Resolution of the International Conference “Museum of the 21st Century: Development Strategies,” in honor of the A. Kasteyev National Museum of Arts 80th Anniversary
September 25-26, 2015, Almaty
The international conference reviewed important issues concerning the condition and development of museums on a scientific and theoretical level. The following topics were reviewed: legal rights of the museum, problems concerning museology and the direction of museum pedagogy, aspects of scientific activity in museum practices, multimedia projects in the context of museum development, questions about training museum specialists, interaction between museums and collectors, museum work with current art, etc.
Resolution of the International Conference “Museum of the 21st Century: Development Strategies,” in honor of the A. Kasteyev National Museum of Arts 80th Anniversary
September 25-26, 2015, Almaty
The international conference reviewed important issues concerning the condition and development of museums on a scientific and theoretical level. The following topics were reviewed: legal rights of the museum, problems concerning museology and the direction of museum pedagogy, aspects of scientific activity in museum practices, multimedia projects in the context of museum development, questions about training museum specialists, interaction between museums and collectors, museum work with current art, etc.
Four Doctors of Science, seven Sc.D. candidates, as well as scientific employees of the A. Kasteyev National Museum of Arts participated in the conference. The participants represented a vast geography. Researchers, theoreticians, and experts travelled from London, Berlin, Saint Petersburg, Moscow, and various cities in Kazakhstan to participate.
Historically, the role of museums is to preserve cultural heritage. Their civil and professional status becomes especially significant. Museums have a direct influence on the educational and spiritual level of societal development. The questions raised at the conference should form a strategical basis for the future development of museums. Solutions to problems which were raised at the the conference were formed in compliance with the mission and status of museums in the cultural paradigm of the 21st Century.
Museum development today requires progressive and professionally responsible measures in order to adapt to the requirements and challenges of modern times.
In order to progress museum development, it was declared necessary to:
1. Establish a group of professional museum employees who will collaborate lawyers, and law developers. The group will design proposals to amend the Law on Culture, taking into account the following documents and regulations:
- Document which states the mission statement, objectives and policies of the museum
- Document which defines the policy on extracting revenue from museum activity or raising funds from other sources
- Document which explains the museum’s policy on collecting
- Regulation of the stock-purchasing committee
- Document which regulates the procedures for acquisition, storage, and use of the collection (new instructions for storage and record keeping in accordance with the proposed amendments)
2. The group will work with lawyers to conduct an analysis of legal standards which concern the museum keeping in mind the aforementioned point on the Law of Public Procurement. The group will offer proposals on introducing necessary amendments to the law regarding the principles of purchases for the museum collection.
3. The introduction of state programs for the development of museums and separate museum projects is necessary.
4. It is necessary to discuss developing new educational programs to train museum specialists. Such programs may be held in universities as well as directly within the museums.
5. In order to attract a diverse group of people to the museum, it is necessary to expand and deepen project work concerning museum pedagogy.
6. The museum’s exposition practice requires new approaches and designer solutions. A new theoretical and practical understanding of problems in this area is necessary.
7. In modern museum work, the introduction of multimedia facilities for the presentation of museum material and in the sphere of museum pedagogy is particularly important.
8. The conference recognizes the importance of such forums and proposes the organization of future discussion platforms in order to examine specific as well as general problems. The results of these forums will increase the professional level of the museum community.
9. Apply to the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Kazakhstan to be awarded the title of Academic Museum. This title is well deserved, considering the eighty years of experience and status of the A. Kasteyev National Museum of Arts, as well as its encyclopedic volume of collections.
Only culture, understanding how culture forms the worldview of society, and the juxtaposition of culture with immorality, lies, and ignorance can help society survive new challenges, place society’s development on a path of humanitarianism, supremacy of the law, and promote spiritual growth. Culture should therefore be considered an important aspect of national security strategies.
