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The International Museum Day is an exceptional moment for the international museum community. This event coordinated by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) takes place every year on May 18 since 1977.
The objective of International Museum Day (IMD) is to raise awareness of the fact that museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples. Organized every May 18 or around that date for more than 40 years, the events and activities planned to celebrate the SID can last a day, a weekend or even the entire week. More and more museums around the world are participating in this worldwide celebration: last year 37,000 museums took part in the event in 158 countries and territories.
With the theme Museums for Equality: Diversity and Inclusion, International Museum Day 2020 aims at becoming a rallying point to both celebrate the diversity of perspectives that make up the communities and personnel of museums, and champion tools for identifying and overcoming bias in what they display and the stories they tell.
“The potential of museums to create meaningful experiences for peoples of all origins and backgrounds is central to their social value. As agents of change and trusted institutions, there is no time like the present for museums to demonstrate their relevance by engaging constructively in the political, social, and cultural realities of modern society.”
This year we’ve seen how different museums have encouraged their audiences to engage with them! Examples of this are:
- Many museums have “opened” for virtual tours! You can visit local museums in the Dominican Republic; the Ministry of Culture announced a web portal, which will allow a virtual tour of nine local museums you can try it by clicking here, or visit some international museums such as The Louvre, VanGogh Museum: Amsterdam, Natural History Museum London Virtual Tours, National Air & Space Museum – Smithsonian, Museo Frida Kahlo, Musée d’Orsay, The J. Paul Getty Museum, and many more!
- The call to action to recreate famous artworks from their own homes, promoted by many cultural heritage institutions (check out this article from the Getty Museum) and people have been sharing their creations on Twitter and Instagram using #TussenKunstenQuarantaine, #BetweenArtAndQuarantine, and #museumchallenge.
- The Met website section designed for, with and by kids, MetKids
- This great twitter thread comparing Ancient Egyptian amulets and hand sanitizers
Here in Altos de Chavón you can find the Altos de Chavón Regional Archaeological Museum. Once it opens again, we believe it is an excellent opportunity to visit again and bring a friend or family member who has never been here before! The museum documents the important indigenous heritage of Santo Domingo island (before it was known as Hispaniola, this island was called Santo Domingo). The museum boasts a superb collection of over 3000 pieces found in the region and that have been collected by Samuel Pión over the past 40 years. They display, in chronological order, the evolution of the culture of indigenous societies from the pre-agricultural era to the time of the Tainos, the dominant culture on the island when the Spaniards arrived.
The museum hosts a wide range of activities, such as conferences, temporary exhibitions, research visits to rural areas, and different workshops for tour guides. They also have a special “Discovery Room” for children, where kids have the opportunity to be archaeologists through various educational activities.
Information on the page of the International Council of Museums (ICOM)
