Report to IASSRT committee (2018.11-2019.09)
1. Review of 2019
1.1 Review of 2018-2019
1.1.1 Organizing 4th IASSRT symposium “Silk Road Textiles: Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage”
Held by: Korea National University of Cultural Heritage and China National Silk Museum
Duration: Nov. 5 – Nov. 10, 2018
Venue: Buyeo, Korea
The 3rd IASSRT Symposium as well as the 4th IASSRT board meeting “Silk Road Textiles: Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage” was successfully held in Korea National University of Cultural Heritage (KNUCH) in Buyeo, Korea. The symposium was hosted by IASSRT, organized by Korea National University of Cultural Heritage, China National Silk Museum (CNSM), and supported by the Korean National Intangible Heritage Center (KNIHC), National Museum of Korea (NMK), and Kyung-woon Museum. More than 130 scholars and representatives from more than 10 countries, including China, France, Germany, Britain, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, uzbekistan, Indonesia, the United States, South Korea and Japan, attended the symposium.
In the two-day-long symposium, scholars presented new research results on the theme of “Silk Road Textiles: Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage” in eight sections: General History of Textiles on the Silk Road, Textiles on the Korean Traditions, Textiles on the Eastern Silk Road, Maritime Silk Road Textiles, Textiles on the Northwest Silk Road, Textiles on the Steppe Silk Road, Intangible Cultural Heritage of Textiles in Asia, New Research on the Silk Road Textiles.There is a question session for each section.
The symposium provided to a diversified platform for academic exchange. During the study tour, the attendees visited the Korean traditional textile and clothing exhibition in KNUCH, the whole process of weaving Mosi (fine ramie) , the intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO, in Transmission Hall of Hansan Mosi and conducted in-depth communication with Bang Yeon-ok, the inheritor of Hansan Mosi. The attendees also visited the "Intangible heritage of Korea and China Silk Weaving" exhibition jointly held by CNSM and KNIHC, and inspected the gold foil, knot art and quilting techniques demonstrated by Korean national intangible cultural inheritors; communicated with experts in different fields in the exhibition hall and restoration room of NMK; visited the Kyung-woon Museum, and listened to the report on Korean traditional clothes, such as "Korean traditional five colors" and "color research in Korean clothing".
1.1.2 Preparing the 5th IASSRT symposium, held 2019 in Italy (with Trento) .
Held by: Martino Martini Center, Center for International Culture and Art Studies of Zhejiang University, Zhejiang University Press
Themes: Silk in Italian history; Italian cities on the Silk Road. (to be discussed later )
1.2 Cooperation among IASSRT members
1.2.1 Exhibitions:
a. Traditional Korean Costumes and Textiles
b. Costumes in Memory: Sino-Korean Joint Conservation Project of Ming Dynasty”
Cooperated by: Korea National University of Cultural Heritage and China National Silk Museum
Duration: March 29 - June 9, 2019
By presenting traditional Korean costumes, fabrics and the weaving and dyeing techniques used in the costume making process, the exhibition "Traditional Korean Costumes and Textiles" aims at enhancing the Chinese audience's understanding of Korean traditional costume culture and offering an opportunity for exchanges between China and Korea in the fields of inheritance, restoration and flexible application of this intangible cultural heritage.
The other exhibition, "Costumes in Memory: Sino-Korean Joint Conservation Project of Ming Dynasty Textiles" is held to enhance communication and cooperation while presenting what NSM and the Korean Heritage group have both achieved. One of the aims of the exhibition is to provide traditional-costume-enthusiasts with knowledges in exquisite details basing on material artefacts and a broad platform for effective communication.
c. Life along the Silk Road: 13 Stories during the Great Era
Cooperated by: China National Silk Museum, State Hermitage Museum, Gansu Provicial Museum, Institute of Archaeology of Xinjiang, Peking University
Duration: June 21 - September 8, 2019
This exhibition tries to reshape the life along the Silk Road by concentrating on 13 individuals who lived at different times, had mixed nationalities, maintained diverse identities, and gained unlike life experiences. These people either legendary or ordinary. Their daily life and mundane experience unfolded the "great era" of peace, cooperation, openness, and inclusiveness, and thus reproduced the time characteristics and the collision of cultures under different eras along the Silk Road through many perspectives.
1.2.2 Conferences and Forums
a. The 1st Conference of the International Alliance of Museums of the Silk Road (the 8th International Exposition of Museums and Relavant Products and Technologies)
Attended by: Zhao Feng, Zhou Yang, Dode Zvezdana, Orit Shamir
Dates: November 23 - 26
b. The Global Museum Directors Forum officially opened in National Museum of China, Beijing
Attended by: China National Silk Museum and British Museum
On April 11th, the Global Museum Directors Forum officially opened in National Museum of China, Beijing. More than 40 experts from worldfamous museums and 50-odd directors or delegates from Chinese museums atteneded the forum.
During the two-day-long forum, the attendees exchanged views on there sub-topics: "collection and exhibition exchange of museums along silk road countries", "construction of smart museum" and "diversity presentation of exhibition".
c. Curator’s Forum: Collaboration on the Silk Road Exhibitions
Held by: China National Silk Museum
Supported by: International Alliance of Museums of the Silk Road (IAMS), Community of Chinese Museums along the Silk Road (China)
Attended by: Zhao Feng, Helen Wang, Maria Menshikova, Rong Xinjiang
In conjunction with the exhibition "Life along the Silk Road: 13 Stories during the Great Era", NSM hosted a two-day forum on June 22nd-23rd that explores topics such as stories on Oasis and Steppe Silk Road, Maritime Silk Road and Silk Road in China. The speakers of the forum are be curators from all over the world who has previously curated exhibitions on topic related to Silk Road.
d. Interactive Atlas of Cultural Interactions along the Silk Roads
Expert Meeting on the theme "Textile, Clothing and Accessories along the Silk Roads" in Valencia, Spain
Coordinated by Zhao Feng
Attended by: Sim Yeon-ok, Mai Piyavara Teekara Natenoi, Zvezdana Dode, Mariah Waworuntu
Dates: March 13-16, 2019
UNESCO has launched in May 2017 the development of an Interactive Atlas of Cultural Interactions along the Silk Roads to map and illustrate the diversity and specificity of the interactions, exchanges and cross fertilization that occurred along the Silk Roads in different regions of the world, harnessing the potential of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and multimedia.
In order to define and discuss the content of the entries under the theme textile closing and accessories of the atlas, in collaboration with local Government of Valencia, UNESCO will be organizing an expert meeting in Valencia, Spain from 13 to 16 March 2019. Around twenty experts will participate in this meeting in order to discuss concrete cultural exchanges and mutual influences around "Textile, Clothing and Accessories" along the Silk Roads.
1.2.3 The First Biennale of Natural Dyes
Cooperated by: Dominique Cardon
Exhibitions:
a. Multicolored Map: 300-Year History of Dyes on Textiles in Europe and Asia
Duration: May 17 - August 4, 2019
Venue: Conservation Gallery, NSM
b. Natural Dyeing: Contemporary Art and Design Works
Duration:20 May-25 May, 2019
Venue: Fashion Gallery, NSM
Symposium: Colorful World: Natural Dyes
Time: 20-21 May, 2019
Venue: Galaxy Hall, NSM
Workshops and Demonstrations
Time: 21-24 May, 2019
Venue: NSM
Craft Market
Time: 13:00-17:00 21 May/9:00-17:00 22-24 May
Venue：Brocade Café, NSM
Open Forum
Practice in Natural Dyes: Arts and Industries
Time: 9:00-11:30, 24 May
Venue: Xinyou Archives (underground of Fashion Gallery), NSM
The Biennial aims not only to embrace the natural way of life, but also to explore the ancient wisdom and culture contained in the traditional craft.
1.2.4 Tradition and Fashion--Exhibition on China’s Silk Costume Art exhibition in Greek
Hosted by Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation and China National Silk Museum
Venue: Silk Museum in Soufli
Duration: From September 20 to October 20, 2019
This exhibition, featuring silk costumes, reproduces the charm of silk craftsmanship in four units, namely, "embroidery, printing, weaving and dyeing". Meanwhile, on the basis of traditional craftsmanship and aesthetics, a new design language is applied to innovate silk art works in the form and contents to make the vitality of Chinese silk more accessible to the world. There are over 30 pieces (sets) of exhibits in total, including clothing, accessories, embroidery products, cultural and creative silk products.
1.2.5 Workstation
Cooperated by: China National Silk Museum and Nasledie llc.
The Key Scientific Research Base of Textile Conservation by the China National Silk Museum will jontly establish a workstation in Kislovodsk with Nasledie llc. in 2019. The research includes the analysis, testing and identification of textile-related cultural heritage, key technologies for protection and conservation, and the discovery of traditional craftsmanship and its value. The workstation will undertaken a large number of textile archaeology, conservation, and research projects along the Silk Road.
NSM also send one researcher and two conservators to Kislovodsk to conserve two Mongolian Robes with Nasledie fellows from July to September, 2019.
1.2.6 Exchanging scholar/personnel visits, including:
Liu Jian participated in "Textiles from the Silk Road in Museum Collections - Scientific Investigations and Conservation Challenges" forum in London in December, 2018, invited by British Museum
1.3 Website
1.3.1 Updating information and announcement of
1.4 Other activities
1.4.1 Receiving organization applications from:
² Tracing Patterns Foundation, USA, the contact person will be Sandra Sardjono;
² Trento, Italy, the contact person will be .
2 Plans for 2020
2.1 IASSRT symposium
2.1.1 Preparing 5th IASSRT symposium in Italy.
The period and theme will be discussed later.
2.1.2 Preparing 6th IASSRT symposium in China.
The period, theme and veune will be discussed in the future.
2.2 International Center for Study of Intercultural Diague on the Silk Road
The ceter, established in 2019, will serve as the Secretariat of IASSRT, working harder on its members connection, website, journal, etc.
2.2.1 Journal of IASSRT.
For the Journal of IASSRT, we all consider to have one publication focusing on the translation of information published in non-English language, such as Chinese, Korean, and Russian to English. It will be significant to make the information from unknown to well known.
2.2.2 IASSRT website
The website aims to update information about IASSRT members, including symposium, projects, exhibitions, cooperation etc, among IASSRT members. We hope that more information will be provided, such as:
² News and photos of activities (workshops, conferences, visits) among IASRRT members (time, place, people, theme…);
² Information of publications, articles about textile research of IASSRT members (both organizations and individuals);
² Exhibition introduction and pictures focus on textile of IASSRT members.
2.3 Cooperation among IASSRT members
2.3.1 UNESCO category 2 center
Preparing for applying China National Silk Museum in Hangzhou to designate a new Institute/Center under the auspices of UNESCO (category 2): International Center for Silk Heritage on the Silk Roads
2.3.2 Exhibitions and related conferences
a. The Past and Present Life of the Silk Road
Duration : June - September, 2020
This is an exhibition on the academic history of the Silk Road. It mainly presents the road of communication between China and the West in historical facts, the Silk Road put forward in Richthofen's time, and the Silk Road listed as World Heritage by UNESCO. It is intended to promote the essence of the Silk Road.
There will be a Silk Road week held during the opening period.
b. The Festive Clothes of the Russian People
Cooperated by: China National Silk Museum and the State Historical Museum, Russia
Duration : September - November, 2020
2.2.3 Other projects
2.2.3.1 World Map of Silk:
In 2018, NSM held an exbition and homonymous symposium, entitled with A World of Looms: Weaving Technology and Textile Arts in China and Beyond. Cooperated and supported by: China National Silk Museum, Institute for the History of Natural Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, ASEAN Traditional Textile Art Community Indonesia, Korea National University of Culture Heritage, Queen Silikit Textile Museum of Thailand, The Danish National Research Foundation’s Center for Textile Research,
Attended by: Sandra Sardjono, Mariah Waworuntu, Sim Yeon-ok, Ho Zhaohua
This map is the World Map of Silk, an interactive map, including information of archaeological silks, silks as museum and private collection, sericulture and silk craftsmanship as intangible cultural heritage, mulberry and sericulture sites, and loom and dyes. The world map of looms has been made already during the loom exhibition.
Right now, both projects need international collaborations from the silk research institutes and individual scholars.
NSM is going to work with some members of the IASSRT, to provide the information of silk heritage, museums with collection, archaeological sites, traditional weaving workshops, and so on, from China, Korea, Russia, Italy, Sweden, Indonesia, and Sweden etc.
2019 IASSRT Russia Symposium - Committee report (Click to download)
