NORDI S K MU S EOLOGI 1999•2 , S. 65 -8 6

THE ECOMUSEUM IN THEORY AND PRACTICE THE FIRST CHINESE ECOMUSEUM ESTABLISHED

An Laishun john Aage Gjestrum

The first Chinese ecomuseum was opened on October 31st 1998. This was a result of four years ofco-operation between Chinese and Norwegian museum professionals, state authorities on various levels and the people ofa local ethnic minority in Guizhou pro­ vince. At the signing ofthe official project agreement in 1997 the Chinese head ofstate Jiang Zemin and the Norwegian King Harald and Queen Sonja, were present. It is very rare for a museum project to attract such high level attention. It is quite a distance from the palaces ofBeijing where this event took place to the Soga community and the Qing Miao minority group, with a population of4, 000 living under the poorest conditions in a high mountain area in Guizhou province.

At the end of 5 years one may ask what of China which has only been opened to the result is of the ecomuseum project in outsiders in recent years. Guizhou. What has been a success, what has failed, what is specific to an ecomu­ THE CURRENT SITUATION seum in a Chinese context, - and finally, OF CHINESE MUSEUMS what are the future prospects for ecomu­ seums in China? Some of these questions As background material some facts about will be answered in this text, and some the museum situation in China will be will just be raised. This year (1999) the provided. During the two decades since ecomuseum project is entering its second 1978 when China started on the road of stage, - with the planning of three more reform opening up to the outside world, ecomuseums, all of them linked to mino­ Chinese museums have increased both in rity peoples in Guizhou province, a part number and type. A N LAI S HUN & j O H N AA GE GJ ES TRUM

66 Today, China has about 1900 museums. politics and philosophy of the nation. In the Chinese museum management sys­ However, since museums represent world­ tem, the majority of museums are so-cal­ wide cultural phenomena, Chinese led «cultural system» museums. These museums are also a part of the world's museums are mainly supported and super­ museums and thus share common charac­ vised by cultural heritage authorities on teristics. It is very natural for Chinese different levels. According to statistics, in museum professionals to start a process of 1980 there were 365 museums within this internationalization in the 1980s. One system with 6,12 million museum objects. milestone was China's participation in the By 1998 the number had reached 1331, International Council of Museums with more than 10 million objects. These (ICOM) in 1983. Since then, regular museums make up about 2/3 of the total international exchanges and cooperation number of museums at the moment. programmes have gradually been develo­ Outside this system, a diversified ped. museum typology has gradually been developed over the last ten years. At least MODERNIZATION AND SOCIAL 500 museums were respectively founded TRANSITION -A CHALLENGE TO and run by other authorities and universi­ MINORITY CULTURAL HERITAGE ties, industrial companies, and even by AND MINORITY TRADITIONS private individuals. As an example at least two new museums will be opened in In the process of modernization, China Beijing this autumn. One is a private has has undergone a variety of social and museum - «The Red Wood Furniture economic transitions: from an agricultural Museum» - which recently opened and to an industrial society, from an industrial another is a company museum of bronze to an information society, from a stagnant art which will open at the end of to a developing society, and from a plan­ September. There are now 9 private ned to a market economy. All these transi­ museums, accounting for almost 10% of tions have greatly influenced our cultural the 102 museums in Beijing, the capital patterns, and particularly challenge the city of China. minority cultures in the rural areas which The majority of the existing museums have just opened up to the outside world. hold archaeology, art and fine art collecti­ One of the crucial issues concerning ons, and treasures from the emperors' minority cultures is that in areas which dynasties as a result of the long history were opened at an early stage, some parts and richness of archaeological excavations. of their unique cultures have been gradu­ Other types of museums, especially folkli­ ally buried as a result of economic deve­ fe museums focussing on traditions of eve­ lopment and the tourist industry. ryday culture, are still rare. Problems - such as what can be learnt Chinese museums have grown and deve­ from previous failures, and what people loped on Chinese soil, they are endowed should do in the other newly opened with Chinese characteristics determined minority areas - have attracted great by both the cultural background and the attention. Chinese professionals m THE FIR ST C HI NESE E C O M U S EUM E STABLI S H E D

museums and cultural heritage agencies member and as scientific adviser. 67 have also realized that there is an urgent NORAD and related Norwegian authori­ need to find some constructive theoretical ties have supported this study. concepts and successful practices presen­ Guizhou is a Chinese province with 32 ted by other national and international million people, of whom about 65% are experiences, in order to provide local Han and the rest a mixture of ethnic minority communities with the tools nee­ minorities. Mountains and plateaus make ded to handle the balance between the pro­ up 87% of Guizhou's topography, which tection of their cultural identity and ratio­ has an average altitude of 1OOOm above nal social and economic development. sea level. It is one of the richest provinces in terms of unique minority cultures, and THE INITIATIVE OF THE PROJECT one of poorest provinces in its economy. ECOMUSEUMS IN GU/ZHOU Statistics show that in 1997, the total pro­ vincial income was only about 1I10 of In September 1994, the International that in Shanghai, China's biggest industri­ Committee for Museology of ICOM al city. The protection of a minority cultu­ (ICOFOM) held its annual conference in ral heritage faces serious challenges in the Beijing. During the meeting some eager desire for economic development Chinese museologists discussed the basic and the urgent needs to improve people's ideas of the ecomuseum concept with a living conditions. museologist from France (Andre In April 1995, the project team investi­ Desvallees), where the ecomuseum was gated 12 villages in Guizhou where Miao, initiated in 1971, and with a museologist Buyi, Dong and Han national groups live from Norway (John Aage Gjestrum) in compact communities. The project where the ecomuseum concept has been team combined the basic concept of the successfully developed and practised. The ecomuseum with the actual conditions of Chinese museologists took a very great Guizhou, and suggested setting up China's interest in experiences from the Norweg­ first ecomuseum in Soga, a unique Miao ian ecomuseums. community. Following this, three other As a result of this constructive discussi­ ecomuseums representing different natio­ on, the Chinese Society of Museums nalities and minority cultures would be (CMS), a nongovernmental organization planned in Guizhou. The Chinese govern­ of museum professionals in China, launch­ ment at both central and provincial levels ed a study into the possibility of establish­ approved the project on the principles ing ecomuseums in China. It was sugges­ proposed in a Study Report by the project ted that Guizhou province, which was team. An application for further opened in the mid-80s, rich in minorities Norwegian scientific and financial assis­ and minority cultures and eager for eco­ tance was also made to NORAD in the nomic development, should serve as the same year. With the approval of NORAD, test case. Soon afterwards a project team the project Ecomuseums in Guizhou was established conducted by CSM. John Province was formalized in 199 5 as a Aage Gjestrum was invited to join as a China - Norway cooperation project. At AN LAI SHU N & JOH N AAGE GJE STRUM

68 the official signing of the project agree­ the same time the ecomuseum will be an ment on 23 October 1997, the Chinese instrument for its safeguarding and future President Jiang Zemin and the Norwegian preservation. King Harald and Queen Sonja were pre­ Instead of seeing the museum as very sent. clearly defined - with collections and museum buildings - the ecomuseum must AN INTRODUCTION TO be seen as a long-term working method in THE ECOMUSEUM CONCEPT the preservation and understanding of the specific material and immaterial culture of Sunce the concept of the ecomuseum was a human group. introduced in France in 1971 it has beco­ This increased understanding will me an important part of the museum strengthen cultural identity. It is based on scene in many countries in Europe, Latin­ participation and controlled by the group America and Canada. itself, guided by museological and scienti­ As is well known, the main theoretical fic experts and supported financially by starting point of the ecomuseum is that the authorities. people should not be separated from their Today, at the end of the 20th century cultural heritage but that they should have and the beginning of the 21st century, the the opportunity to create their future paradigm of ecological limitations is based on it. From this position all practi­ important to mankind - and the eco- in cal action is developed making the ecomu­ the name ecomuseum is the Greek word seum very different from the traditional for household - housekeeping. museum. The traditional museum as we Some basic keywords in the ecomuseum know it is needed for scientific and many concept are: other reasons and the ecomuseum is not - territory m any way a substitute for other - heritage museums. Instead it widens the museum - population concept to include new social functions. - memory While the traditional museum is based - popular education on moving the heritage into a museum - participation building - very often far away from the - ecology original owner of this heritage (and its - identity environment) - the ecomuseum is based on the idea that the heritage within a spe­ The ecomuseum as a working model in cific community should be preserved in the field of heritage and cultural values in situ. The territory of the community and a community will strengthen the cultural the space of the museum accordingly will identity of the group. This can be a major be the same. contribution to the future survival of the The heritage: landscape, buildings, culture. The ecomuseum therefore has a movable objects, traditions - the content very clear social function. It will also serve of the culture in this specific community as a link between the past, the present and is given value by the ecomuseum - and at the future. Xiong Shaoan (75) is both elder and shaman in the village AnZ hu - one of the 12 Qing Miao villages in Soga, Guizhou province, China. Photo: John Aage Gjestru111/Soga eco11111seu111 .

The 25 years of ecomuseum experience 1. A data bank for the documentation of has provided many examples of how these the specific culture, consisting of tape principal ideas have been adapted to prac­ recordings of oral history (language and tical situations. traditions), photographs, written sour­ In theory the ecomuseum considers all ces, specific valuable objects, inventories cultural and natural heritage within its with registration of objects, buildings specific territory as part of the museum. and other parts of the heritage in the However, this is a theoretical position: territory etc.: the data bank represents a everything is a potential part of the docu­ rich source of knowledge that should be mentation of the history and present cul­ safely preserved and studied both by the ture of the group. population itself and by visiting resear­ In practice the ecomuseums have been chers. organized in a variety of ways. One of the 2. A visitors' centre giving an introduction most important parts however is a docu­ (a small exhibition) to the specific cultu­ mentation centre. This is simultaneously: re and people being visited, how they as A N LAI SHUN & JOHN AAGE GJE STRUM

70 v1s1tors (guests) should behave, and emphasizing the participation of the local what they can see and experience during population in the work and giving weight their visit. This can also be done using to the social function of the museum. audio-visual media. This makes the ecomuseum different 3. Working facilities and technical equip­ from other types of museum, while supp­ ment for the museum staff and volunte­ lementing the work done by them. The ers working on documentation, research bigger museums on national, provincial and interpretation. and regional level will therefore find it 4. Normally there are also some areas for very useful to co-operate with the smaller social functions such as a small restau­ ecomuseums situated at the grass-roots rant and conference/activity rooms. level. Some results of the ecomuseum work may be: The other main part of the ecomuseum - to increase the importance of the con­ structure is what in France is called the cept of heritage; antennae of the ecomuseum. That is those - to increase the self-confidence of diffe­ parts of the heritage preserved in situ cho­ rent communities; sen to be accessible to visitors, and given a - to increase the possibility of an ecologi­ specific interpretation. Each one of these cally responsible/sustainable future; visiting points is normally very small and - to increase social responsibility; covers only one or a few aspects of the - to increase scientific long-term resour- heritage. However, because of the very ces; authenticity of these selected sites - to increase the museum's role in popular (points), - the total experience of the visi­ education; tor will be very wide. - to increase knowledge about other cul­ In the world today there are more than tural groups, resulting in tolerance, 300 ecomuseums, in Southern Europe respect and mutual trust. (70; France, Spain, Portugal), Scandinavia (50; Norway, Sweden, Denmark), Latin America (90; Brazil, Mexico), Northern THE SOGA ECOMUSEUM America (20; USA, Canada). There are - THE FIRST CHINESE ECOMUSEUM also ecomuseums in other countries throughout the world. Soga Ecomuseum, which is the first eco­ In every country and in every museum museum in China, represents a unique project the ecomuseum is realized diffe­ ehtnic group of the Miao nationality. rently - based on the specific cultural situ­ According to statistics the total Miao ation and personnel and economic resour­ population in China was 7,390,835 in ces . Some projects are mostly directed 1990. It is the fourth biggest minority towards the needs of the local population, nationality of China. About half the Miao others more towards outside visitors. population lives in Guizhou. Miao is a In all cases the work on preservation of nationality with 5,000 years of history. the heritage and the museum work are Originally this nationality lived along the integrated and seen as a whole, strongly lower reaches of the Yangtze and Yellow From the opening ceremony ofth e Soga eco111we11m documentation centre in LongGa village October 31st 1998. Xiong H11 aya11 is speaking on behalf ofthe Qing Miao people. Photo: john Aage Gjestmm/Soga econmseum.

Rivers. Endless wars forced them to move distributed in 12 villages. Living in the from there to the south and southwest remote high mountains from 1,400 to part of China as well as Southern Asian 2,000 m above sea level all the year round, countries. By the time of the Qing dynas­ the people here have had no continuous ty (17th century) the Miao had undergone contact with the outside world until late five great migrations. Some scholars have in the 1980s when a new road was built. described the history of the Miao as «a The community has an old and unique history of fighting, and a history of migra­ Miao culture, symbolized by a head orna­ tion». ment made of long ox horns. Although Deep in the mountains in the central the local people usually call this group of part of Guizhou, is Soga community, in people «Longhorn Miao», the group itself the Liuzhi District (a small part of it prefers and more often uses its own «offi­ belongs administratively to the Zhijin dis­ cial» name «Qing Miao» (the literal mea­ trict), here lives the rarest and the smallest ning being 'the Miao people who live in branch of the Miao with a specific cultural high mountains with big trees and dense identity all their own. In 1996, this ethnic grass'). group had 4,069 people and 996 families

The wooden head ornament symbolizes the long ox horn. It is tmditionally wed bJ' the women ofthe Qing Miao people. At festivals, weddings and 011 other special occasions a big hair is added as decoration. The pictures show how this head decomtion is made. Photo: john Aage Gjestrnm/Soga eco11111se11111.

Natural Landscape Miao might have come here and settled in Due to the geographic conditions, there the first part of the 17th century, escaping are almost no or only very difficult roads. from the harsh wars fought between a The villages are situated 2 to 15 kilome­ local minority bureaucrat and the empe­ tres from the main roads, depending on ror's forces. their specific locations. Obviously, the Qing Miao people chose these particular Economy geographical conditions in which to site Most Qing Miao villages are still at the their villages for military reasons, since stage of a natural economy - men cultiva­ these places are easy to defend and hard to te the land and women weave gunny attack. cloth. Due to the high mountains and shortage of water the residents here have History to reclaim arid wasteland to grow and har­ The local historical records and Qing vest a small amount of corn and potatoes. Miao's oral history passed down by the Poultry, cattle, pigs and ducks are also rai­ elders indicate that this branch of the sed. AN LAISHUN & JOHN AAGE GJESTRUM

74 The houses have straw roofs and walls of Social Life wood and clay, or are made of mud. Each of the Qing Miao villages is mainly Building materials of wood were easily governed by three leaders called the Chief, available in earlier times, but are now the Elder and the Shaman. The Chief is expensive. Each family lives in a three­ the administrative commander; the Elder room house. One room has a stove which is the moral master and the Shaman is the is kept alight all the year round. The stove religious head. The three leaders are not is used for cooking, heating and boiling elected by the residents but come to wax. power naturally during the long course of their lives. They need not campaign for Culture office or be nominated. The local govern­ The Qing Miao community preserves an ment also appoints a man as the village amazing treasure of music and dances, as director. But in most cases, the man well as fascinating customs, dress and han­ nominated is the Chief, so the appoint­ dicrafts. ment is accepted easily by the residents. Unique music and dances: Music from The difference is that the people do not the long three-hole xiao (a vertical bamboo call him director; they still consider him flute) is low and deep as if telling people as the Chief. about the sufferings caused by wars; the lively sound of the bamboo sheng (a reed STARTING ACTIVITIES IN pipe wind instrument) and bamboo leaves THE SOGA ECOMUSEUM PROJECT is not as loud and sonorous as the tunes of other Miao groups. Adhering to the basic principles of the Wax printing and embroidery: With ecomuseum, the following work has been natural plant dye, the wax printing here is done as the first stage: of high quality. Every household has its Establishment of the documentation own dye vats. A girl starts to learn embroi­ centre of the Soga Ecomuseum in Longga dery at a very young age. An embroidered Village, one of the representative villages product is an embodiment of the intelli­ in the community. gence and wisdom of a girl. Longga village is situated in the centre of Soga community, and it is also one of Religion the original villages of the Qing Miao The Miao nationality believes in poly­ people. Longga has 97 households and theism. Qing Miao people worship the 490 inhabitants. More than 200 years ago, God of the Mountain, so once a year they 5 families settled here. On October 31, hold a ceremony to pay their respect to 1998, the Soga ecomuseum was opened this god. A shaman is the religious and together with the Documentation Centre. spiritual leader in the village. He tells for­ The functions of this documentation tunes, cures diseases, presides over memo­ centre are to serve as : rial ceremonies and exorcises ghosts for - a data bank of the Qing Miao history the residents. The shaman enjoys a high and collective memory reputation. - an interpretation centre with an intro- Village leaders ji-om Soga visiting the exhibitions i11 the Soga eco11111seu111 documentation centre. Photo: john Aage Gjestrum/Soga econwse11111.

ductory exhibition the collective memory of the community - a community centre where the local through direct participation of the local population can meet for social activities population. The objectives for this part of - a cultural centre where the local popula­ the project are: tion can celebrate their festivals. - to increase the importance of heritage in Soga community The architecture of the documentation - to increase the self-confidence of the centre was designed jointly by an architect Qing Miao people and the village people. Thus traditional - to increase the capacity for an ecologi­ features of village buildings can easily be cally responsible and sustainable future recognized in this centre. The major part - to increase long-term scientific resour­ of the construction work was finished by ces. village craftsmen usmg their traditional techniques. This first stage is called Qing Miao One of the core issues of Soga Memmy. The first training course in Qing Ecomuseum is to preserve and document Miao Memory was held at the documen- AN LA! S HUN & J O HN AAG E GJESTRUM

76 tation centre. The participants were seven oral history and legends told in their own young people from Longga village. The language. The first nine tapes were recor­ Norwegian and Chinese museologists con­ ded and stored in the documentation cen­ ducted the training in both ecomuseology tre. This work is being led by two Qing and museography. Like the other Miao ·Miao women in Longga and 11 other vil­ groups, the Qing Miao have no written lages. language of their own. Using their own Another core issue, the social and eco­ language for the documentation work was nomic development of Soga community, now strongly encouraged. These young is being considered in the first stage of people are the first group to date to work ecomuseum practice. with their collective memory by recording Before the ecomuseum was established, THE FIRST CHINESE E C OMU S EUM ESTABLI S HED

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The first training course in the Qing Memory project took pince in August 1999. Seven young people from LongGn village were tmined in making om! history recordings in their own lnngunge. Above the first 9 tapes are being locked into the documentation centre by Luo Gang (22) and Xiong Hunyan (21), who are in charge ofthe project. Photo: john Ange Gjestmm/Sogn eco11111se11m.

the school in Longga village was a cattle ecomuseum, Longga villagers themselves house, pupils had to study in the dark and have developed some specific courses for with little space. The project partly sup­ training in handicrafts for the girls at the ported the construction of a new school school instead of them staying at home to building in 1996. Now about 280 chil­ learn. All the school courses are taught in dren from Qing Miao community can both the Miao and Han languages. attend the Longga school. In Longga, the Soga Ecomuseum also promoted the percentage of children going to school is supply of electricity. As a result of the pro­ 92%, which is much higher than the ave­ ject, Longga and three other Qing Miao rage 30% to 40% in the other Qing Miao villages have had an electricity supply sin­ villages. In this school, two classes for girls ce 1996. were organized. Following the ideas of the The construction of the documentation The first group ofyoung people ji"0111 a 11ational 111i11ority group to be trained in t111 eco111use11111 oral histo1y project in China. Photo i11 ji"011t ofthe Soga ecom11seu111 documentation centre at the end ofthe training course August 8, 1999. Photo: Soga eco111useu111. THE FIR S T C HINE SE E C OMU S EUM ES T A BLISH E D

centre created some job possibilities, quite ecomuseum will support both objectives 79 a large number of Longga villagers benefi­ and contribute to a balance between ted from this construction. Longga village them. has also increased its income by receiving visitors and by organizing performances However, the Qing Miao people are facing even though this income is still very limi­ some new problems in balancing protecti­ ted. on and development. Agricultural conditions in Soga commu­ nity being very hard corn and potatoes are EVALUATION OF THE FIRST STAGE the main products in all the villages, and only a few of them can produce enough An evaluation of the first stage of the pro­ food for their needs. Infant mortality figu­ ject was carried out by the project team res in some of the villages are as high as last November. A further investigation was 10%. This is very clearly linked to the made in August 1999 by the Chinese and great difficulties in supplying sufficient Norwegian team members. Interviews drinking water. A school attendance rate were conducted with 18 village leaders of only 30-40% of the children is normal. from 11 of the 12 villages. Seven villages The community has an urgent need to in total were visited for purposes of docu­ improve its quality of life. Meanwhile, the mentation and observation. influence of the tourist industry has gra­ The interviews with the 18 village lea­ dually made itself felt. Longga village star­ ders revealed very clearly their opinions of ted to receive visitors in 1991. The deve­ the importance of Soga Ecomuseum. lopment of the ecomuseum has led to a They were all aware of the ecomuseum, great deal of interest from the media and and were positive to the museum idea. tourist companies. On the Internet, peo­ The reasons given were: ple can buy ticket direct to Longga from every corner of the world. It is not always - They considered the ecomuseum a tool easy for local people to handle the situati­ to be used to protect their traditions and on when a foreign tourist's expenses for heritage. one day are almost 10 times a villager's - They considered the ecomuseum a tool yearly income. All what they have is their for social and economic development. cultural heritage. If their living conditions - They considered the ecomuseum a com­ are not improved, if the tourists cannot munity centre for the whole Qing Miao behave in a proper way, if the real value of group. Until the establishment of the their cultural heritage is not fully recogni­ ecomuseum no such centre existed. zed by the villagers, what will happen to - The Qing Miao people on one hand the costumes and handicraft? want to protect their culture and traditi­ Some solutions must be found in the ons, but on the other they want social second stage of the project. and economic development so that their quality of life can be improved. In the opinion of the community leaders the AN LAISHUN & JOHN AA G E GJE STRUM

80 THE SECOND STAGE more Chinese ecomuseums in Guizhou. OF THE PROJECT In the plan for the further development of Soga Ecomuseum, the priority has been The Chinese and Norwegian government given to the following points: support is substantial. A letter of intent regarding the second stage of the project - Registration and documentation of 12 was signed by a Chinese representative Qing Miao villages. More detailed docu­ and the Minister of the Environment for mentation of Qing Miao culture in all Norway during her visit to China in aspects ~hould be carried out. The March 1999. In its second stage, from results from this will form an important 1999 to 2001, the project is supposed to part of the doci,imentation centre. The include both the further development of Qing Miao Memory project will be the Soga Ecomuseum and the planning continued for the whole three years. plus the first steps to establishing three - An improvement in the water supply of Houses in Soga l/Jere tmditionally built in l/Jood. !11 LongGa village 10 houses have been chosen far restomtion, - one ofthem pictured on the left page. Above: Craftsmen from LongGa 1Vho participated in the construction ofthe ecomuseum, are nol/J ready far the restomtion l/Jork. In front: Xiong Shaoweio and Xiong Yuming, both 61 years old. Photo: john Aage Gjestmm/Soga ecomuseum.

Longga and three other villages. - Arts and craft development. There is a Improvements to the infrastructure of very clear need for quality products that the community related to the social con­ can be offered to the tourists. Making ditions are to be given very high priori­ traditional costumes with the specific ty. This is an important social issue lin­ and very important high quality wax ked with the ecomuseum as a cultural painting is one of the possible crafts that project. can be introduced in an arts and crafts - Preservation and restoration of architectu­ project. re. In Longga village, 10 buildings have - Controlled tourism using various meth­ been chosen as the most valuable ones ods. This is linked to the very clear from a cultural heritage point of view. intention of avoiding the negative influ­ These buildings are up to 200 years old. ence of tourism that has occurred in the All the buildings will continue to be neighbouring province of Yunnan, whe­ used for their original functions, and the re tourism has actually destroyed some restoration work will be done using tra­ extremely important parts of minority ditional techniques by the craftsmen cultures. This possible 'pollution' as a from the village. result of tourism is very clear to the AN LAI S HUN & JOHN AAGE GJESTRUM

82 Guizhou authorities. One of the impor­ ready been taken to establish separate tant problems is connected with dra­ village rules on how to handle these wing a line between what is a national issues. At the same time the provincial minority heritage and what are arts and government is preparing guidelines for crafts. When there is no organized pro­ the tourist authorities. duction and sale of high quality handi­ craft products, tourism exerts a strong THE NEXT THREE pressure on people to sell the cultural CHINESE ECOMUSEUMS treasures they have at their disposal. In Longga there were tourist visits several The planning of and the first steps years before the ecomuseum came into towards establishing the next three being. The ecomuseum can therefore Chinese ecomuseums in Guizhou is linked play an important part in securing high to three communities that have been cho­ quality products, and in this way also sen from a scientific and heritage point of help the population to generate necessa­ view: Zhenshan Village in the Huaxi ry income. Very specific steps have al- District of Guiyang city; Longli old town THE FIRST CHINESE ECOMUSEUM ESTABLISHED

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Left and above: From Zhenshan village in the Huaxi district of Guiyang city- a village populated mostly by the Buyi natio11ality. The second eco111we11111 will be established here. Photo: john Aage Gjestmm.

in Jinping county; Tang'an Village in the nationality. The village is situated on Zhaoqing district of the Liping county. Flower Lake and is surrounded by water These three places all represent minority on three sides. The whole area is ptotected cultural heritages and different environ­ as a nature reserve area. mental situations. Zhenshan represents The history of the village dates from the Buyi nationality, Longli the Han cul­ 1600 when General Li Renyu was sent ture in an area where Han people are a here on a mission by the Emperor. He minority, Tang'an represents the Dong married a Buyi girl with the family name nationality. of Ban. Their two sons, given the family names of Ban and Li, are the ancestors of Zhenshan village the whole village population, which today in the Huaxi district of Guiyang city has represents the 17th generation since the 130 families and 560 inhabitants. The general. Being a Buyi village, Zhenshan majority, 103 families, are of the Buyi also has some memorials from the general AN LAI S HU N & JOH N AAGE GJ ES TRUM

84 of 400 years ago, e.g. the remains of the museum will be the right instrument in defensive wall surrounding the village, and this situation. Planning for an ecomuseum the temple in celebration of General Li. documentation centre will start in 1999. The economy is based on agriculture, with rice as the main product. The lang­ Longli old town uage spoken is Buyi. However, since the of the Jiping county is a Han Chinese village is situated only 21 km south of the town, with a structure unchanged since capital Guiyang, there is now a great deal 1386, when Longli was founded as a mili­ of pressure on this minority culture. tary village. Because of its surroundings In July 199 5 the village became the first and very limited means of transportation, listed monument of its type at provincial the town has been rather closed to the level. Some support has been given by the outside. In Jinping county about 70% of government to help people preserve their the 200,000 inhabitants belong to diffe­ houses. Being so close to the capital, the rent minority nationalities. This actually heritage authorities think this village may makes the Han population in Longli old also be an example to other communities town a minority. This situation has caused on how to handle conflicts between moder­ the Han population to be very concerned nization and traditional culture. An eco- about maintaining their traditional cultu- THE FIRST CH I NE S E ECOMUSEUM ESTABL I S HED

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To the left: From Longli old town ofthe Jiping county, a Han Chinese town in a district where the Han is a minority. Above: Tmditional Dong wooden houses in the Dong nationality village Ta11g'a11 in Liping co unty. The third and fourth ecomuseu111 will be established in Longli and Ta11g'rz11 . Photo: john Ange Gjestmm. re. The population in Longli township is understand and manage the preservation about 6,000, and in the town itself 3,580 work needed. These tasks should be an in 658 families. important part of the work of an ecomu­ The town is surrounded by ancient seum in the town. walls, with a drum tower in each corner. Preparations are being made to have this Tang'an village town listed as an historical town, repre­ is situated in Liping county, 934 m above senting a typical town structure from the sea level. It is inhabited by 152 families of Ming and Qing dynasties. There are seve­ the Dong nationality, a total of 7 18 peo­ ral important monuments such as the ple. According to oral history, the oldest town walls, temples, tombs and a famous families came to the village beca use of old bridge. Together with all the old dwel­ wars during the period 1662-1723. lings, this represents a lot of future chal­ The village suffered from two big fires lenges in making the town population in 1950 and 1960. However, the houses AN LAI S HUN & }OH N AAGE GJE STRUM

86 were rebuilt in the traditional Dong style. re very soon linked to the personal experi­ An ecomuseum of the Dong people in this ences of groups in the population. This area would be a good instrument both in will reduce the distance between museum safeguarding the specific features of Dong and population. culture, and as a way of presenting it to The community leaders experience an others. increase in their importance and power. This implies an empowering of the group SOME POINTS OF DISCUSSION as a whole. What about the future? Experiences in First, is there really any need for a other countries show that the ecomu­ museum in communities that can hardly seums have a constantly changing life - produce what is necessary for their most with different priority issues at different basic survival? The answer to this question stages in the development of the museum. should be, yes. This will probably also be the case with When things are bad you really need Chinese ecomuseums. From the start such more than ever to move them in the right a museum is very often strongly linked to direction. You need knowledge about the identity issues, community development situation - and you need some self-confi­ in socially difficult situations, and later - dence. In the case of the Soga and the when some of the most urgent issues have Qing Miao group it is very clear that the been solved - it changes into something attention given to the community by the more like a traditional museum focussing outside world because of the ecomuseum, on preservation and heritage issues. There is something they have managed to trans­ is nothing wrong with such a develop­ form into a general awareness of their ment. A living culture is a changing cultu­ situation and the qualities of their specific re. One tool in this process can be the minority culture. Clearly their culture is at ecomuseum, - even in China. a point where there is a choice between survival or non-survival. An Lttishun is ttcttde111ic secretary ofthe Chinese The educational role of the ecomuseum Society ofMuseums and editor ofthe joumttl Chinese is also directed towards the population Museum. He is coordinator ofth e project Ecomuseums itself. The museum serves as a mirror in in Guizhou. which the people can see their culture Adr. Chinese Society ofMuseums , 29. Mtty 4th Street, reflected. This makes them aware of the Beijing 100009 China values of their culture and the responsibili­ Fttx: +86-10 65 12 31 19 ty they themselves have for its preservation. email: ttnls@public. bttt. net.cn Another point is that rather large num­ bers of the population are becoming john Attge Gjestrn111 is the Norwegian editor of directly involved in the work of the Nordisk M11seologi. He is tt researcher ttnd 11111se111n museum, - as craftsmen, as performers in COnSll/tant. the songs and dances for tourists, in docu­ Adr. Kytdttlen, N-2846 Norway mentation and arts and crafts projects. A Fttx: +47-6119 60 13 museum in a small community is therefo- email: [email protected]