Pecha Kucha series: Digital Today/Tomorrow

6 min 20 sec presentation each

Pecha Kucha: Beyond the Envelope: Museums as Living Heritage Landscapes

Presenter: Gilbert Balinda (Rwanda, Belgium) – Architect, Museum and Exhibition Designer and Heritage Specialist 

Amid ongoing discussions on restitution, the prospects of new museums on the continent conforming to Western standards to secure global recognition and collections seem like a natural response. But is that a prudent solution?
Following a feasibility study commissioned by the Agence Française de Développement for the Development of the Great Zimbabwe World Heritage Site, Gilbert Balinda Architects conducted a year-long research architectural studio with the University of Pretoria to explore alternative ways of reinterpreting southern African heritage sites.
Positioning museums as living heritage landscapes, the research of Gilbert Balinda Architects encourages a shift in how curatorial institutions are conceptualised and constructed. Our study suggests that there is untapped potential in an Africanisation process that pays attention to the intangible elements such as cultural practices, rituals, and symbols, more than the current possession of structures that tend to design obsessively around the object. Attempting to redefine museums and their roles in the African context is an endeavour that could place Africa as new and innovative players in the global cultural scene.
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Pecha Kucha: The Great Zimbabwe Digitisation

Presenters: Nyaradzayi Maduro (Zimbabwe) – Curator of Ethnography, Great Zimbabwe World Heritage Site & William Mutikani (Zimbabwe) – Curatorial Assistant, Great Zimbabwe World Heritage Site

The Government of Zimbabwe, together with Agence Française de Développement (AFD), launched a project for the rehabilitation and development of the Great Zimbabwe World Heritage Site in Masvingo Province, in the southeastern part of Zimbabwe.
To further this project, ICONEM and the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe (NMMZ) carried out a 3D digitisation programme of The Great Zimbabwe structures and landscapes employing photogrammetric shots. The 3D model can now be used within the Great Zimbabwe Development Project for conservation, exhibition and promotion purposes.
The process of creating this 3D model will be presented as a case study for future digitisation projects of this scale.
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Pecha Kucha: Museum Metamorphosis: How Immersive Media Shapes Heritage Spaces

Presenter: Orinayo Odubawo (Nigeria) – Architect, Experience Designer and Researcher

This presentation delves into the transformative potential of immersive media in museums, examining the possibilities, challenges, and ethical considerations of this evolving landscape while exploring how museums’ designs can adapt to embrace these innovations.​ ​
The future of museums relies on their ability to adapt their physical spaces to accommodate immersive media, creating more engaging and interactive visitor experiences. This session provides a comprehensive exploration of how these adaptations can be achieved while ensuring ethical and inclusive practices in the design process.
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Pecha Kucha: Imagining a future for African heritage using immersive technologies

Presenter: Mahoutondji Kinmagbo (Benin) – 3D Visual Artist

A presentation by Beninese artist Mahoutondji Kinmagbo on how artists in Africa are imagining a future for their heritage using immersive technologies. The session explores digital artists’s current strategies to begin a dialogue with stolen African artefacts and reclaim their heritage through digital artistic expression, with a key focus on the use of immersive technologies and virtual platforms for emancipating and engaging with African archives still held in European museums.

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Talk: Digital preservation techniques: Valorizing the Tunisian radio archive

Presenter: Khalil Driss  (Tunisia) – Communication Manager in the Digital Cooperation Association and CEO of INNOVUP, based on a proposal by Sami Meddeb  – President of the Digital Cooperation Association in Tunisia

This presentation describes a partnership between the Digital Cooperation Association in Tunisia (DCAT) and a community radio station called Radio Elyssa that focuses on investigating and testing the potential of artificial intelligence tools to support digital preservation strategies and audience engagement. Since the 2011 revolution in Tunisia, many challenges have arisen in the ability to preserve and make Tunisia’s rich audiovisual cultural heritage accessible. In response to the various challenges facing Tunisian institutions as well as the new potentials of digital preservation, DCAT was formed in 2019 by members of the audiovisual archives’ community. DCAT supports digital archiving efforts through partnerships, research, and training aimed at developing archival expertise and building a collaborative community.