HERMES Summer Course 2006: Heritage on display – Investigating museums in the context of local and regional development

Introduction

Getting together in Weimar - the participants of the Summer Course 2006. Photo: S. Schröder-Esch

The HERMES project deals with cultural heritage as a factor for local and regional development, hence its full title: Heritage and New Media for Sustainable Regional Development. The aspect of development is not only understood as economic growth, but is explicitly conceptualised also in terms of cultural activities of communities, and as an activation of the social sphere in general. Media, and new media such as the internet in particular, are regarded as an important means of conveying knowledge about heritage, to make people aware of the world they inhabit and of the narratives that are woven into ther places we live in. Heritage is of course not to be understood as an ‘objective’ representation of the past, but rather as a way of looking back in time from the standpoint of the present.

One of the aims of HERMES is to gather young professionals from all the countries involved in the project, and to let them work on selected topics related to heritage. One such event was the 3rd HERMES Summer School dedicated to the topic of “Heritage on display – Investigating museums in the context of local and regional development” which was held on 12th-26th August 2006 in Weimar (Germany). The main objective of the seminar was to explore the role of museums in heritage work and their (potential) significance for local and regional development, thereby emphasising the aspect of representation and display of heritage.

Overview:

• Chapter 01:
  “Goethe House, Schiller House...” – place marketing in Weimar

  • Editors: Jelisaveta Mihajlović, Željka Miklošević, Katarina Tojić, Thomas Garnaras
  • Keywords: urban development, economic development, cultural tourism, tourist industry, Goethe, Schiller, museum, classical Weimar, marketing strategy

• Chapter 02:
  Museums at the service of their community

  • Editors: Elena Petrova, Nevena Pramatarova, Sebastian Wacięga, Thodoris Georgatzas-Loumas
  • Keywords: museum, social responsibility, business, funding, state, culture, history, heritage, collective memory, patriotism, education, Weimar, Leo Tolstoy, Russia, Bulgaria, Sofia, Boyana Church

• Chapter 03:
  Weimar deKlassik

  • Editors: Pawel Kamiński, Belinda Kazeem, Sylvia Stancheva, Łucja Piekarska-Duraj, Levente Polyák
  • Keywords: heritage, urban narratives, alternative histories, Klassik, Bauhaus, Fotothek, Alternativer Stadtplan

• Chapter 04:
  Visual Impressions

Chapter 01: “Goethe House, Schiller House...” – place marketing in Weimar

Željka and Katarina at HRN. Photo: L. Polyák


Jelisaveta and Thomas working hard. Photo: L. Polyák

In the context of the urban and economic development of post-industrial cities, Weimar can be taken as a good example of a town that has undergone a structural transition of the local economy from industry to service. The main goal of the formation of a cultural policy and strategy for the development of cultural tourism was to capitalise on classical heritage strongly related to Goethe and Schiller and in that way to boost the local economic and urban development.

The results of such a campaign have been beneficial for the commercial sector and have had positive influence on the investments in infrastructure. On the other hand, apart from the Goethe House and the Schiller House, the two museums most frequented in Weimar, there are insufficient attempts to present the town as a complex entity with a historical and cultural development that might raise questions and offer different perspectives on Weimar heritage.

If we leave the financial benefits from the marketing strategy to one side, as it has proved successful, the question remains: what is there for the local people who might want to see development based upon more contemporary and alternative strengths?

(Audio: “Goethe House, Schiller House...” – place marketing in Weimar) Click here to download the audiofile(3,8MB)

• Authors: Jelisaveta Mihajlović, Željka Miklošević, Katarina Tojić, Thomas Garnaras
• Speakers: Katarina Tojić, Jelisaveta Mihajlović, Belinda Kazeem, Paweł Kamiński, Željka Miklošević
• Keywords: urban development, economic development, cultural tourism, tourist industry, Goethe, Schiller, museum, classical Weimar, marketing strategy
• Interviewees: Burkhardt Kolbmüller (Salve Consult, Agency for European projects), Anselm Graubner (owner of the ACC restaurant), Jens Braun (director of the Weimar tourist information), Frank Motz (owner of the ACC gallery), Philippe Schmidt (architect)

Chapter 02: Museums at the service of their community

Leo Tolstoy Museum and Estate at Yasnaya Polyana (Russia). Photo: E. Petrova

The role of museums in contemporary society is changing and becoming more dynamic. People expect to get more from museums today, and they can achieve a great deal. But the range of functions which museums can actually fulfil is even wider than their audience usually expects.

This statement is illustrated by this feature in which the listener has an opportunity to hear the opinion of several young Europeans from different countries – all of them participants of the Weimar Summer Courses 2006 – about what they believe museums can bring to people nowadays. Their views are juxtaposed with the opinions of several museum professionals who have been asked to share their experience of actual work and perspectives of museums in this respect.

First the listener is invited to travel to Russia and visit one of the best-known memorial museums, the country estate of Leo Tolstoy at Yasnaya Polyana. Then the journey continues to Bulgaria, to witness the remarkable results which museums can achieve in terms of their social functions, especially in terms of initiating cooperation with the state, business and other actors.

(Audio: Museums at the service of their community) Click here to download the audiofile (4,25MB)

• Authors: Elena Petrova, Nevena Pramatarova, Sebastian Wacięga, Thodoris Georgatzas-Loumas
• Speakers: Elena Petrova, Sebastian Wacięga, Sebastian Schröder-Esch
• Keywords: museum, social responsibility, business, funding, state, culture, history, heritage, collective memory, patriotism, education, Weimar, Leo Tolstoy, Russia, Bulgaria, Sofia, Boyana Church
• Interviewees: Prof. Božidar Dimitrov (Director of the Bulgarian National History Museum) Yana Bogoslavskaya (Yasnaya Polyana Museum-Estate) participants of the 7th Weimar Summer Courses

Chapter 03: Weimar deKlassik

Paweł and Belinda recording in the studio at Radio Lotte.
Photo: L. Polyák

Weimar, European Capital of Culture in 1999, is famous for being the centre of 18th and 19th century classical German literature and philosophy.

Weimar hosted thinkers of ‘universal significance’, such as Goethe or Schiller, Herder or Wieland, and yet it also witnessed the rise of the first Nazi government and Buchenwald concentration camp. Apart from this fame and mainstream narrative, however, there are other histories of Weimar to tell.

Passers-by, shopkeepers or visitors, they all possess their private or alternative histories. Curators or historians, artists or photographers, they all have their special approach to storytelling.

The aim of this feature is to trace and expose these alternative histories, thus making visible the complexity and many facets of Weimar. It presents various initiatives which strive to convey alternative (and often conflicting) representations of Weimar as a place of culture and heritage.

(Audio: Weimar deKlassik) Click here to download the audiofile (4MB)

• Authors: Paweł Kamiński, Belinda Kazeem, Sylvia Stancheva, Łucja Piekarska-Duraj, Levente Polyák
• Speakers: Levente Polyák, Belinda Kazeem, Sebastian Schröder-Esch, Paweł Kamiński
• Keywords: Heritage, urban narratives, alternative histories, Klassik, Bauhaus, Fotothek, Alternativer Stadtplan
• Interviewees: Hildegard Kurt, Anke Heelemann, Justus H. Ulbricht

Chapter 04: Additional feature: Visual impressions

Additional feature #04: Visual impressions from Weimar

some pictures from Weimar – the HERMES group in action