ARCHIVED MEDIA RELEASE
PA/25/06 27 September 2006
Australian heritage professionals to provide collections conservation expertise
Three Australian heritage management specialists will share their conservation management expertise with professionals at the National Museum Institute at a three-day workshop beginning in Delhi on Wednesday.
The workshop, from 27-29 September at the National Museum, will provide a strategic framework for allocating resources to preserve collections in India as well as develop a management plan to minimise damage from natural and man-made disasters.
“This is yet another example of close collaboration on a area of importance for both Australia and India. AusHeritage, Australia's international network for heritage services, has worked with Indian institutions on several projects, including workshops and training sessions, in recent years," said Mr David Holly, Deputy High Commissioner, Australian High Commission.
“Australian and Indian heritage practitioners have been working very closely over the last decade and learning from each other in preserving our valuable past for future generations,” said Mr Vinod Daniel, Chair of AusHeritage.
“The workshop is an outcome of the close collaboration between the National Museum Institute and AusHeritage and will develop capacity for participants in prioritising allocation of human and financial resources for management of India’s internationally significant cultural collections,” added Mr Daniel.
AusHeritage has also provided support for developing a new exhibition gallery at the Chhatrapati Shivaji (Prince of Wales) Museum in Mumbai in addition to working closely with several private and government Indian cultural heritage organisations. It has a memorandum of understanding on cultural heritage collaboration with the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH).
The workshop is supported by the Australia- India Council (AIC) which has also funded previous initiatives in this area. Established by the Australian Government, the AIC supports collaborative initiatives in a wide range of areas of mutual concern, including in heritage conservation.
For further information, contact Mr Shekhar Nambiar, Senior Public Affairs Adviser on 41494351, or Mr Vinod Daniel on 09840237322.
AusHeritage is Australia’s international network for cultural heritage services. The organisation’s members include Australian universities, national collecting institutions, State galleries, libraries and museums, private architectural firms and private and government conservation services.