Collections Trust Award 2021

National Museum Wales | Collecting Covid

In April 2020, Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales launched a ‘national memory’ project in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This included an online questionnaire that enabled people to document their experiences of living through Covid. As a national museum, we had a responsibility to create a permanent record of the crisis, building on our established history of recognizing that everyone has a right to tell their story. We received deeply moving accounts of loss and trauma, anxiety and loneliness, alongside stories of community resilience and kindness.

Elen Phillips, Principal Curator, Contemporary and Community History, Amgueddfa Cymru –
National Museum Wales

Elen Phillips is a Principal Curator of Contemporary and Community History at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales where she has been employed in various curatorial roles since 2005. Her practice is rooted in participatory ways of working, involving people and communities directly in the development of the museum’s collections and displays. Elen recently co-led on delivering the museum’s Collecting Covid initiative – a mass-observation style collecting project developed in response to the emerging, rapidly evolving coronavirus pandemic.

Museums and the Web Awards 2021 / Interactive and Immersive Gold

Planet Word Museum | Planet Word: The World’s First Voice-Activated Museum

Planet Word is the world’s first interactive, voice-activated museum of words and language. Founded in October 2020 in Washington, D.C., it brings a participatory approach to exploring the fun, beauty, and power of words in our daily lives, in relationships, and in society. Planet Word uses cutting-edge technology to bring language vividly to life, through song, poetry, humor, advertising, and storytelling. It explores the milestones in the acquisition of language and the diversity of the world’s spoken and signed languages. There is something to entrance and engage people of all ages about our human superpower, language.

Ann B. Friedman, Founder and CEO, Planet Word

Ann Friedman was a beginning reading and writing teacher in Montgomery County, MD, for 9 years until her retirement in 2011. From 2010-2016, she served as the Chair of the Board of the SEED Foundation, the parent body of the only U.S. public, inner-city, college-prep boarding schools, where she currently serves as Vice Chair. Ms. Friedman is a director of the American Alliance of Museums and is on the board of the Aspen Music Festival and School and the National Symphony Orchestra. She is a director of the Downtown DC Foundation. Her husband is N.Y. Times foreign affairs columnist Thomas L. Friedman.

2021 Webby Awards / Art, Culture, and Events / Apps and Software

SK Telecom / Google PI / Nexus Studios | Changdeok ARirang

Immerse yourself in history like never before at UNESCO world-heritage site, Changdeok Palace, Seoul. In a pioneering use of 5G Mobile technology, SK Telecom, Google, Nexus and the Cultural Heritage Administration, digitally mapped the entire site to create a first-of-its kind AR guided tour, bringing 18th Century Joseon back to life in rich detail through 4k volumetric captured performance. Meeting a virtual tour guide, ‘The Haechi’, visitors chose a location they wished to visit. Haechi plotted a route from wherever they stood, then began his guided tour regaling visitors with history trivia.

Alexander Jenkins, Executive Creative Director, Interactive Arts, Nexus Studios

Alex is an award-winning Creative Director collaborating with the most progressive digital companies and brands in the world to create cutting-edge XR experiences, from location specific events to digital products. Alex has led Nexus’ pioneering interactive projects, including the BBC’s first ever AR App ‘Civilisations’, and a BAFTA nominated XR experience with CERN recreating the origins of the universe. He was pivotal in transforming The Dallas Cowboys’ stadium into a hyper-accurate, location-specific AR experience and brought history back to life at Changdeok Palace, Seoul, in a first-of-its-kind AR guided tour.

2021 MUSE Awards / Research and Innovation Gold

Greensboro History Museum | Pieces of Now Project

The Greensboro History Museum, Greensboro North Carolina U.S., won Media & Technology MUSE Awards from the Media & Technology Professional Network of American Alliance of Museums for its Pieces of Now Project—the Gold Award in Research and Innovation and Silver Award for 2020 Response. Judges stated, “Powerful, impactful project that deals with difficult contemporary subject matter in a sensitive way by ‘stepping aside’ and letting community voices be heard. The platforms and online programming meet audience needs in a great example of co-curation and community collecting best practices.” 

Carol Ghiorsi Hart, Director, Greensboro History Museum

​Carol Ghiorsi Hart is the director of the Greensboro History Museum, North Carolina. She is from New York, where she was the executive director of the Vanderbilt Museum & Planetarium and the Smithtown Historical Society. She is a cultural anthropologist with a focus on the arts, museums and media.

Museums in Short Award 2021

Emigration Museum of Gdynia | Dzennet

Girl Power means independence and staying true to one’s convictions, sisterhood and empathy, perseverance and strength of character, courage and determination. Women’s strength and power. The unquestionable PowerGirl was Dżennet Dżabagi-Skibniewska, a Caucasian princess, freedom fighter, a champion for peace, a Gdynian by choice. A Muslim, a refugee, a patriot and a Polish soldier. A superheroine. Sounds incredible, but it’s a true story nonetheless. The story was interpreted and animated by Polish visual artist Tomek Popakul. 

Maksymilian Bochenek, Director Representative, Programmes of Emigration Museum in Gdynia

History of art graduate at University of Gdansk, Museum Curatorial Studies graduate at Jagiellonian University. A curator, producer, art critic. In the years 2012 - 2013 tutor at Art Academy in Gdansk. Curator of “Klimaks” at Emigration Museum in Gdynia, “Re-Designing the East” at VKW in Stuttgart, which has been funded with support from the European Commission and other expositions such as: “Schoenberg!” at Wyspa Institute of Art in Gdansk Co-curator of Alternativa Festival 2013 - 2015.

Heritage in Motion / Best Achievement Award 2021

Casa Batlló 10D Experience

This project merged an outstanding heritage restoration and digital technologies to continue engaging visitors with emotional storytelling. The exceptional combination of analogue and digital components enhanced the appreciation of a World Heritage site restored using artisan skills with surprising new digital high-tech technologies such as AR, VR and Audiovisual Installations. It was achieved with a multidisciplinary-holistic approach, enhancing the knowledge of traditional skills and a people-centered approach. Two immersive rooms are highlighted (Gaudí Dôme and Gaudí Cube), with a new script available in 15 languages and contemporary architectural interventions.

Amilcar Vargas, World Heritage, Casa Batlló

Amilcar holds a PhD from the University of Barcelona and is responsible for World Heritage at Casa Batlló. His main task at Casa Batlló is the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, raising awareness of the Outstanding Universal Value and pursuing the potential opportunities of Casa Batlló's inscription on the UNESCO List. He is an international expert in World Heritage Management and has worked in renowned institutions such as UNESCO (Paris). His international experience includes academic stays, university lectures and conference presentations in 15 countries with several publications.

SHORTY Awards 2021 / Best Social Good Campaign

Lessons of Auschwitz VR project

To mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, nine students from a Moscow high school visited the Memorial in Poland. After the trip, they were asked to express their reactions in VR under the creative guidance of Russia’s leading XR artist. “Lessons of Auschwitz” is a storytelling experiment that aims to show how history can be retold and reimagined by younger generations through digital art. Using innovative XR film technology it creates a new kind of commemorative tribute which engages younger viewers and inspires them to learn more about the Holocaust.  

Ania Fedorova, RT Creative Lab, Producer of "Lessons of Auschwitz"

Ania is an Emmy-nominated Producer and Creative Lead with RT’s Creative Lab. Holding a bachelor’s degree in Linguistics, she first found herself in TV journalism pursuing a 10-year-long presenter’s career. Starting with a program she hosted and edited about Russian Culture, Anna gradually built up enough stamina to present an hour-long live daily evening show that ran for 6 years. The show’s unscripted format led Ania to crave the structure and elegance of planned digital narration, so she turned to content creating spanning visual design, creative writing, XR technologies, and producing. 

Museums and the Web Awards 2021 / Pandemic Pivot

National Science and Media Museum & University of Leicester | #SonicFriday

Inspired by its world-leading collection of Sound Technologies, in 2020 the National Science and Media Museum (Bradford, UK) invited online audiences to share memories and stories around sound culture: from cassettes, CDs and mp3s to digital sampling and lockdown sounds. More than 250 digital memories were collected across different platforms and gave birth to YouTube playlists, multimedia galleries and sound maps. The #SonicFriday project, designed in collaboration with the University of Leicester, enriched the stories around museum objects and strengthened their relationship with people’s lives, thus highlighting the value of personal memories for heritage institutions.

Stefania Zardini Lacedelli, Annie Jamieson, John Stack

Stefania Zardini Lacedelli is Research Fellow at the Science Museum Group. Her research explores new forms of heritage and curatorial practices of the platform world. #SonicFriday was designed as part of her PhD thesis ‘The Museum as a Platform for Sound Culture’. Annie Jamieson is Curator of Sound Technologies at the National Science and Media Museum, with a remit to develop historical sound technologies in collections and exhibitions and to research histories of sound technologies, especially in live performance and recording. John Stack is Digital Director of the Science Museum Group. He is responsible for setting and delivering the Group's digital strategy and managing the Digital department which produces the museums’ websites, apps, films and on gallery digital media.

Museweb Awards 2021 / Resources For General Audiences And Families Gold

​National Museum of American History | Becoming US

Becoming US is a set of digital educational resources for educators at the high school level to learn about migration and immigration history in an inclusive and more accurate way. The resources are organised by themes: Borderlands, Education, Policy, Resistance and Belonging. Each theme presents three case studies with a set of critical questions intended for teachers to have conversations with students about critical events throughout the history of the United States. The resources include a glossary of terms, a list of historical milestones, timeline, and a set of deliberation guides to help students develop civic skills.

Magdalena Mieri & Orlando Serrano

Magdalena Mieri is the director of the Latino Program at NMAH. She works to interpret and present the history of U.S.-based Latinx communities through programs and collaborations across the museum, and at the local and national levels. Previously, she was assistant curator at the Museo de Arte Hispanoamericano in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Orlando Serrano manages the museum’s educational programs for young people and educators. He supports and develops informal educational and leadership experiences for students, professional development workshops for educators, and curriculum content. He is an experienced educator with expertise in teacher professional development, assessment, and instruction.

Family Friendly Museum Awards 2021 / Best Digital Activity

The Whitworth, Manchester | Play Live

PLAY Live was created back in 2020 in response to the Covid-19 pandemic as a way of taking the much loved Early Years programme online and into people’s homes, schools and nurseries. Throughout the Covid-19 restrictions PLAY Live ran every other week on Zoom and used art and play to promote creativity whilst providing much needed social and physical development opportunities for our youngest children. At the height of lockdown over 550 people attended each session demonstrating the need for connection and interaction during such challenging times.

Lucy Turner, Producer, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester

​Lucy Turner is Producer at the Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, UK. Lucy has worked in gallery education for over 15 years, previously working at the Laing Art Gallery as well as BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art. Lucy specialises in Early Years education and is passionate about combining art and play to inspire curiosity, promote wellbeing and make positive social change. In 2020 Lucy created PLAY Live which won ‘Best Digital Activity’ at the 2021 Kids in Museums Awards and ’Best Family Arts Activity’ at the 2021 Fantastic for Families Awards.

Heritage in Motion / Film & Video Award 2021

Anne Frank Video Diary

What if, on 12 June 1942, Anne Frank had got a video camera as a birthday present, instead of a diary? Instead of writing diary letters, she would have made video recordings. The camera would have been her diary. She would have talked about the world she lived in, the Netherlands under German occupation, the anti-Jewish measures, and life in the Secret Annex.  All characters, locations, and events in the series are based on Anne Frank’s diary letters. The video series is in Dutch, with subtitles in 9 languages.

Tom Brink, Head of Collections and Presentations, Anne Frank House

Tom’s team is responsible for designing on-site and on-line concepts telling the story of Anne Frank within its historical context.  Before this, Tom was manager at the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision and program manager of a large audiovisual digitization program that focused on access and product development. He began his professional career as a history teacher, followed by being a writer/editor of history textbooks and digital content developer, working for a large Dutch educational publisher.

Heritage in Motion / App Award 2021

LIFE CODE. Escape Room Quest in Darwin Museum

The LIFE CODE app is an augmented reality-based adventure story of the Life Code Project allowing users to actively engage in the Darwin Museum of Evolution based in Moscow. The application explores in detail every aspect of the Darwin Museum whilst engaging users in a unique comix background story. This unique application offers one of the largest indoor quests in the world with over 1,000 meters of the quest to explore in a large museum (20,000 square meters). At the same time, this quest combines entertainment and education.

Alexander Lavrov, Founder, Next.space

​Alexander Lavrov, PhD is the founder of Next.space. He developed more than 300 museum multimedia projects for Hermitage, the George Washington Museum, National Geographic, and many others. He is a member of AVICOM and board member of the Digital Transformation Council at ICOM Russia.

Heritage in Motion / Website Award 2021

Archaeology at Home

In March 2020, DigVentures launched Archaeology at Home as an instant response to the COVID-19 lockdown, embarking on an extremely successful experiment in technology-enabled public participation in archaeology. Archaeology at Home consisted of three distinct streams: videos including virtual site tours and workshops; an online Virtual Field School in the form of a six week step-by-step ‘How to do archaeology’ course, provided free of charge on the basis of an opt-in funding model; and the annual two-day DigNation festival, remodelled as a digital conference. In total, DigVentures welcomed a remarkable number of over 11,000 people from 90 countries.

Lisa Westcott Wilkins MA FRSA FSA, Founder and Co-CEO, DigVentures

DigVentures is a UK-based platform that has pioneered the use of digital methods for civic participation in archaeology and heritage projects. Having begun her career in investment banking, Lisa’s experience includes management positions in the Cultural Olympiad team of the 2012 London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, the Museum of the Earth at Cornell University, and the Editorship of Current Archaeology. She lectures internationally on digital cultural engagement, and is a Clore Fellow, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and Fellow of the London Society of Antiquaries.

MAPDA Awards / Best In Show - Multimedia

National Film and Sound Archive | Carriberee

The critically acclaimed Virtual Reality documentary Carriberrie is a celebration of Indigenous Australian Song and Dance - an immersive journey across Australia celebrating the depth and diversity of Indigenous dance and song from the traditional to the contemporary. Featuring more than 150 Indigenous Australian dancers and more than 25 songs, Carriberrie offers many historical, cultural, artistic and social pathways. It features historically groundbreaking never before filmed cultural songs and practices with significant historical importance and great artistic and cultural merit.

Dominic Allen, Director, REDDOGSVR

Dominic is an award winning Australian director and producer whose work includes short and feature films, music videos, commercials, virtual reality projects and television documentaries. With a background in fine arts and a passion for social justice, Dominic began making films through documentaries about Fair Trade, migrant issues and Indigenous Australian contemporary culture. His documentary work with Kimberly Aboriginal youth organisation Yiriman led him to writing and directing the Dendy Best Australian Short film finalist, Two Men, which screened to wide acclaim internationally as well as being instrumental in Dominic winning both the 2009 MIFF Australian Emerging Filmmaker award and the Inside Film Rising Talent Prize. 

European Museum Forum / The Silletto Prize 2021

Kenan Yavuz Ethnography Museum, BAYBURT, TURKEY

This family founded and run museum aims to create awareness of the issues caused by emigration from villages to the cities while preserving the heritage of the region through its collection and exhibitions hosted. The living museum model implemented allows visitors to have interactive experiences through workshops, hands-on practices, festivals and cultural weeks hosted at the museum, including harvest festivals, folklore dance evenings, baking with a tandoor, children games weeks and many more. The museum hopes to demonstrate the potential of heritage tourism and the hospitality industry to create new jobs and improve the quality of life in the wider Bayburt region.

Kenan Yavuz & Furkan Yavuz

Furkan Yavuz, Founding Member & Brand Ambassador, is managing and growing the network of the institution with solution partners in order to generate new projects that add value to the region and enhance the branding of the museum, with focus on engaging with younger generations. Kenan Yavuz, President of Kenan Yavuz Cultural Foundation emigrated from Bayburt to Istanbul to continue his higher education and begin a career in management in the private sector. He founded a cultural centre back in Bespinar Village in 2012 which led to establishing the Museum in 2019, with aims to grow its international presence and local impact.

Museums + Heritage Awards / International Exhibition Of The Year 2021

MAS Antwerpen | 100 x Congo. A century of Congolese art in Antwerp, BELGIUM

Exactly one hundred years ago the Congolese collection of the city of Antwerp came into being, in all-out colonial times. This momentum was the reason why MAS organised the exhibition ‘100xCongo’. The exhibition showed 100 Congolese works of art and invited the audience to reflect on the imaging of Africans and about the past, the present and the future of  the Congolese collection. For this exhibition the Museum collaborated with Belgian and Congolese researchers, filmmakers and artists. MAS engaged in dialogue with Antwerp residents of Belgian and Congolese descent.

Leen Beyers, Head, Curatorial Department, MAS

Leen Beyers is head of the curatorial department of the MAS, which displays, researches and updates the MAS collection of 500,000 objects of history, art and culture associated with the city and port of Antwerp, with overseas shipping and maritime trade and with Europe, Asia, Africa, America and Oceania. She has a PhD in history and an MA in anthropology. Her expertise as researcher and curator mainly relates to urban history, food culture, migration, oral history, memory and collecting. She is a board member of ICOM COMCOL.

Family Friendly Museum Award 2021

Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery, ALNWICK, UNITED KINGDOM

​Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery’s unique setting inside a refurbished church provides a dramatic backdrop to its extensive collection. In addition to original architectural features visitors can explore 10.000 years of history, heritage and culture including the rich history of the market town, Alnwick, and surrounding areas. The permanent collection of artefacts, documents, photographs, and audio-visual content celebrating local history, is complemented by an exhibition and events space, with a rolling programme of exhibitions taking place year-round. The museum also celebrates the abundance of arts and crafts created locally.

Jean Humphrys, Chair of Trustees, Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery

Jean was born in the North East and lived here until her university days. Her work in education took her all over the country and abroad. Retirement gave Jean time to move back to the North East and become involved in the wider community. Being a volunteer strengthened her appreciation of the richness of Northumberland’s culture, the importance of Alnwick’s status as Northumberland’s County Town and the natural beauty of the North. She considers being Chair of Trustees and a volunteer at Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery a huge privilege. 

Chinese Museums Association / Most Innovative Museums in China Award 2021

Henan Provincial Museum, ZHENGZHOU, CHINA

Henan Museum has taken the lead in the trend of meaningful cultural museum products in China, which saw the creation of the innovatively categorised “Archaeological Blind Box”. Based on the profound historical and cultural background of China’s Central Plains, the boxes include a variety of objects that require a hands-on approach from users, to engage in operations such as excavating, rubbing, woodblock printing, etc. These objects, characterised by the consideration of purposefully designed elements of participatory experience, have been received extremely well all over China, reigniting attention on Chinese history and culture from all walks of life.

Ma Xiaolin, Director, Henan Museum

Ma Xiaolin is the Director and Professor at the Henan Museum, and an International Council member of International Council for Archaeozoology (ICAZ). He received PhD from the Department of Archaeology, La Trobe University, and went to Harvard University and University of Michigan as a visiting scholar. His main research areas are: zooarchaeology, Neolithic archaeology and research on the origins of civilization. He guides the cultural and creative department of Henan Museum which develops the Archaeological Blind Box series, and keeps devoting his efforts to promote this project.

European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Award 2021/ Conservation

18 Ormond Quay Upper, DUBLIN, IRELAND

This project involved the conservation of an 1840s merchant building located in the historic centre of Dublin, Ireland’s capital city, undertaken by Dublin Civic Trust, an independent built heritage organisation. The aim was to deliver a flagship demonstration of best conservation practice and rehabilitation of an historic urban building as an example to citizens, policymakers and business leaders of the inherent resource value of older buildings. It represents the seventh building saved and restored by Dublin Civic Trust over the past 30 years. The project is currently being expanded to include an adjacent Georgian building constructed in the 1750s.

Graham Hickey, Conservation Director, Dublin Civic Trust

Graham Hickey is Conservation Director at Dublin Civic Trust, an independent charitable body that works to identify, preserve and create awareness about the built heritage of Dublin, Ireland’s capital city. Graham project-managed the restoration of 18 Ormond Quay Upper for the Trust, while his wider interests include the street architecture of Dublin and its decorative interiors. He is a regular critical writer on architectural heritage and the development of Dublin city for The Sunday Times newspaper, and has been a contributing author on historic buildings and interiors for a variety of national publications.

The AMaGA Victoria Award for Large Museums/Galleries 2021

ACMI | ‘The Story of the Moving Image’ Exhibition, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

ACMI’s new centrepiece exhibition The Story of the Moving Image explores the past, present and future of the moving image through interactive experiences, digital innovation, and captivating stories. As you explore the origins and future of cinema and television, production design, Australian culture and the rise of videogames, the interactive experiences let you become a creative participant in the exhibition itself. These moments can be collected with the Lens, a free tool that collects your favourite objects in the exhibition and connects you to the cosmos of screen content outside ACMI.

Chris Harris, Director, Exhibitions & Touring, Australian Centre For The Moving Image

Chris Harris is the Director of Exhibitions & Touring at ACMI and has a background in theatre and the performing arts with a strong personal interest in fostering and participating in collaborative projects. Chris has developed many museum exhibits and experiences, including ACMI’s major international touring exhibitions. Chris played a lead role in the design and creative development of ACMI's recent major renewal, a $40 million project featuring the new centrepiece exhibition The Story of the Moving Image. 

European Museum Academy / ​Luigi Micheletti Award 2020/21

Futurium, BERLIN, GERMANY

Futurium, opened in 2019, sees itself as a house of futures: it is a place for engaging with foreseeable, conceivable and desirable future developments – and a place for encounters between people from the different spheres of science, politics, business, culture and civil society. It houses an exhibition of the future, a laboratory of the future and a forum of the future. Located in the heart of Berlin, Futurium has – despite several months of COVID-19 lockdowns – already attracted more than 840,000 visitors since its opening. And, beyond that, its digital offerings have received millions of clicks. 

Stefan Brandt, Director, Futurium

Dr Brandt has been the Director of Futurium since 2017. He is from Weimar in Thuringia, studied musicology, history and communication science at the universities of Paderborn and Basel, as well as vocal studies and early music in Detmold and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. From 2004 to 2011, he worked for the Vienna Branch of McKinsey, where he managed international projects in the health care sector and the chemical industry. Before taking up the reins at Futurium, Brandt was Managing Director and Managing Board Member at the art museum Hamburger Kunsthalle from 2012 to 2017. 

AAM 2021 EdCom Award for Innovation and Education Award–Pandemic Edition

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis | The Museum Apprentice Program (MAP), INDIANAPOLIS, UNITED STATES

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is the largest museum of its kind in the world, at just under 500,000 square feet sitting on a 30-acre campus. It is home to more than 130,000 artefacts and enjoys more than 1.3 million visitors each year. The museum includes 13 major galleries indoors plus the 7.5-acre outdoor portion of the Riley Children’s Health Sports Legends Experience®. Our mission is to create extraordinary learning experiences across the arts, sciences, and humanities that have the power to transform the lives of children and families.

Lindsey DeLorey, Programs Coordinator, Public and Youth, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis

Lindsey DeLorey serves as the Public and Youth Programs Coordinator at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. Her work at the museum includes overseeing the teen program, the Museum Apprentice Program, and planning a diverse roster of public events including exhibit opening days, free admission days, and STEM themed days. DeLorey has previously worked at various institutions including Old Sturbridge Village, The Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum, and an EdTech startup. DeLorey received her B.A. degree in International Studies from Elon University.

Associação Portuguesa de Museologia (APOM) Award 2021

Casa Fernando Pessoa, LISBOA, PORTUGAL

Casa Fernando Pessoa is a museum of literature, responsible for preserving, studying, and presenting the legacy of the poet Fernando Pessoa, recognised worldwide. It was inaugurated in 1993 in the building where Pessoa lived his last 15 years. It went through relevant renovation works and reopened to the public in 2020, refurbished and more accessible, with a new long-term exhibition. Sharing with visitors stories and facts about Pessoa’s genius and exceptionality is our everyday work. As a house of literature, our mission is to promote reflection and debate on the power of literature and the transformative effects of reading.

Clara Riso, Director, Casa Fernando Pessoa

Clara Riso graduated in Modern Languages and Literature at the University of Lisbon, having subsequently taken a Master’s Degree in Comparative Literature. Later, she took a postgraduate degree in Contemporary Portuguese Culture and took a second Master’s Degree in Portuguese as a Foreign Language at the University of Porto. From 2004 to 2014, she worked as a Lecturer for Instituto Camões (Portuguese Cultural Institute) in Hungary and Serbia, being also responsible for the external cultural program of both Embassies. She has been the Director of Casa Fernando Pessoa since July 2014.

European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Award 2021/ Education, Training and Awareness-raising

Following in the Steps of Bulgarian Folklore, BULGARIA

​Taratanci Foundation is a cultural organisation with a mission to preserve Bulgarian folklore using contemporary design and interaction. The project “Following in the Steps of Bulgarian Folklore” is about the horo: a traditional dance performed in a circle and closely linked to all aspects and beliefs of traditional community life. The Foundation aims to increase the popularity of the dance, provoking people's curiosity with unexpected and unique graphic patterns, which represent the steps of different horo dances and preserve their authentic steps.

Petra Marino, Visual Artist

​Petra Marino is a visual artist and designer with a background in architecture and sociology. She works in human-environment interaction and strongly believes in building a healthy and creative living environment through connection with the past. Petra studies the past-present relationship through different projects: “Portraits of vanishing Sofia”, presenting the problem of old houses destruction as an obliteration of the city memory; “Traces from the Past”, exploring the visual memory of urban surfaces; “Following in the Steps of Bulgarian Folklore”, promoting traditional dances, through patterns of their steps; etc.

2021 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation / Special Recognition for Sustainable Development

Kesennuma Historic Citiscape, MIYAGI, JAPAN

​In 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake triggered a tsunami that struck the northeast coast of Japan, almost completely destroying Kesennuma’s historic structures and fishing port. Following the site’s inclusion on the 2012 World Monuments Watch, World Monuments Fund launched the Save Our Culture initiative, incorporating both international cooperation and private/public partnership, and worked with Kesennuma Kazamachi Cityscape Preservation Association to restore six historic buildings. A decade after the disaster, this award-winning project has been serving as a driver for revitalization of Kesennuma’s historic cityscape, local economy, and community spirit.

Hunghsi Chao, Programme Manager, World Monuments Fund

Hunghsi joined WMF in New York City as a staff member for the Qianlong Garden conservation project and the CRAFT educational program in 2013. Since then, he has participated in numerous conservation field projects in China, Japan, India, Turkey, Bhutan, Mongolia, Nepal and East Asia. After receiving both his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in building and planning from Taiwan University, he earned his M.Sc. in Historic Preservation from Pratt Institute in New York. 

​European Museum Academy / Art Museum Award 2021

Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, Craft and Design, KOLDING, DENMARK

Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, Craft and Design believes museums must respond to an ever-changing world; create diverse communities; stimulate creativity and creative thinking; and empower people with the experience of being able to both act and participate in public conversations. Trapholt’s participatory and socially engaged work is an essential developmental engine, where new methods and ideas are conceived and translated into changing the museum overall. Participatory and user oriented initiatives are rooted in the organisation in order to become sustainable with strong commitment of the management.

Karen Grøn, Director,Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, Craft and Design

Trapholt’s Director since 2010, Karen’s special interest lies in how museums navigate between being attractions and serving the social good. She worked as curator at the Museum from 2001 and as a curator at the Women's Museum 1997-1999. Karen Grøn was visiting researcher at Tate 2018-19, and research associate at Museums and Galleries in Education, Institute of Education, University College London 2006-7. Karen received her MA in interdisciplinary culture, at Aarhus University 1996 and MA in Public Management (MPM) at the University of Southern Denmark 2010.

2021 Museums and Galleries National Awards (MAGNA) / ​National Winner

Newcastle Museum | 1x4, NEWCASTLE, AUSTRALIA

1X4 cuts to a tension at the heart of museum practice. Curators choose an interpretation of an object, and visitors engage with this story as the truth. But museum objects contain a multitude of truths. Acknowledging this tension has become part of the philosophy at Newcastle Museum, across all our practice. This core value inspired 1X4, an exhibition that highlights the role of curators and historians in shaping how we perceive significance. It was chosen as the Winner of the 2021 National MAGNA, Australia's highest museum and gallery award.

Julie Baird, Director, Newcastle Museum

​Julie Baird has over 30 years professional experience in the museum sector. She began working in Canadian museums in the 1990’s focusing on textile collections. Ms Baird’s experience in researching and interpreting and working with the community has resulted in a number of successful and award-winning permanent exhibitions, including National MAGNAs for 1X4 and the redesign and redevelopment of the Newcastle Museum's social history galleries. Julie is the current Vice President of the Australian Museums & Art Galleries Association.

Gare Maritime, Brussels, Belgium

Gare Maritime, BRUSSELS, BELGIUM

Gare Maritime was once the largest freight station in Europe. After a complete
renovation, today it is Brussels’ circular destination. The historic station halls have been transformed into a covered city: oak pavilions create a structure of boulevards, streets, squares and gardens, complete with a Food Market, exclusive shops and offices. The architectural eye-catcher is the monumental central nave which is bathed in indirect daylight.

Peter De Durpel, COO, Nextensa

Peter De Durpel studied Master of Science in Civil Engineering at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels. After a career within the Infrastructure Department of Belgian Defence, and with Bopro, a leading consultancy in the Belgian real estate market, he joined Nextensa (formerly Extensa) in 2015. He became one of the driving forces behind the still ongoing urban expansion and regeneration project Tour & Taxis in Brussels. He is the company’s COO since 2015 and is interested in sustainable urban development, circular economy and in anything that makes cities thrive.

European Museum Forum / The Council of Europe Museum Prize 2021

Gulag History Museum, MOSCOW, RUSSIAN FEDERATION

​The GULAG History Museum is a centre for studying, comprehending, and openly discussing the history of mass repression in the USSR. The Museum’s mission is telling about mass repression thus motivating people to reflect on the value of human life. The Museum collects and studies archival material, recollections of participants and their personal belongings, objects found in former camp locations. The Museum’s permanent exhibition shows the stages of the punitive system formation in 1918—1956 and the way it influenced people’s lives.

Roman Romanov & Anna Stadinchuk

Roman Romanov, Director of the GULAG History Museum since 2012, graduated from the University of the Russian Academy of Education, Faculty of Psychology. In 2016 he set up the Memory Fund which initiates and supports projects about soviet mass repression across Russia. Anna Stadinchuk, currently a Deputy Director for development, has worked in the Museum since 2012. She graduated from the Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Journalism. She supervises the work of the Exhibition and PR departments, Social and Volunteer Center, Events and Audience Experience departments.

2021 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation / Award of Excellence

Nizamuddin Basti, NEW DELHI, INDIA

As part of Aga Khan Development Network’s humanitarian assistance activities in Syria, including emergency health care and food aid, Aga Khan trust for Culture undertook surveys and technical studies for the rehabilitation of Souk al-Saqatiyya. This was followed by a pilot project in the Aleppo Souk – the largest medieval souk in the Middle East – which had been severely damaged during the conflict. The prototype for conservation included all public spaces along 150 metres of the Souk, including the vaulted roof and central passageway, essential infrastructure, and utilities.

Ali Esmaiel , CEO, Aga Khan Trust for Culture in Syria

Ali has been a professional expert in international development for almost two decades. Since 2006 he has been leading a team of experts from the Aga Khan Trust for Culture in Syria to safeguard several historical sites in Aleppo and Damascus. Such projects include restorations of three medieval castles, the development of Aleppo Citadel Perimeter, the transfer of knowledge and building capacities for young Syrian specialists, and recently the rehabilitation of a severely damaged medieval souk during the conflict.  Ali graduated from Damascus University with a BA in business, was awarded the Royal Chevening Scholarship to study for MBA from UK, and has a Ph.D. from United States.

Children in Museums Award 2021

Dutch Open Air Museum | Restart, ARNHEM, THE NETHERLANDS

The Dutch Open Air Museum strives to be a reflection of the ever-changing Dutch society, with migration as a major topic. In the Restart programme the museum makes this theme understandable for teenagers, by relating to their own life and experiences and turning it into a playful but serious game.  The museum is transformed into an imaginary country, where children, as immigrants, have to find their way. As with real immigrants, success is by no means guaranteed and setbacks are inevitable and feelings of frustration or disappointment are part of the game. 

Gitta Paans, Concept Developer, Education, Dutch Open Air Museum

Gitta Paans studied Cultural Heritage at the Reinwardt Academy in the Netherlands. After working as an interpreter at Plymoth Plantation (MA, USA), she stood at the base of the Archeon Museumpark, developing and implementing the historical interpretation department. In Mauritshuis she developed educational programs, and since 1999 she has been working as an educator/concept developer at the Dutch Open Air Museum. There she is responsible for the development of educational programs for school children (ages 3-15) and families, as well as the educational content of  exhibitions and presentations.

ILUCIDARE Special Prizes 2021

EU-LAC Museums − Museums, Community & Sustainability in Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, UNITED KINGDOM

Museums hold an unequalled responsibility to communicate the shared history and “cultural, political and economic ties” between Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean. Museums have enormous capacity to reach all levels of community, from towns to remote villages, and can be spaces for building social cohesion and reconciliation in a variety of contexts. The EU-LAC Museums project created a common vision for community-based museums, and reinforced mutual understanding and cooperation between regions in line with the aims of Horizon 2020 INT12 (2015), and the EU-CELAC Action Plan.

Karen Brown, Senior Lecturer, University of St Andrews, Scotland

Karen has led many international collaborative research projects, including the EC Horizon 2020 project EU-LAC Museums on concepts and experiences of museums, community and sustainability. In association with the Regional Alliances ICOM Europe and ICOM LAC, it led to ICOM Resolution No. 5 on 'Museums, Community, Sustainability' (2019), and was awarded a European Heritage/Europa Nostra Ilucidare Special Prize for Heritage-led International Relations. A member of ICOM since 1998, Karen has served on the boards of ICOM Ireland, ICOM Europe, and ICOFOM.

Finnish Museums Association / Museum of the Year 2021

Sarka - the Finnish Museum of Agriculture, LOIMAA, FINLAND

Sarka Museum preserves the history of agriculture and rural life and shows the history of Finnish agriculture in a modern, versatile and interesting way.  The opening of Sarka was preceded by years of work and political activity from the local heritage activists.  A new building was erected for the museum and the exhibition was opened in June 2005. Even the slightly challenging location of the museum is not an obstacle to the museum's insightful pedagogical activities, as the museum's guided virtual tours reach the whole of Finland. The museum is actively tackling current phenomena: exhibitions have addressed climate change, among other things. 

Sami Louekari, Director, Finnish Museum of Agriculture Sarka

Sami Louekari has worked a long time at the University of Turku as a researcher and lecturer in Department of Landscape Studies. His research interest has focused on agricultural history, environmental history and landscape studies. The topic of his dissertation was Politics of Utility. Environmental history from Kokemäenjoki River Valley between 1720–1850 (University of Turku, 2013). He started as museum director in Sarka in 2019.

European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Award 2021/ Dedicated Service to Heritage

Gjirokastra Foundation, ALBANIA

Thanks to the dedicated, 20-year commitment of the Gjirokastra Foundation to rescue their town from decay, this World Heritage City is being saved through the introduction of the best principles and models for conservation and heritage-based development. This work was undertaken in a challenging social and political context and in the spirit of community-based practices with a participatory approach.Their endeavours promote the training of a new generation of architects, craftspeople and other heritage professionals, with a combination of conservation, restoration and revitalisation projects, using all resources efficiently while remaining focused on sustainable solutions.

Sadi Petrela, Executive Director, Gjirokastra Foundation

Sadi Petrela has been leading the GF's work for planning, fundraising and implementing of about 50 projects, which cover a wide variety of actions for preservation and development of heritage as an instrument for social and economic development. Petrela has helped to make the organisation one of the most effective and prestigious Albanian NGOs working in the country and certainly one of the best recognised of all the Albanian NGOs working in the field of heritage. His knowledge of the problems facing Gjirokastra heritage and the issues affecting Albanian cultural heritage generally is unparalleled. 

Museums + Heritage Awards / Community Impact Award 2021

Colchester + Ipswich Museums | Museum From Home Activity Packs, UNITED KINGDOM

In March 2020, Covid-19 lockdowns began in England, and many families were plunged into crisis – people were struggling with work, home schooling, and even feeding their children. Working as fast as we could, Colchester + Ipswich Museums delivered entertaining and educational activity packs directly to local families in need via trusted organisations. What began as an in-house initiative, filled with materials stripped from craft cupboards, quickly snowballed. Unprecedented demand, coupled with support from volunteers and countless partners, led to 3,000 packs being distributed to young people in 2020 - 21. 

Eleanor Root, Curator, Collections and Learning, Colchester + Ipswich Museums

Eleanor has been Collections and Learning Curator at Colchester + Ipswich Museums since 2015. She is a passionate advocate for working in active partnership with communities and is a self-confessed evaluation geek. During 2020- 21, Eleanor created and delivered a project that saw thousands of activity packs distributed, in partnership with over 20 organisations, to Suffolk’s most vulnerable families. Eleanor’s work includes co-creating ‘Power of Stories’, an exhibition featuring costumes from Marvel Studios’ Black Panther film, delivering cultural events at Jobcentres, and developing Ipswich Museums’ social history collections.

European Museum Forum / Meyvaert Museum Prize for Sustainability 2021

Museum Walserhaus, BOSCO GURIN, SWITZERLAND

Museum Walserhaus is housed in one of the oldest dwellings in the Alps and presents the Walser culture of Bosco Gurin in all its aspects - historical, linguistic, architectural, etc. The Museum's mission is not only to conserve and revitalise the Walser culture of the village and the other Walser communities, but above all it acts as a point of reference for the entire community, involving each member in the activities according to their abilities, therefore strengthening the sense of belonging and keeping culture alive among young people too.

Francesca Pedrocchi, Museum Walserhaus Bosco Gurin

As a member of the team of volunteers and friends of the Museum, Francesca takes care of the secretariat, contributes to the management of the projects and, according to her background, is in charge of translation work. As a representative of Bosco Gurin she is also involved in the projects of the international Walser association.

Canadian Museums Association / Stewardship of Collections Award 2021

Galt Museum & Archives, LETHBRIDGE, CANADA

The Galt Museum & Archives is a regional museum located in the heart of Blackfoot Territory on Treaty 7 land, which also holds special meaning to the Métis people. Collections Technician Kevin MacLean transformed how the museum accepts donations of material culture. Since 2013, staff have recorded oral history interviews with all donors, allowing the donor themselves to be the “voice” for the object's history and cultural relevance. Collecting and transcribing interviews layers the museum's collection with strata of context and meaning—multiple rich entry points for educators, researchers, residents and visitors.

Kevin MacLean, Lead, Collections management operations, Galt Museum & Archives

Kevin has led the collections management operations of the Galt Museum & Archives in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada since 1997. MacLean explains that his decades-long continuity at the Galt is what enabled the gradual evolution in object research practices, beginning in 2007. He has spoken both regionally and nationally on the importance of recording and transcribing donor interviews. MacLean and his team received the 2021 Excellence in Stewardship of Collections award from the Canadian Museums Association. He has a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Lethbridge.

European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Award 2021/ Conservation

Plaka Bridge, EPIRUS, GREECE

Plaka Bridge is a single arched stone-bridge built in 1866 on the river of Arachthos in Epirus, Greece. With an arch span over 40m and standing 20m in height it is one of the largest stone bridges in the Balkans and a historical monument. During a heavy storm in 2015 the biggest part of the main arch and the east middle pier of the bridge collapsed. The anastylosis of this stone-bridge project was the first of its kind in Greece. It was a successful outcome of an exceptional interdisciplinary collaboration and research that have made quite an impact on the scientific community.

Amalia Androulidaki, General Director, Restoration, Museums and Technical Works, Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports

At the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports, Dr Androulidaki has responsibilities for supervision, intervention and protection of monuments and cultural buildings, their surroundings and historical and archaeological sites. She has worked at the Ministry since 1987, initially as an employee and then as Head of the Department of Archaeological Works and Maintenance of Building Facilities, elaborating the supervision of restoration projects on Ancient Byzantine and Modern Monuments. She holds a Degree in Architectural Engineering, a postgraduate Diploma in Monument Restoration and a Philosophy PhD.

Japanese Association of Museums Award 2021

Varve Museum (Nenkou Museum), FUKUI PREFECTURE, JAPAN

The Varve Museum is a unique museum featuring lake sediments. "Varve" means a layer of sediment that represents a single year. Lake Suigetsu, Japan, accommodates varves that have accumulated over the last 70.000 years. In 2012, the number of layers established by scientists was adopted as the international standard time scale for radiocarbon dating. The varves are also detailed records of past climate changes. The breathtaking 50m-long gallery exhibits the entirety of the Suigetsu varves , and takes visitors on a journey of time tracing back 70.000 years.

Takeshi Nakagawa, Research Manager, Varve Museum

Takeshi Nakagawa received the degree of “Docteur en Sciences” from the Université d’Aix-Marseille III (France) in 1998, is a Japanese palaeoclimatologist investigating past climate changes that occurred in timescales that could be perceived by humans. The varves (annually deposited thin layers of sediment) of Lake Suigetsu, Japan, studied intensively by the international team led by Takeshi contributes towards the international consensus time scale of the past 50.000 years. He is currently a research manager of the Varve Museum.

European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Award 2021/ Education, Training and Awareness-raising

European Solidarity Centre | Permanent Exhibition, GDANSK, POLAND

In August 1980 workers from the Gdańsk Shipyard – the largest shipyard in Poland at that time – refused to work and demanded more civil liberties. Hundreds of factories across the country joined the strike in solidarity. As a result in August 1980 the Shipyard hosted ground-breaking negotiations between the workers and the communist government. For the first time behind the iron curtain a compromise between strikers and authorities was reached. Solidarność/Solidarity, the first independent self-governing trade union in the Eastern Bloc, came into existence. It was the beginning of a peaceful revolution that led to the fall of communism in Eastern and Central Europe nearly a decade later.

Basil Kerski, Director, European Solidarity Centre

Basil Kerski is a German-Polish manager of culture, editor, publicist, and political scientist. He grew up in Poland, Iraq and West Germany. He studied political science and Slavic studies at the Freie Universität Berlin. He is the director of the European Solidarity Centre in Gdansk and since 1998 an editor-in-chief of the bilingual Polish-German journal DIALOG, and a contributor to Przeglad Polityczny [Political Review]. He is also the Vice-Chair of the Academic Committee of the House of European History in Brussels. Author of German, Polish and Ukrainian books analysing history and politics.

Art Fund Prize / Museum of the Year 2021

Firstsite, COLCHESTER, UNITED KINGDOM

Firstsite is a public contemporary art gallery in Colchester, making and showing exceptional art and culture that celebrates the people of East Anglia, empowering communities to be creative together and lead healthier and happier lives. Since opening its spectacular crescent-shaped building in 2011, Firstsite has welcomed over one million visitors and established its reputation for being an art gallery of national importance. The gallery’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, which included providing thousands of free meals and creative activities to families, saw Firstsite named “Art Fund Museum of the Year 2021”.

Sally Shaw, Director, Firstsite

Sally has realigned Firstsite with a focused purpose: deploying art and culture to address critical challenges in the community such as food poverty and inequity. Sally’s focus on ground-up community collaboration led Firstsite to be recognised nationally and internationally for its COVID-19 response – culminating in Firstsite winning Art Fund Museum of the Year 2021 and Sally recognised with an MBE for Services to the Arts. Sally’s previous roles include Head of Programme at Modern Art Oxford and Deputy Head of Culture for the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.

TBIH2021 IMAGINES "Project of Influence": Unmute Art

Loredana Amenta, Key Account Manager, Orpheo Group Italy

Loredana graduated Political Science in Bologna and worked for several years for the European Community in Brussels. From 2015 she is part of the Orpheo Group, a multinational company specialising in technologies for cultural assets, where she is responsible for public and corporate relations and handles the most important clients. She manages national and European public financing projects and all works involving a high level of technological innovation. She is the company’s contact person for museum accessibility and for the internationalisation of exhibitions. From 2021 she is also the Group’s account person for the Middle East and South-Asia market.

The Best in Heritage 2021 "Project of Influence": Tiati Wangkanthi Kumangka (Truth-Telling Together)

Julia Garnaut, Curator, History & Exhibitions, City of Holdfast Bay

Julia Garnaut, Curator History & Exhibitions Bay Discovery Centre is Vice-President of Australia Museums and Galleries South Australia (AMaGA). Julia has her Masters in Cultural Heritage Management and has worked with Aboriginal communities throughout Australia as both an archaeologist and curator.   

Head, Exhibitions and Visitor Service, State Museum of Archaeology Chemnitz (smac), GERMANY

Jens Beutmann

Jens Beutmann studied Archaeology, History and Computer Science in Hamburg, Dublin (UCD) and Freiburg. For several years he directed excavations and conducted research on medieval towns in Saxony, writing his PhD-thesis on Zwickau. From 2008 onwards he was involved in the conceptual design process for the State Museum of Archaeology Chemnitz (smac), opened in 2014, and now is head of the Exhibitions and Visitor Service Division of the museum. There he curated the exhibitions “Money”, “Death and Ritual” and “The City”.

Principal, Becket Architects, GREECE

Daphne Becket

Daphne Becket is the Principal at Becket Architects, based in London and Athens. She was born in Chile, raised in Switzerland by a Greek Mother and an American Father. Studied Architecture at Cambridge University and has run her design practice since 1990, with projects in the UK, the US and Greece. She has taught and lectured at Cambridge and Kingston Universities among others. Daphne has worked as a set decorator and designer in feature films and has produced documentaries. Her Patmos Windmills restoration project received both Best Heritage and Europa Nostra awards.

Owner, The Intan, SINGAPORE

Alvin Yapp

​Alvin Yapp is the owner of The Intan, an award winning heritage home-museum in Singapore.  Founded in 2003 and borne out of one man’s passion for Singapore's unique Peranakan culture, Alvin promotes Peranakan history and culture by sharing his treasure trove and imparting expertise amassed from over 30 years of collection and study. Today, Alvin is well sought after locally and internationally when he showcases and shares Peranakan culture at  international conferences and major trade shows hosted by Singapore Tourism Board and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore.

Co-chair, ICOM US, UNITED STATES

Tom Loughman

Tom Loughman is a global arts professional and accomplished museum director. His first major executive role (2008-2015) was as Associate Director of the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts, where he orchestrated a worldwide collection tour during a period of campus transformation with new buildings by Japanese architect Tadao Ando. Loughman led America’s oldest art museum, the Wadsworth Atheneum, as its Director and CEO, 2016-2021.  A trusted voice and passionate advocate, his service to the field includes leading the United States National Committee of ICOM as co-chair since 2017.

Head, Communications and PR, ICOM, FRANCE

Alexandra Fernández Coego

Alexandra Fernández Coego is the Head of Communications and PR of ICOM, where she directs the communication strategy of the organisation. Prior to joining ICOM, Alexandra worked as a journalist and reporter for diverse news outlets and was a foreign correspondent in Paris for the Spanish newspaper La Voz de Galicia. She holds a B.A. in Journalism from the Complutense University of Madrid and an M.A. in Investigative Journalism from the European Institute of Journalism.

CEO, Livdeo, FRANCE

Ciprian Melian

Ciprian is the Livdeo CEO. He is a specialist in web and cloud technologies, distributed systems, and mobile applications, with a specific vision related to inclusive digital experiences for cultural institutions. He has been involved as a consultant and architect for many digital projects over the past 20 years. Furthermore, he has participated in academic research work on data mining, machine translation, and the semantic web.