LcYSC4JeI/AAAAAAAAOto/3k5ascxvVv49WxFKPmM6vueaIz2SsJc1wCLcBGAsYHQ/s507/4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="507" data-original-width="468" height="439" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1YrNRmIvJFk/X3LcYSC4JeI/AAAAAAAAOto/3k5ascxvVv49WxFKPmM6vueaIz2SsJc1wCLcBGAsYHQ/w405-h439/4.jpg" width="405" /></a></span></span></div><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{238}" paraid="2086303093" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Due to the pandemic situation, there were fewer chances for us to interact with others beyond our team; hence, I did not manage to explore the kinds of work done by other museum departments. However, to provide as many opportunities as possible for us to explore the art and museum scene, the museum has put in so much effort to come up with alternatives.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{238}" paraid="2086303093" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{244}" paraid="895025450" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Throughout the internship, we went on two virtual tours of the NUS Museum and Baba </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">H</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">ouse, where the museum staff tried to show us as much as they can and explained to us in details all the stories behind the artefacts. Thanks to the virtual tour, I was introduced to a very impressive project – </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">The Library of </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Pulau</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-style: italic; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Saigon</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"> by Debbie Ding – which explores how objects can transform themselves into the representatives of a given time and space. More details about this project can be found at </span><a class="Hyperlink BCX9 SCXW228634971" href="http://dbbd.sg/works/the-library-of-pulau-saigon.php" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; user-select: text;" target="_blank"><span class="TextRun Underlined BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; color: blue; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: underline; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">http://dbbd.sg/works/the-library-of-pulau-saigon.php</span></span></a><span class="TextRun EmptyTextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{8c7ee53e-6988-4638-bdfa-011ab0a4d945}{244}" paraid="895025450" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{10}" paraid="848201023" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Furthermore, we got the chance to listen to art organizations and experts share about their own experiences in the industry, as well as their vision for Arts in Singapore. Since I am not a local, I never really knew that so much effort to preserve, sustain and develop Arts is existing in Singapore.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{10}" paraid="848201023" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{16}" paraid="546997587" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">Every two weeks, the whole Museum Intern team would come together for a series of workshops, in which we discuss our thoughts on arts, education and spaces. Here I got the chance to share with my fellow interns my view and vision for virtual spaces, and in turn received their recommendations for meaningful digital platforms.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{16}" paraid="546997587" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{22}" paraid="1594333923" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zsdB41okNoc/X3LcckUe3EI/AAAAAAAAOts/7z-Usi3sVV8VFA_RHwpQp7Feu1AuyAP5ACLcBGAsYHQ/s913/5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="913" height="307" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zsdB41okNoc/X3LcckUe3EI/AAAAAAAAOts/7z-Usi3sVV8VFA_RHwpQp7Feu1AuyAP5ACLcBGAsYHQ/w595-h307/5.jpg" width="595" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{27}" paraid="983043162" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">During these workshops, we were also given the opportunities to work with interns from different teams, sharing our thoughts and opinions with one another. It was really amazing to see how one’s background can influence their perspective and the way they talk about things. Everyone seemed like such an interesting person that I could have learnt a lot from, which makes it seem even more unfortunate that we were not able to interact and get to know one another in person. </span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{33}" paraid="1981723406" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US">However, this is a very small drawback as compared to all the other great things I have gained from this internship experience. I have learnt even more than I expected, and my interest in the museum field has been nurtured. Considering the suddenness and unpredictability of the pandemic, I think the museum has managed to offer us a really unique, enriching and meaningful experience in which we can still grow as individuals in spite of the adversities, and I am truly grateful for that.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{33}" paraid="1981723406" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW228634971" data-ccp-props="{"134233117":true,"134233118":true,"201341983":0,"335551550":6,"335551620":6,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW228634971" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW228634971" paraeid="{1b39af39-bf46-44f9-ade1-2a263be62322}{39}" paraid="1238157020" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP SCXW228634971 BCX9" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP SCXW228634971 BCX9" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZKPv54Au3T4/X3LchXQSf8I/AAAAAAAAOtw/8dh7nuu4agA7vkYh53eeUDTO181vsh5egCLcBGAsYHQ/s865/6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="563" data-original-width="865" height="386" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZKPv54Au3T4/X3LchXQSf8I/AAAAAAAAOtw/8dh7nuu4agA7vkYh53eeUDTO181vsh5egCLcBGAsYHQ/w593-h386/6.jpg" width="593" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP SCXW228634971 BCX9" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335551550":2,"335551620":2,"335559739":160,"335559740":276}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.55px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /> </span></span><p></p></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-50038252032540675692020-09-29T13:45:00.005+08:002020-09-29T15:50:58.300+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Andrew Vijayan<p><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></p><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><br /></i></span></div></div><div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">-</i></span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><b>Andrew Vijayan is a third-year Sociology student at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. As our Collections Management Intern, Andrew assisted the collections team and researched on the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for collections management in museums. </b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It is a strange time to be an intern (or to do anything else really). A week before my interview with NUS Museum, the Circuit Breaker period started, as part of the government’s efforts to stem the transmission of COVID-19. Disrupted by the pandemic, my experience would diverge greatly from past museum interns.</span></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{b940e93f-8e65-4acb-bd9a-e77b0dbe957a}{211}" paraid="2130306158" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{b940e93f-8e65-4acb-bd9a-e77b0dbe957a}{215}" paraid="1404912742" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">I never met other interns in person or spent lunch breaks socialising with them. I never stepped into NUS Museum. I never touched any museum objects. This internship was mediated through a screen. Virtual became the choice of adjective for everything. Meetings were conducted online, with people fragmented into neat little black boxes. We visited NUS Museum virtually, experiencing it through a museum staff holding a camera. I became acquainted with museum cataloguing conventions by accessing the online collection on NUS Museum’s website.</span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{b940e93f-8e65-4acb-bd9a-e77b0dbe957a}{255}" paraid="103269575" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{b940e93f-8e65-4acb-bd9a-e77b0dbe957a}{255}" paraid="103269575" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As a collections intern, it is impossible to work from home. While other interns could feel comfortable reading and researching at home, I did feel a modicum of frustration in not being present in the museum to carry out my duties. The nature of the collections intern role is physical – caring for objects and ensuring they are in the best condition for preservation, exhibition and research. If I could not learn on the job, I had to learn about this unfamiliar field by reading and watching from home. I read technical manuals from museums around the world on how to deal with different types of hazards in a museum environment, how to log a condition report properly and how to identify different types of damage to objects. I watched videos of professionals explaining the types of gloves to wear when handling different objects and how to handle objects without placing undue stress on them. Besides learning about collections care, I was also tasked with researching Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology and its applicability for collections management in museums.</span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{4}" paraid="810981509" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{78}" paraid="28104833" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{82}" paraid="1593478208" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4vSVjtevjWc/X3LdvRCvK1I/AAAAAAAAOuE/RKgm-b86-iwMDSIvCzwVZ8DRYY-cdeN3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s526/01.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="396" data-original-width="526" height="429" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4vSVjtevjWc/X3LdvRCvK1I/AAAAAAAAOuE/RKgm-b86-iwMDSIvCzwVZ8DRYY-cdeN3gCLcBGAsYHQ/w570-h429/01.png" width="570" /></a></span></span></div><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{87}" paraid="1643429920" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><i>Watching videos at home on how to care for objects</i></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{93}" paraid="455118820" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{97}" paraid="1370774962" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">The bulk of my internship experience was reading</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> at home</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> as I could not physically be present in NUS Museum.</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> On the penultimate day of my internship</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">,</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">I finally</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> had the opportunity to meet my super</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">visor, Devi, in person. I </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">accompanied</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> her to witness </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">the deinstallation and condition checking of paintings that NUS Museum had loaned to the Asian Civilisations Museum for an exhibition. I was thrilled as I was finally able to visit a museum physically for the first and only time</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> during my internship</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">,</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> even if it was not</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> in</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> NUS </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">Museum</span><span color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)"><span style="font-variant-ligatures: none;">!</span></span></span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> </span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" color="windowtext" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{139}" paraid="259736932" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{143}" paraid="133548843" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">I observed curiously as art handlers carefully furled and unfurled Chinese ink scroll paintings</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> in a gallery stripped bare</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">, while Devi and a conservator</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> used a strong light</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">to scour the surface of the paintings and note their condition.</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">There were r</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">emnants of mould</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">, ink bleeding through paper, and past restorative work</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> on these paintings</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">. These are tiny marks that are almos</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">t invisible to the naked eye and that not many would take note of. But for collections management and care, every small detail is crucial.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{173}" paraid="1936330686" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{177}" paraid="743484408" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P-W8wVr_r5k/X3Ld7EMBL0I/AAAAAAAAOuI/JaFACvfbsYsY5lpxhU6NfWNOhOfS_iWBQCLcBGAsYHQ/s502/02.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="502" height="427" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P-W8wVr_r5k/X3Ld7EMBL0I/AAAAAAAAOuI/JaFACvfbsYsY5lpxhU6NfWNOhOfS_iWBQCLcBGAsYHQ/w568-h427/02.png" width="568" /></a></span></span></div><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{182}" paraid="274562635" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">A painting once hung here</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></i></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{188}" paraid="1089700382" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{188}" paraid="1089700382" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{200}" paraid="913661676" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: center; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335551550":2,"335551620":2}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zqANgCARDFc/X3Ld_VlLQjI/AAAAAAAAOuQ/yqj6QMLTsdQE1YPhx4vBpMLuw3Ff69XsACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/03.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="500" height="423" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zqANgCARDFc/X3Ld_VlLQjI/AAAAAAAAOuQ/yqj6QMLTsdQE1YPhx4vBpMLuw3Ff69XsACLcBGAsYHQ/w565-h423/03.png" width="565" /></a></span></span></div><p></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{205}" paraid="223777580" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-align: left; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> </span><i><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">Condition checking is an important process for objects </span></i></span><i style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">under the </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">museum’s</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> care</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></i></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{213}" paraid="1983005173" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></i></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{225}" paraid="951029487" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div></div></div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{229}" paraid="1234548256" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="476" height="517" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y9dQK7A6KbM/X3LeGXYNlxI/AAAAAAAAOuU/lqlDg_UBvjM6b7ofEAdOb2dcpl4BJYa3wCLcBGAsYHQ/w387-h517/04.png" width="387" /></a></span></span></div><p></p></div></div></div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{234}" paraid="1213323027" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> </span><i><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">Painting</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> almost ready to head home to the museum</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 16.1875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></i></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{244}" paraid="1338459583" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></i></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{248}" paraid="184900994" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">In my internship application, I wrote about how I chanced upon NUS Museum staff installing a painting and how I was struck by the amount of care and attention involved in displaying the artwork. While I never got to exercise care or handle an artwork in NUS Musuem, I am grateful for the opportunity to witness the display of tenderness towards artworks during the deinstallation process in the Asian Civilisations Museum as this crucial labour was invisible to most people.</span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{1b9407eb-8040-46fa-b958-2e31f7f8ec2a}{254}" paraid="519430499" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{94f6e0d9-5987-4145-95aa-1ac05234d5db}{3}" paraid="845363715" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">Thank you to Devi for being an encouraging supervisor and for answering my queries despite your busy </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">schedule. Thank you to Mary Ann</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> for</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> planning and</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> coordinating </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">the internship programme</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> and</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> ensuring </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">everything</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> ran smoothly. Thank you to Anh, Deborah, Emlyn, and Jie Min</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> for your hard work </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">as we</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">worked</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> on the NUS </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">Museum</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> parallel programme and the CFA placemaking proposal. And thank you to the other interns </span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB">whose thoughts</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> have</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> provoked new insights.</span><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"> </span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start; user-select: text;"><p class="Paragraph BCX9 SCXW198552135" paraeid="{94f6e0d9-5987-4145-95aa-1ac05234d5db}{50}" paraid="2090224812" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="TextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; font-variant-ligatures: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-GB"><span class="NormalTextRun BCX9 SCXW198552135" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"></span></span><span class="EOP BCX9 SCXW198552135" data-ccp-props="{}" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span></p></div><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><br /></span></div></div></div>NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-958398191981214842020-06-30T15:57:00.000+08:002020-03-19T16:01:08.353+08:00General Advisory<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qX7hz51JHOg/XnMlDkv8AgI/AAAAAAAAOm8/MdhpHOY2p-Aquk9gqu8YL2Buf5ccktB4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/MuseumClosure-IG%2B-%2BUpdatedNUSM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qX7hz51JHOg/XnMlDkv8AgI/AAAAAAAAOm8/MdhpHOY2p-Aquk9gqu8YL2Buf5ccktB4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/MuseumClosure-IG%2B-%2BUpdatedNUSM.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-60092899083901783522020-03-29T14:30:00.000+08:002020-03-29T14:30:06.059+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Rachel Koh<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><b>Rachel Koh is a second-year Sociology student at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. As our Resource Libary Intern, Rachel has assisted with the cataloging of the NUS Museum's Resource Libary.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I think, perhaps, one of the most earth-shattering revelations to have early into your internship is to discover an impending paradigm shift in what you’ve always taken for granted.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Michelle, my supervisor, introduces the issue at hand like this, that ICOM is proposing a new museum definition, a move that has been so utterly controversial and agonised upon that representatives have voted to postpone the crucial vote to the next AGM.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The definitions are as below:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Current Definition: </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>A Museum is a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Proposed Definition: </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Museums are democratising, inclusive and polyphonic spaces for critical dialogue about the pasts and the futures. Acknowledging and addressing the conflicts and challenges of the present, they hold artefacts and specimens in trust for society, safeguard diverse memories for future generations and guarantee equal rights and equal access to heritage for all people.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Museums are not for profit. They are participatory and transparent, and work in active partnership with and for diverse communities to collect, preserve, research, interpret, exhibit, and enhance understandings of the world, aiming to contribute to human dignity and social justice, global equality and planetary wellbeing.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The current definition is what we are most used to. It is straightforward and traditional; the museum experience is visualised as a one-way street, providing a “service” from museum to visitor. Strikingly, his one-directional movement is no longer echoed in the proposed definition. The terms “democratising” (being made accessible to everyone) and “polyphonic” (producing or involving many sounds and voices) goes one step further than being simply “open to public”, there has to be an exchange of ideas present in order for this idealised polyphony to even be produced in the first place. Simultaneously, how can any institution say for sure that they are all inclusive? Who will be responsible for the checks and balances to enforce this?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">There are also elements that have clearly been dropped from the current definition. For starters, the any sort of word implying “permanence” is nowhere to be found in the proposed definition. On one hand, we can chalk this up to the effect of globalisation, how enhanced international networks have normalised and encouraged collaborations across borders. A good example of this can be seen in our very own ArtScience Museum, Future World: Where Art Meets Science, a permanent interactive exhibition put together by teamLab, hailing from Japan, subtly addressing some very Singaporean issues such as land use and the integration of technology.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">On the other hand, we can also read this as an effort on ICOM’s part to encourage change and emphasise temporality. This is cool for everyone! Artists can obtain more opportunities to present to greater audiences of different demographics, which contributes to further personal growth and development. Visitors have all the more reason to visit their local museums and discover new information every time. There is an envisioned future where museums are not merely their permanent exhibitions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Between these two definitions, the purposes of museums also stand to be revamped. We can weakly regroup the purposes of “education” and “study” under the proposed “enhanced understanding”, but enjoyment is no longer implicitly stated. Going back to my previous point, it is no longer sufficient to simply be a passive spectator. Now, visitors are expected to critically engage with the artefacts. With this, also harkens questions of whether play is important. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">On a visit to the Science Centre Singapore, my colleagues and I fumble dumbly through a mirror maze situated in an exhibit about light, while a young boy zooms towards the exit in record time. Was it fun? Yes, regardless of whether I, a twenty-one year old, was constantly being one-upped by children. I stumble through another few mazes and I realise not all sorts of visitors are the same – some are like my younger brother, possessing an insatiable curiosity that drives them to pull the world apart just to figure out how things work, some are like me, I need to be drawn into the moment, gripped by the hand and pulled through the gates of knowledge in order to learn. We need all elements to work together in order to put together an experience for all kinds of visitors, no matter the age or inclination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Another interesting detail to note is how the word “institution” has been replaced by “spaces”. This move to de-formalise museum spaces is an interesting one. Museums will extend beyond gigantic white marble palaces, or if we’re talking closer to home, off-white colonial buildings. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Over this winter’s internship programme, the cohort briefly wandered the corridors of Golden Mile Complex, working through the question of whether it could count under the new movement of museums. As far as the building itself is concerned, it’s almost a complete anti-thesis of our current galleries: built by Singaporean architects, intended for a postmodern Singapore. And it’s just an exciting thought to hold onto, even if the technicalities don’t appear to work out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Of course, certain components have been retained, the most evident one being museums’ non-profit status. The definition of “non-profit” is quite straightforward: not making or conducted primarily to make a profit, but as much as this has not changed, I have my qualms. Museums drive tourism, drive revenue, regardless of whether we intend for it or not. In a country as practical as this one, it is simply unrealistic for us to think of museums as separate from any capitalistic agendas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Another constant is how both definitions come to a consensus that museums should research and exhibit the tangible and intangible. This is a comforting anchor in the entirety of the new proposed definition, and one of the few elements we can definitely say for sure we can concretely visualise. Critically, this is what museums mean to the layman, a means of learning about a time and space that is not in the now through physical and non-physical means.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The new definition introduces the concept of transparency. In the context of a museum, transparency seems like a random idea. Let’s break it down a bit: the idea of transparency differs from context to context. What is ICOM referring to exactly when they say that they would like to see transparency in our museums? Museums can be transparent and not-transparent in many ways. Would releasing the nitty gritty of their finances be it? Or perhaps coming clean about the origins of certain artefacts? There is a lot to unpack in this post-colonial era. Perhaps this is why some big museums out there are worried.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The proposed definition also brings forth additional dimensions: future projection, and activism. This perhaps is symbolic of ICOM’s belief in the importance of having room for discussion with the present so that there is a future to look forward to, and enact change. This is an exciting thing to think about in terms of Singapore. Singapore is a relatively young nation, and compared to our European counterparts, we do not possess long histories. Ultimately, the work of museums does not seem significant as of now but it stands to hold more meaning in the long run.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">My job scope requires me to pore over titles and titles and through it, I uncover a little bit more of a past. These books are different, rare, even; some come from the Nanyang Library, some are donated by curators, some are sent our way by other galleries. As long as the library remains a work in progress, I won’t be able to tell for sure what story this room will be telling. But I know, somehow, there is a multiplicity of voices within these four walls: old museology guides that Michelle suspects might’ve been used in the setting up of the museum, books from Overseas-Chinese artists specialising in traditional ink, exhibition brochures of contemporary Singaporean artists trying to negotiate their place in a post-modern world – </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">During our discussion, another colleague points out that the current definition has been in place since 2007. As we usher in a new decade, the proposed definition is a heads up to the future. The ideals envisioned can push the idea of museums being accessible for everyone, rather than its image of being stuffy, stagnant and exclusive to the rich or extensively educated. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The vote to keep the current definition wins in our discussion. In my opinion, this is the problem: the proposed definition is twice as long as the old one, but to be honest, it’s also twice as confusing. The current definition is concrete and practical, and the proposed definition exudes an idealism that is nothing like that. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Ultimately, my vote sways more conservative than expected. I perceive a missing link in between the two definitions, and it is unfair to simply expect our museums to adapt and make the leap. Furthermore, it is simply too much to assign this many responsibilities to a particular space. How can we expect our museums to encompass all these qualities at once, when an role model doesn’t exist in the first place? I have my reservations about the proposal becoming a be-all, end-all definition, but it champions pioneering qualities that all museums can attempt to emulate. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Now that’s a future we could work towards.</span><br />
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-32670658172315892020-03-28T14:34:00.000+08:002020-03-25T10:39:14.019+08:00 [Call for Applications] NUS Museum Internship Programme (May – Jul 2020)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://nus.edu/2Tj325p" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1072" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BMhrd3nwp-s/Xmsp-xFBvnI/AAAAAAAAOkA/QMz1s3EouAoH3vSak4pYxaWtvw3s-UmQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/IG_Call_For_Interns_May2020.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://nus.edu/2Tj325p" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Click here to apply</span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The NUS Museum Internship Programme offers opportunities for all undergraduate and graduate
students to explore museum careers across its various units. Through this internship, we hope to
provide research opportunities, develop professional skills and access to mentorship, while
building rapport with students to encourage their interests in the arts and heritage. Internships at
the NUS Baba House are also managed through this programme, focusing on studies,
programmes and exhibitions around the Straits Chinese culture, and tasks specific to a heritage
house. With over ten years of hosting interns from a wide variety of academic backgrounds, our
interns have gained valuable experiences with us, going on to take up positions both in the arts
as curators, programmers, or academics, and in other non-arts related industries as well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> As the NUS Museum is situated within a flourishing nexus of academic faculty and practitioners
from around the region, students gain greater insight into the particular resources and processes
inherent to a university museum, and at the same time, learn more about the interests, labour and
developments within the local museum and arts industry. While interns will have their own distinct
job scopes depending on the position, a combined parallel programme will also be part of the
internship schedule. This includes regular field trips to other cultural institutions, networking
sessions, and in-house workshops. Several sessions will also be dedicated to a roundtable series
which, in the past, has included film screenings and student presentations on topics as varied as
the 2019 ICOM Museum Definition, framing oral histories and interviews, and other issues in
contemporary museology.</span></div>
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<br />NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-30137775681033839132020-03-27T14:30:00.000+08:002020-03-27T14:30:00.372+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Nguyen Dang Hoai Dang<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Nguyen Dang Hoai Dang is a year 3 Chemical Engineering student at the NUS Faculty of Engineering. As our Collections Management Intern, </b></i></span><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Dang has assisted the collections team with the exhibition </b><b style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/wartime-artists-of-vietnam-drawings-and-posters-from-the-ambassador-dato-n-parameswaran-collection/" target="_blank">Wartime Artists of Vietnam: Drawings and Posters from the Ambassador Dato’ N. Parameswaran Collection</a></b><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">.</b></i><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #666666; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><i style="line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></b></i></span></b></i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As a Collection Management Intern working on the Vietnam Wartime Artists Collection, I felt a deeper connection with my Vietnamese root and had a chance to further learn about the Vietnamese arts scene, especially wartime arts. The time spent zooming into the paintings to check the artist signatures, deciphering ‘artistic’ handwriting from the sketches and researching on the artists biography as well as the animated conversations with my supervisor about his visit to the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum have inspired me to explore it and many more museums myself.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The internship also offers me great insights into what’s happening at a museum behind all the displays (nope, not a hidden door to a secret chamber). From insightful conservation workshops to thought-provoking discussions about what it is to be a museum (philosophy much), I was in awe of all the buildings (aka potential museums) that we visited. Who would have thought Golden Mile Complex is a prospective candidate for the proposed museum definition from the International Council of Museums (ICOM)!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I used to think of a museum as per its traditional static current definition provided by ICOM – “a […] permanent institution […] which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment”. However, upon the various visits to heritage-worthy sites like the NUS Baba House and Golden Mile Complex, I had challenged my own idea of a museum as well as that of ICOM’s current definition. Although the term “the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment” provides a very encompassing and concise understanding of what a museum holds, the current definition is still too static and inflexible of what a museum can be. However, the proposed definition is also too political and far from being “inclusive” as it underlines that museums ought to move towards democratization – a challenge for some less developed and developing countries where economics still play the most important role, Vietnam inclusive.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In fact, the museum definition discussion seems to be out of questions for Vietnamese museums, most of which are war memories museums for education and tourism purposes. The more aesthetic ones like the fine arts museums are rare and unpopular amongst the people who do not have a very strong museum-going culture. In the end, Vietnam and many more non-ICOM member have their own definitions of a museum, making it very subjective. Perhaps, the ICOM definition should not be called a definition per se, but a vision of the council.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Furthermore, the roles museums play in society are also not emphasized enough in the proposed definition. Hence, the current definition’s purposes of “education, study and enjoyment” should be kept with the addition of a few more values and words that came up during our final discussion during the definition workshop, for example, sustainability, engaging and inspiring. This may seem like a subset of the proposed definition “social justice, global equality and planetary wellbeing”, but the suggestions above are more specific, practical and politically neutral than the choice of words used by ICOM.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In fact, remaining apolitical while having an opinion, a stand to inspire and educate is one of the challenges faced by museums. Moreover, keeping up with current trends to attract and cater to more diverse audiences, competing with regional museums in terms of tourism and so on are among the difficulties museums in Singapore need to overcome in the coming decades. In the end, museums (however defined, individually or collectively) all aim to contribute to their society one way or another, therefore, should not be limited by any type of definitions.</span></div>
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-76162400377377981292020-03-26T13:55:00.000+08:002020-05-08T11:32:14.536+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Sin Melia<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<b style="color: #666666;">Sin Melia is a third-year Sociology major and Southeast Asian minor at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Working as an Exhibitions Interns for the South & Southeast Asian Collection, Melia was involved in the curatorial processes of the on-going exhibition <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/another-diorama-by-hu-yun/" target="_blank">another diorama.</a></i></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The shock I got when I was informed that I got accepted into this program was quickly followed by anxieties of what exactly this internship would entail. Of course, having applied for the program, I, like many of my fellow interns (and I’m sure many before us), began with an interest in art, curation, and just the preservation of heritage in general. However, this interest can manifest in many different ways – as I’ve learned during the course of this internship. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our batch of interns was lucky enough to enter this program during a rather exciting period of time in the international museum community. As ICOM postponed the vote on a new museum definition, we took the opportunity to critically evaluate the current and proposed definitions. This discourse was supplemented by fieldtrips to institutions such as the NUS Baba House, Golden Mile Complex, the Ancient Civilisation Museum and the Singapore Science Centre (and accompanied by relevant readings). From these fieldtrips emerged dynamic conversations about how we could go about conceptualising these institutions – institutions that for so long have simply been passive receptacles of artefacts and art. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Naturally, these conversations and excursions got me thinking about what a museum was supposed to be – based on the definition (current or proposed), what would the ideal museum look like? Could there ever be such thing? If not, why bother with a museum definition at all? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Personally, I was struck by a phrase from an article by Alfonse Chiu – “the negotiation of remembrance”. The idea that the act of preserving, of safeguarding, of remembering – is, in itself, a process and we have to treat it as such. With that being said, I think the proposed museum definition is correct in bringing specific attention to the “polyphonic” nature of our social world. Furthermore, we have established that museums have and should make a conscious move away from traditional museological conventions – specifically the imperialistic practices that promote passive transmission of knowledge and intellectual dominion. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The official internship period ended with a final workshop where we came together to properly consolidate our thoughts and perspectives. Here, we were able to further probe the role and contributions of museums in contemporary society as well as the values that should be reflected in the new museum definition moving forward. Needless to say, the workshop ended pretty open-endedly but with a consensus that further discourse had to continue in some way, shape or form in order to ensure that we can eventually get closer to a museum definition that more appropriately encapsulates modern-day goals of heritage conservation and narrative building. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">During my time at the museum, I was given a variety of tasks that all revolved around the Coordinates Project by Shanghainese artist Hu Yun titled <i>another diorama</i>. The first of these tasks was to put together an exhibition kit, where I consolidated all the materials related to the exhibition, which required me to compose the artist biographies for both Shui Tit Sing and Hu Yun. This relatively straightforward task was followed by a meeting with Sidd, where she gave me prompts and potential research areas to look into with regards to dioramas, Shui Tit Sing and Hu Yun. I was then given a week to present my findings to her. I then learned that that was Sidd’s way of teaching – providing us with a selection of material and leaving it to us to decide what to do with that information. “Tell me what interests you,” she had said. “If nothing about dioramas interests you, that’s perfectly fine too!”. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Little did I know, that presentation turned out to be a mere teaser to the most formidable assignment that was set for me, which came towards the end of the internship. Sidd asked me to use what I had learnt from preparing my presentation to put together a zine for another diorama. This zine was meant to be an extension of the exhibition, allowing anyone who picked it up to engage in a more critical dialogue about the works on display and its context. I had never embarked on a project of this kind or scale before and knowing that I would be doing it largely by myself made me both extremely eager and anxious. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This apprehension led me to approach this task rather methodologically. After a few meetings with Sidd, I found that my initial ideas made it seem like I was tasked to create a textbook and not a zine! However, with Sidd’s guidance, I was able to adjust my focus and think deeper about how to probe readers meaningfully – how to moderate their contemplations rather than impose a set narrative, how to find a balance between sufficient contextual knowledge and complete digression. More than anything, I think this project has given me the first proper taste of curation as I attempt to amalgamate my research material with the appropriate intellectual intervention. My internship has been extended as I continue to tackle these issues and challenges, and I can only hope that the final product provides decent supplementary materials and prompts for future visitors to the exhibition. Fingers crossed! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’d like to end off by expressing my immense gratitude to my mentor-supervisor, Sidd Perez for her eloquence, profound insights and patience with me throughout this internship, and to Michelle for planning out such a wonderful programme that definitely maximised our learning and reflection. Lastly, I’d like to give the biggest shout out to my fellow interns – thank you for all the lunch shenanigans, for the discourses (the academic and not-so-academic) and for an unforgettable end to the decade. Cheers! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To view Melia’s completed zine, please click <a href="http://nus.edu.sg/museum/pdf/2019/2020/Dioramas%20-%20A%20Supplementary%20Zine.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-36646475953174199392020-03-25T14:30:00.000+08:002020-03-25T14:30:01.087+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Ng Wei Ai<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I worked on the expanded text of Kwa Chong Guan’s lecture, William Willetts and the Practice of Asian Art History, which was delivered on 25 April 2018. Following T.K. Sabapathy’s lecture on Michael Sullivan the previous year, this anniversary lecture honoured the man who essentially acted as NUS Museum’s second director. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The project reversed my initial impressions of institutional history as something dry and repetitive, characterised by endless red tape. It taught me that institutional history is, in fact, deeply personal. Research in the Resource Library helped me understand the colourful personalities who shaped Singapore’s universities and their contrasting approaches to art history. They were larger-than-life figures, with much more exciting career trajectories than I could ever have imagined. To this day, I’m still scandalised by the idea of writing a book on Chinese art without visiting China. At the same time I was touched by Sullivan’s habit of dedicating publications to his highly accomplished wife, Khoan. The lives and achievements of these pioneering art historians were truly exceptional, and I hope they’d have enjoyed listening to the anniversary lectures.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I also had the opportunity to accompany Fangtze to view her selection of paintings in the Scroll and Paper Study. I had no background knowledge of Chinese painting and calligraphy, and many names from the Shanghai and Lingnan schools were completely new to me. It was a great privilege to encounter these artists’ works in person as my very first exposure to the field. As each scroll was carefully unrolled, I struggled to keep up with Fangtze and Devi’s discussion and see what they saw in the fine details of brushstrokes and colour placement. With such a steep learning curve, interning under Fangtze’s supervision has vastly improved my understanding of art.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Venturing behind the scenes offered many insights into the long, arduous process of conceptualising and curating an exhibition. Possible directions for a future exhibition included Chinese ink in Southeast Asia, the revolutionary generation, and/or the division between natural and cultural history. We were confronted with the practicalities of displaying paper-based works, which need to be in rotation to minimise light exposure. Several times, hopes of displaying a work were thwarted by the realisation that it had recently been exhibited and would therefore have to remain in storage for a few more years. I was thrilled to be a fly on the wall for expert conversations observing that one piece of calligraphy had been done more hastily than another, or bemoaning Liu Kang’s habit of touching up his own paintings.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A glimpse behind the scenes of museum work was all I had hoped to gain from this 5-week internship. But NUS Museum staff went above and beyond by constantly going out of their way to share their expertise with us, and I’m grateful for the care and love of teaching they displayed at every turn. I would like to thank Devi for her kindness in letting me see some Charles Dyce watercolours for my thesis, as well as lending me the accompanying publications edited by Irene Lim. Thanks too to Jon, for the banter and jokes.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We were very fortunate to benefit from a teaching-centred internship programme. Our weeks were structured by field trips to Baba House, the Asian Civilisations Museum, Golden Mile Complex, and the Science Centre. Discussions and presentations revolved around the controversial proposed ICOM definition, with a final workshop serving to consolidate and refine our views. Throughout the programme, Michelle’s focused and nurturing tutelage facilitated lively conversations and helped us think more critically. The exposure and nuggets of technical knowledge we’d gleaned along the way came in useful, and I appreciate the space we were given to apply that background knowledge to developing our own views.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The proposed ICOM definition makes an admirable effort to formalise museums’ role as living, teaching institutions actively engaged in the process of public education. The main issue is that it is too imprecise and repetitive to pass. Even as a mission statement, it’s rather unwieldy; as a definition it’s much too vague. Here’s my attempt to fuse the ideals of the proposed definition with the practical specifics of the current one in around 50 words.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A museum is a permanent space open to the public which collects, conserves, researches, and interprets the tangible and intangible heritage of diverse communities. It exhibits artefacts and specimens for society’s education and enjoyment, guaranteeing equal access to heritage for all people. It transparently represents polyphonic narratives and facilitates critical dialogue.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This isn’t great, but it’s trying to distil the spirit of the proposed definition into a few concise sentences.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Over the course of our discussions, it’s become clear that the proposed definition’s vision of a museum is important and necessary, notwithstanding François Mairesse’s comments about “fashionable values”. Based on the reflections and votes we shared on the second last day of the internship, I think we all get those principles. I just don’t get how to make them work. During the final workshop I disagreed with some of the other interns, who supported the very Singaporean concept of integrating capital-letters National Education into our museums, possibly in collaboration with MOE. I don’t think museums have a responsibility for forging national identity; that’s didactic, not polyphonic. The whole point of critical dialogue is to encourage visitors to decide for themselves. How representative would museums’ programmes and exhibitions be if they were charged with interpreting a quote-unquote Singaporean past? What happens to queer Singapore, communist Singapore, pre-colonial Singapore? Do we trust state-sponsored institutions to “acknowledg[e] and address[s] the conflicts and challenges of the present”?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m not sure the proposed definition as it presently stands is applicable in a Singaporean context. As Michelle and my fellow interns repeatedly pointed out, the controversy partly arises from the definition and surrounding debates appearing Western-centric. For example, Michelle taught us how museums are profit-driven institutions and may rely on tourist dollars to fund their development. That’s why any mention of being non-profit is missing from the draft definition above. Furthermore, what this internship programme hammered home is the ICOM definition’s importance in helping institutions qualify for funding. I don’t have much of an eloquent response to the funding issue. If our final discussions are at all reflective of reality, more money is always the answer.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The task begun at ICOM challenges us to extend conceptual boundaries while still keeping them precise. I’m all for expanding the definition to include centres, zoos, aquariums, public gardens — dynamic institutions that excite and educate visitors of all ages the way that a museum does. Museums, after all, are not static cabinets of curios dedicated to the storage of dead things. Michelle’s early tour of NUS Museum showed us how alive and mutable they are as spaces, from the architectural use of glass causing exhibitions to flow into one another, to the carefully layered textures of text/object/image/case, to the subconscious play of movement. That same week, Dani’s tour mentioned that Baba House isn’t climate-controlled — does that stop it from being a museum? Are temperature and humidity the only things differentiating a museum from a heritage centre? This internship upended all my assumptions and turned them inside out, and I look forward to continuing to question and find value in institutions old and new.</span></div>
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-36452552945548017772020-03-24T13:51:00.000+08:002020-03-24T13:51:20.948+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Rachel Lim <i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i><br />
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<b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Rachel Lim is a third-year English Literature major at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Science. As a research assistant for the forthcoming Anniversary Lecture 2020, Rachel is involved in the research of the circumstances surrounding the 1959 donation of artworks to the university by the Indian Government.</b><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Five weeks, four off-site field trips, two museum definitions, and countless cups of tea later, and I’m writing from the other side of the NUS Museum (NUSM) winter internship! If you want to find out about the internship experience, read on, and if you’re interested in the International Council of Museums’ (ICOM) definition debate, read, unfortunately, much further on...</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Either way, however, this was an experience I’m very grateful for and (despite all the holiday craziness) a productive way to spend the winter break. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I. The internship experience</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">NUSM Intern Survival Tips:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Since we can’t get into the main office on our own, you’ll have to knock (don’t be too shy about it!) ...or strategically wait for someone else to go in.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Chipping in to buy snacks for the pantry is a good way to build solidarity.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Drink water and eat well—you’ll need the energy!</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Get to know your fellow interns (and go to the holiday party if you want to meet some former ones).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>+ It can be exhausting to work during your term break, but keep at it! It’s only five weeks (with breaks for Christmas and New Year’s), and a fantastic opportunity for learning!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">What did I do as an NUSM intern? Honestly, as a research assistant to my professor for the anniversary lecture, I was rather disconnected from the rest of the workings of the museum. I spent my time catching up on archival materials, procuring books and audio recordings, compiling lists of publications, intensely Googling things, annotating book chapters, scanning yellowed papers from the 1950s, and delving into topics I never expected myself to properly pursue. (I’ll probably continue to do similar things, because it’s an option to extend your internship part-time through the semester!) However, conversations with the other interns revealed that they were doing other kinds of interesting work, such as planning film programming, organising the library, and translating materials; reading their blog posts will offer a fuller picture of the possibilities.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">We all united, though, for our group presentations, workshops, weekly readings, and field trips to the Baba House, Asian Civilisations Museum, Golden Mile Complex, and Science Centre, which were not only an opportunity to get out of the office and experience new things, but also to think about museums on a higher, museological level. This brings me to the overarching academic theme of the internship: with ICOM’s proposed rewriting of their museum definition making waves in the global museum community, we were tasked with contributing our own ideas to the discussion. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">II. The museum definition</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">For reference, the current and proposed definitions are as follows:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">A museum is a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Museums are democratising, inclusive and polyphonic spaces for critical dialogue about the pasts and the futures. Acknowledging and addressing the conflicts and challenges of the present, they hold artefacts and specimens in trust for society, safeguard diverse memories for future generations and guarantee equal rights and equal access to heritage for all people.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Museums are not for profit. They are participatory and transparent, and work in active partnership with and for diverse communities to collect, preserve, research, interpret, exhibit, and enhance understandings of the world, aiming to contribute to human dignity and social justice, global equality and planetary wellbeing.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite visiting museums frequently, I had never really sat down and thought about what a museum actually was, so this was a good exercise which helped to both expand and solidify my personal idea of a museum.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">a. Inadequate definitions</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I soon came to the conclusion that both definitions are inadequate (and I think many of the other interns did as well). They each include some would-be museums and exclude others. While the first might alienate certain less traditional museums, the second risks excluding well-established institutions which fail to meet these more abstract criteria. Participants in the ICOM discussion rightly pointed out that the proposed definition was less of a definition and more of a “statement of...values.” While I believe the goals in the proposed definition are noble ones, it is a bit of a tall order for a museum to fulfil all at once. For instance, while museums as a whole certainly should “safeguard diverse memories,” is an individual museum, which may be focused on a highly specific demographic, expected to do so? Or, doesn’t the very imposition of an entrance fee, a common practice, threaten “equal access to heritage for all people?” Furthermore, it is not at all clear how many of these goals a museum must accomplish to be considered one—just one or two, in which case perhaps all the fuss is unnecessary, or all or most of them?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Initially, I thought perhaps we should aim for something between the two definitions, some combination of traditional definition and value statement. But I had very little idea how to execute such a thing. Eventually, I veered into a rather different direction: what if the problem lies in trying to definitively define what a museum is at all?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">b. Can we define “museum”?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The proposed definition is a valiant attempt to respond to a changed and changing world. But definitions, though they give the illusion of objectivity and immutability, are slippery, and some slipperier than others. Even definitions for scientific words like “kilogram” or “insect” might provoke some dispute—but what about words like “art,” “beauty,” or “love”? And what kind of word is “museum”?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Definition also often means reduction. I am not sure a definition exists out there to capture the unique identity of every single museum. Perhaps a first step, then, is to acknowledge that whatever definition we conjure will be inadequate. Some museums—the Cupnoodles Museum, for instance, or the Chinsekikan (Hall of Curious Rocks)—will still fall through the cracks.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Furthermore, ICOM is not the only one talking about “democratising” the museum. Both Ahmad Mashadi and Karen Cordero Reiman, discussing museums in Singapore and Mexico respectively, call for museums to become less one-sided and more participatory, welcoming visitors’ contributions and, as Cordero Reiman writes, the “possibility of multiple ways of seeing and reading...a more complex and fragmented view of reality.” If each individual has a distinct experience of any given museum, isn’t it also possible that each individual has a distinct idea of what a museum is at all? And if everybody has a slightly different definition of “museum,” doesn’t that make ICOM’s quest to arrive at a single definition rather difficult—perhaps even futile?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Just because everyone’s museum definition is different, however, doesn’t mean we won’t fight about them. Such a realisation shouldn’t prevent disagreement, debate, and dialogue, as we seek to persuade others but also allow their ideas to shape our own. With this caveat, I now move on to the next part of this post: my personal, however nebulous, idea of a museum.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">c. What does “museum” mean to me?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“Museum” as experience</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As I mentioned earlier, this internship helped me to both expand and solidify my personal understanding of the museum—expand in the sense that, for instance, one of our field trips was to Golden Mile Complex, a site seldom considered a museum. Another pivotal moment in my extension of the museum concept was when I read a 2001 ICOM definition which explicitly included “botanical and zoological gardens, aquaria and vivaria”; “science centres and planetaria,” and “nature reserves,” among other things. These institutions aren’t instinctively what we would think of when thinking of museums, and yet, to me at least, classifying them as such doesn’t seem like a huge stretch—why?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">A key idea for me is the museum as an experience. Botanical gardens and zoos may not have the same kinds of climate control or collections as museums, but there are similarities in the experiences of moving, looking, absorbing, and learning. Gillman Barracks, as a constellation of commercial art galleries, may not qualify as a museum under either definition, but, for the visitor, going from gallery to gallery is not necessarily all that different from exploring an art museum. When I visited the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth’s Many Beliefs, One Future, a pop-up exhibition at Raffles City, I experienced it as a museum not because its themes of religious harmony aligned perfectly with ICOM’s proposed definition, but because I recognised the trappings of white walls, artefacts, and vitrines. While acknowledging the importance of high-level academic and professional discussions, I value museums as experiences—ones which bring delight and satisfaction in learning new and seeing beautiful things and a respite from the stresses of the day-to-day. Similarly, Cordero Reiman lyrically describes the past as experienced through the museum as an “evocation,” and Ahmad Mashadi writes, quoting Michael Sullivan, the NUSM’s founding curator: “The Museum shall provide the student a ‘spiritual and emotional experience that will help to bring meaning and illumination into the rest of his life.’”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Other components</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Thus, a museum is somewhere one visits (and pays, if applicable) primarily for an experience, not a product. But what might this experience more precisely entail?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>For me, a museum ought to engage the senses and through them the mind.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>It should facilitate learning about “the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment” (a part of the current definition I find worth retaining, since it seems to encompass just about every subject one could imagine).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">-<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The first point also highlights the importance of the object or what Cordero Reiman calls the “corporeal experience.” In our digitally dominated, often alienating world, museums can help ground us, providing the kind of experience for which digital media or “written language” would fall short.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">All these are components of my idea of a museum, which further examples and case studies can help to refine. For instance, when faced with Pamuk’s Museum of Innocence, I decided it was not so much a museum as a personal art project, even if others might disagree. Thus I discover that to me a museum is, generally, collaborative, bigger than a single person and idea. To all this I would add another element, which relieves in its simplicity: the museum is a place of inspiration—a “seat of the Muses.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">d. “Museum” as approach</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">But beyond the museum as an experience, there is another possibility I’m interested in: the idea of the museum as an approach, a particular way of taking in and thinking about things—the museum as a “state of mind.” This is once again informed by the interns’ trip to Golden Mile Complex, which, though historic, is a shopping mall, not what most would consider a museum. Yet, by approaching it with such a possibility in mind, as part of a museum internship, by seeking to observe, learn, and understand its aesthetic properties, historical context, and contemporary issues, did we not in some sense have a museum experience? The visit also resonates with an Indian Heritage Centre field trip I joined last summer, which took us out of the Centre into the broader Little India area, with stops such as the Jothi Store and Flower Shop and Banana Leaf Apolo restaurant—these surrounding areas, according to our guide, could also be considered an extension of the museum.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Is it possible, then, that if I go into a site intending to have a museum experience I can have one, even if that isn’t the site’s primary function? The Singapore Heritage Society’s write-up of Golden Mile Complex, Pearl Bank Apartments, and People’s Park Complex notes that many architectural UNESCO World Heritage sites have been “adapted” into “museums,” supporting the idea that a site’s functions can change over time depending on how society generally perceives it. It is also quite natural, however, for a site to have multiple functions at the same time for different people. A student learning about plants at the Botanic Gardens may be having a museum experience while a family nearby plays frisbee or picnics. Even a formally designated museum may not be one to someone going there to meet friends for lunch. On the flip side, if we approach a place like Golden Mile Complex in a certain way (and of course the danger of “museumifying” an active site and lifestyle is there), perhaps we create, on some level, a museum in the mind.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">At this point, I suggest a kind of “sliding scale” of museums, in which conventionally recognised museums best facilitate such approaches of looking and learning. To borrow the ICOM phrase, “sites of a museum nature,” from 2001, some sites simply have a stronger “museum nature” than others. But perhaps other sites can also become museums if we as individuals make them so. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">e. Potential issues</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">There are, of course, some problems with these ideas. Firstly, they are not that helpful when it comes to ICOM’s more practical concerns in fixing a museum definition, like funding and other such matters. For this, I would suggest that instead of a universal museum definition, ICOM could work towards crafting a set of “criteria” or “guidelines”—criteria to be the kind of museum under ICOM or the kind to receive funding, not to qualify as a museum at all. We could make use of existing classifications such as “state” or “national” and “independent” or “private” to try and understand the scope of what might be considered a museum. Museums should be, as far as possible, assessed on a case-by-case basis by their individual merits. In this way, perhaps museums deemed most broadly beneficial to society could receive the support they need without excluding more niche and obscure museums from a universal museum ideal. This is not to deny the vital importance of the spirit and values laid out in ICOM’s proposed definition—for they are, indeed, vitally important—but can we find a way to encourage museums to espouse these values without limiting what a museum is?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Another potential problem might be that these possibilities broaden the idea of “museum” too much, allowing too many experiential sites, such as amusement parks, movie theatres, and random shopping malls, to become museums. Components of my personal idea of the museum, like the emphasis on learning and the “corporeal experience,” might help narrow the field slightly. I could refine it further, for instance, to stress the importance of active learning and movement, rather than seated, passive reception of images on a screen. While this is admittedly a roundabout way of arriving at a useful idea of the museum, there is another possible solution—to have a little more faith in people and their good sense, to trust that they will not immediately start calling everything under the sun a museum, and to accept that even if they do, it might still be better than protecting museums behind an intellectually elitist glass case.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I wrap up this section with a quote from J.M. Coetzee’s novel, The Childhood of Jesus, in which a boy has gathered a miscellaneous bunch of shabby objects, to an adult’s disapproval (emphasis mine):</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>“It’s my museum,” says the boy.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“A load of old rubbish is not a museum. Things need to have some value before they find a place in a museum.”</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“What is value?” </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“If things have value it means that people in general prize them, agree that </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">they are valuable. An old broken cup has no value. No one prizes it.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“I prize it. It’s my museum, not yours.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">f. Conclusion</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I want to conclude by thanking my fellow interns, whom I got to know better over the five weeks of field trips and lunches; the NUSM staff, for welcoming us into their office and making us feel like part of the museum; my professor, for allowing me this opportunity; and of course our supervisor, Michelle, for her efforts in creating an enriching internship. Museums, after all, are more than just sites and their contents. They are also the people, on both sides of the experience, who make them.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Readings:</u></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Cordero Reiman, Karen. “A Museum or a Center for Mexican Contemporaneity?” Contemporary Art and the Museum: A Global Perspective, edited by Peter Weibel and Andrea Buddensieg, Hatje Cantz, 2007.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Mashadi, Ahmad. “A University Museum: Contexts and Practice.” Camping and Tramping Through the Colonial Archive: The Museum in Malaya, NUS Museum, 2011, pp. 6-13.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Timur Ogut, Sebnem. “The Struggle of Objects and Meaning: Design, Representation and Material Culture in the Everyday Objects of Orhan Pamuk’s ‘Museum of Innocence.’” The Design Journal, vol. 20, no. 1, 2017, pp. 45-66, DOI: 10.1080/14606925.2016.1206721.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“Too Young to Die: Giving New Lease of Life to Singapore’s Modernist Icons.” Singapore Heritage Society, 2018, https://www.singaporeheritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/SHS-Position-Paper-Too-Young-To-Die-Aug-2018.pdf.</span><br />
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-51077405791901516672020-03-23T14:30:00.000+08:002020-03-23T14:30:03.820+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Phan Dam Quan<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Phan Dam Quan is a year 4 NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences student, majoring in Geography. During his time here as our Collections Management Intern, Phan </b></i></span><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">has assisted the collections team with the exhibition </b><b style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/wartime-artists-of-vietnam-drawings-and-posters-from-the-ambassador-dato-n-parameswaran-collection/" target="_blank">Wartime Artists of Vietnam: Drawings and Posters from the Ambassador Dato’ N. Parameswaran Collection</a></b><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">.</b></i><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The internship was a wonderful experience that I could do something that connects me back to my homeland. Being a foreigner in Singapore, I was eager to join NUS Museum to assist the work on the Wartime Artists of Vietnam. The research on famous artists and their careers had broaden my scope of knowledge on not just arts but also the rich history and culture of Vietnam.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">By examining various paintings, sketches and woodcarves scattering in multiple themes, I was able to consolidate my previous knowledge on the Vietnam War from different perspectives. As each painting was drawn by different artists from different backgrounds and social contexts, each set of artworks represents a unique view of the time. While some depicts the view of the soldiers that signified the glorious battles, other sketches were drawn from a civilian’s perspective who witnessed the dire and destruction of warfare.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As I progressed through my work, I felt a stronger sense of attachment to my hometown of Hanoi. Conducting research and comprising information for the exhibition had exposed me to the far past of a place I have been through. Looking at the artworks that depict the familiar streets and buildings were once covered with guns and artilleries informed me of the changes of my hometown through years. There are no signs of war left, the remnants of the past are only limited to the antique buildings in the old districts, while other places are rapidly modernised and crowded with buildings. The more I examined the paintings, the more I understood about the rapid changes of my hometown that had strengthened my attachment to Hanoi through time and space. It was such a great pleasure that even though I were in Singapore, I could still connect with and gain more understanding of a city across thousands of miles!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Five weeks of internship might be short, but it was still enough time for me to make new friends. We shared our stories, funny jokes that were relaxing and enjoyable, which had enlivened our working days with a positive attitude. Those were the experiences I will never forget!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">During the internship, I was also fortunate to have the chance to visit various sites in Singapore, which was a part of the discourse on museum definition. With each site, I explored different methods of representation of our society, history, cultures. While some places take the traditional approach to showcase historical artefacts, others are symbolised by its representation of diasporas’ communities.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Museums in the upcoming future will continue to change. I believe it is not a question of choosing to incorporate innovative ideas or not, but rather the degree of such incorporation of new ideas, innovative design layouts and digital components. Should museums chiefly focus on its traditional purpose of education and cultural preservation, or should they embark on a more active role to further enhance our perception of arts and culture? I will leave it for you to decide.</span><br />
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-40106957528808337562020-03-23T14:00:00.000+08:002020-03-23T14:00:04.814+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Michelle Zhang<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;">Michelle Zhang is a year 1 Business Administration student at the NUS Business School. As our Resource Library Intern, Michelle has assisted primarily in the cataloging of the NUS Museum Resource Library Chinese Book collection.</b></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><b style="font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It's pretty surreal to be now writing this blogpost when just 3 months ago, I was nervously reading about others' experiences as an NUS Museum intern. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Not all of us had worked with a museum before, and I personally wasn't sure what to expect. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">What were my tasks? To be honest, it was all rather flexible. I was given a goal - transcribing a professor's lectures, or organising the Chinese section of the Resource Library - and I would plan my course of action. Instead of being told to do something a certain way, we were asked for input and progress reports. E.g. suggesting how to deal with the English books in the Chinese section. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It was very self paced too, we were able to complete our main task of restructuring the Chinese books while also attending to other matters like logging new donations and checking older boxes of books. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I came into the internship apprehensive about how much I could contribute, but I quickly realised this experience was meant to help us grow too. Our internship activity was to discuss the current and proposed museum definition (I'll link some of the readings I used + we were also provided with selected readings for each week's museum visit)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The prompts used in our discussions were entirely self generated and I could feel our discourse evolving over the course of this internship. Our first discussion, at the NUS Baba House, was relatively terse. Subsequent conversations flowed more easily, especially as we could draw upon the experiences of previous weeks when evaluating the definition as a whole. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Learning about the different types of museums, or rather, discussing what even constitutes one in the first place, helped me become more flexible in visualising a museum. After some consideration, I would personally consider a science center to fall under that umbrella, but the structure of the overall experience is slightly different, with almost all exhibits being able to be manipulated, or even minigames/VR. Museums do have events or workshops with a more interactive spin, but the preservation aspect outlined in both definitions generally brings to mind a pristine, untouched collection, walled off behind safety lines or glass containers.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of the other interns brought up an interesting point during our discussion, whether science centers are selling themselves short or even dumbing themselves down to project a child-friendly image. Adults generally have more patience for the explanatory texts (which the SG Science Center did have much of) or contemplation of ideas that accompany exhibition artifacts. Other museums also have children's events too, though. If the science center marketed itself better, and more accurately, it could be perceived by the public as more than a playground. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Furthermore, do some places even want to take up the mantle of a museum? The Golden Mile Complex was one of our field trip locations. Some of us raised concerns about its authenticity possibly being compromised and its local community alienated should it be designated as an Official Heritage Site. Break out the plaques, glass boxes and everything. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">A place doesn't have to fit neatly into a label for its cultural significance to be recognized.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Also, being able to discuss our perspectives with each other was a blessing. You can't really... talk to authors of readings that may have been written 30 years ago. One thing we more or less all agreed upon was that funding is a major concern for museums, but it was interesting hearing about the different solutions people proposed to this problem, such as diversifying revenue streams or actually, adhering more to the ICOM definition (whatever it may turn out to be) to acquire more funding from the government on the basis of being a real, official museum. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Actually, one of the major takeaways I had was that the furore over the definition is, to an extent, senseless posturing. Singapore already isn't closely affiliated with ICOM, and by extension, their carefully revised and crafted definition. Does the definition have meaning if one can so easily claim it for their own ends? The whole debacle, from a Singaporean perspective, just feels far off, whereas our own funding struggles are much more urgent. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">To be honest, how many people outside of ICOM and the general periphery of museum personnel (curators etc) know or care that this definition (someone might say guideline) existed? Of course, people's ignorance of something doesn't devalue its significance but frankly, how much impact does it have on museum operations aside from the logistical issues of funding and legislation? The amount of scrutiny is intense but I question how productive it is. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, as I mentioned in our final workshop, I'm interested to see where we're headed with this more politically charged definition. The issue of whether museums should become more ideological could be a whole separate conversation in itself - maybe something for future interns to discuss.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">If you're at all curious or interested in this programme, please go for it. You'll definitely learn something and grow as a person - I know I did. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/experts-are-divided-over-proposed-redefinition-museum-180972943/</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">https://time.com/5670807/museums-definition-debate/</span></div>
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-23005049499618301612020-03-21T02:30:00.000+08:002020-03-21T02:30:20.160+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Lee Chong Ming<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<b style="color: #666666;">Lee Chong Ming is a fourth-year English Literature student at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. As our Exhibitions Intern, Chong Ming has worked closely with our curator Sidd Perez in conducting research for an upcoming symposium.</b><br />
<span style="color: red;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“I was very taken with the idea that you could do symposia and somehow it would still be art, that art actions could be as viable as art objects.” – Carlos Villa (1936-2013) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">During my brief stint at the NUS Museum, I worked with my supervisor, Siddharta Perez, on the Worlds in Collision project (sometimes referred to as “Sources of a Distinct Majority”) that is conceived by Carlos Villa in 1988; a symposium or “multicultural art-history course” that urges the need “to get back to the idea of ‘sources’” (Theordore Gonzalves 40). This was in preparation for the upcoming symposium that NUS Museum is organizing, titled “New Curriculum for Old Questions” – a symposium that explores how knowledge is produced and imparted critically, and which was influenced by the archives of Carlos Villa’s Worlds in Collision.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was very excited to take on this project because the themes spoke to me: multiculturalism, decolonization, ethnopoetics, and new ways of creating, teaching, and looking at art. Carlos Villa was an Asian-American artist in the Bay Area who was interested in teaching art that reconciles cultural differences. He also pushed for interest and commitment to the work and art of artists of color, and championed a new vocabulary of discovery apart from the Euro-American culture. There were stacks of panel discussions, readings from the symposium, interview transcripts, and curriculum materials to pour through, which greatly enriched my understanding of Villa’s methodology and vision. I was intrigued to learn that art could also be a form of action, that the symposium itself was a form of art, which was radically different from my usual perception of art as objects (paintings, sculptures, installation etc.). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Coincidentally, his work was also showing at the Singapore Biennale 2019, so I went to see some of his artworks at the National Gallery. I was struck by how different his artworks were compared to mainstream, western art; the use of materials to distort symbolic realities and his emphasis on a multicultural, multi-religious art form were unique and compelling. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Besides my project with Siddharta Perez, I was also involved with the rest of the interns in investigating the new museum definition. We went to the NUS Baba House, the Asian Civilization Museum, the Golden Mile Complex and the Singapore Science Centre to study how these sites relate to the museum definition. We had numerous insightful and thought-provoking discussions, such as how the Golden Mile Complex could potentially be a museum because it safeguarded memories and arguably artefacts and specimens (the Thai diasporic community in Singapore and their spaces) and the role of play in the Singapore Science Centre. Through this process, I’ve learnt how the museum definition could have an impact on funding in the arts, legislation, and the future of museums – it is important that we constantly question the role and function of the museum and allow for growth and possibilities. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I also bonded with the fellow interns and the five weeks at the NUS Museum were equally as amusing and enjoyable as they were serious and productive. Some of the things we got up to consisted of watching the solar eclipse (Melia actually made a pinhole cardboard box for this), dressing up for the Christmas party (kudos to Wei Ai’s outstanding efforts!), and having our personal photoshoot on museum trips (just me and Liz). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It was a memorable and enriching five weeks and I have to thank Siddharta Perez for engaging me with this project and Michelle for her supervision. </span><br />
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3276484084811532964.post-78884208234800594422020-03-20T14:00:00.000+08:002020-03-20T14:00:06.547+08:00Diary of an NUS Museum Intern: Kang You-Jin<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">Note: <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Diary%20of%20an%20NUS%20Museum%20Intern" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Diary of an NUS Museum Intern</a> is a series of blog posts written by our interns about their experiences during the course of their internships. Working alongside their mentors, our interns have waded through tons of historical research, assisted in curatorial work, pitched in during exhibition installations and organised outreach events! </i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;">If you would like to become our next intern, visit <a href="http://nusmuseum.blogspot.sg/search/label/Internship%20%2F%20Volunteer%20Opportunities" style="text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">our internship page</a> for more information!</i><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"> </i></span></div>
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<b style="color: #666666; text-align: justify;">Kang You-Jin is a third year English Language student at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. During his time here as our Museum Outreach intern, You-Jin has written reviews and conducted research on past and upcoming film programmes.</b><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">My first encounter with the NUS Museum came in 2018, ironically not at the museum but at UTown. It was a screening of Joshua Oppenheimer’s<i> The Look of Silence</i> (2014), part of the film series titled <i>‘Shadows After Dark: Uncovering Post-Colonial Southeast Asian Cinema’</i>. That the museum organised regular film series – with screenings, talks and conversations – intrigued me; I had otherwise been largely ignorant of NUS museum, aware of it only as the museum that was ‘not the one with the dinosaurs’. Little did I know that I would have the chance to work on these film series at the museum as an Outreach Intern! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The first task I was given was to write a review for the recently concluded <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/deriver-arrivee-a-century-of-travel-in-french-cinema/" target="_blank">Dériver/Arrivée</a> </i>film series. And so my first week at the museum was spent watching the films and recordings of talks and discussions from each of the series’ sessions, reading the relevant literature on the topic, as well as engaging with the exhibition which the film series was centred around: <i><a href="https://museum.nus.edu.sg/whats-on/you-have-to-lose-your-way-to-find-yourself-in-the-right-place-2/" target="_blank">“…you have to lose your way to find yourself in the right place”</a></i>. The exercise of reviewing and re-viewing the series was greatly facilitated by the guidance and feedback from Mary Ann, my supervisor, and this gave me a better appreciation for the thought behind the conceptualisation of the mu</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">seum’s film series. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">My focus then quickly shifted to the upcoming film series, and I found myself knee-deep in the nitty-gritty of film programming at NUS museum. This ranged from blog design and public engagement, to contacting filmmakers and distributors for screening rights, and scouring the web for any piece of useful information. The work was sometimes tedious, with many dead ends and roads to nowhere, but necessary for the planning and execution of a film series. I’m looking forward to seeing the film series to completion as I extend my internship. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Apart from the assignments given to us by our supervisors, this supersized batch of thirteen interns also undertook an internship activity together with Michelle, our internship coordinator, to wrestle with ICOM’s (International Council of Museums) controversial decision to drastically change their definition of a museum. While I was initially dismissive of the significance of this institutionalised definition, hearing that some museums depend on the definition for government funding made the definitional issue a real and practical one.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In order to help us think about the amenability of museums (or possible museums) in Singapore to both the current and proposed definitions, we went on field trips every week to test and negotiate the viability of both definitions for the spaces we visited. These visits, in addition to being thoroughly enjoyable, generated many questions about the nuances and implications of the museum definition. For example: How does a heritage house like the NUS Baba House align or disalign with the museum definitions, as a restored ancestral family home? What about the calls for the conservation of Singapore’s brutalist architectural icons, such as Golden Mile Complex – would a possible ‘museumification’ of the compound (or part of the compound) aid in conservation efforts, and at what cost? If education must be one of a museum’s chief aims, then what do we make of the Science Centre and other children’s museums which incorporate play in the museum experience, seeing as ‘education’ does not feature explicitly in the proposed definition?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Never meant to be definitively answered, such questions nonetheless provided food for thought as we took up our own positions on the ICOM definition change, which we then presented to each other at a roundtable discussion in the final week of the internship programme. I take issue with ICOM’s proposed definition, by nature hegemonic, and which cannot adequately account for the vast typology of museums around the world. While it is inevitable that meanings shift – and likewise the role of museums with society – the considerable backlash towards ICOM’s departure from an iterative approach to the museum definition likely suggests that the proposed definition is too much of a leap; perhaps the definition itself needs re-defining, as vision instead of definition. While attempting to arrive at a point of closure on the issue proved to be an impossible task, thinking through it together, while simultaneously working on our own individual projects, has surely led each of us to think about what we want museums to be, and what we want them to stand for.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">A big thank you to all NUS Museum staff for being kind and ever-welcoming, to Michelle for all the planning which went into the programme and an infectious passion for museums, to Mary Ann for her patience, support and supervision, refining my ideas and introducing new lines of thought, and to my fellow interns without whom there wouldn’t have been so much laughter and fun. It was a wonderful December, and I’m excited to see how the journey continues.</span><br />
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NUS Museumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02080875730601135841noreply@blogger.com1