Sleman, February, 10 2026, Ullen Sentalu Museum, in collaboration with the Kedhaton Museum of the Yogyakarta Palace, The British Museum, and PSPSR UGM, hosted International Museum Forum, centered on the theme “Heritagisation of Museum Collections”. Held from 09:30 to 12:00 WIB, this bilingual event served as a strategic platform for international experts to discuss the future of cultural preservation.
The theme of Heritagisation aims to make museum artifacts and objects ‘breathe alive’. This process transcends static exhibitions, involving in-depth research, re-interpretation, performing arts, and comprehensive proceedings documentation.
The forum was hosted by Dr. Rr. Paramitha Dyah Fitriasari, S.Ant., M.Hum., featuring six distinguished panelists who examined museum collections through various lenses:
- Daniel Haryono, M.Hum. (Ullen Sentalu Museum) acted as moderator while presenting insights from a museological perspective.
- GKR. Bendara, M.Sc. (Penghageng KHP Nitya Budaya of the Karaton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat) shared the palace’s perspective on cultural preservation.
- Dr. Alexandra Green (Curator at the British Museum, London) provided international insights regarding the access and management of Southeast Asian collections at the British Museum.
- Dr. Sri Margana (FIB UGM) discussed a comparative study of the Serat Damarwulan manuscripts.
- Dr. Rudy Wiratama (FIB UGM) analyzed the British Museum’s early 19th-century wayang (shadow puppet) collection.
- Dr. G.R. Lono L. Simatupang (UGM Graduate School) concluded the session by highlighting the vital synergy between museums and universities.
The Q&A session was marked by high enthusiasm from the participants. Discussions focused on the attribution of meaning to heritage objects and technical aspects, such as alternative materials to leather for wayang making.
In her closing remarks, Dr. Alexandra Green shared a powerful perspective on object meaning making, “There’s no one single truth, different objects have different meanings for different people. Preserve, conserve, make it accessible showing all different stories and look at the objects like a human life phase.”
Beyond academic discourse, this forum represents a concrete step toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically:
- SDG 4 (Quality Education): Providing the public with access to profound historical knowledge.
- SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): Strengthening efforts to protect the world’s cultural heritage.
- SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals): Building collaborations between national museums, international institutions, and academia. (NA)
