"Breathing new life" into heritage

Many heritage sites have been lost or are at risk of being lost. Given this situation, the preservation and promotion of cultural heritage has become an extremely urgent task.

Stage performance program at the Lam Kinh Festival.

Heritage in the Digital Age

Digitizing heritage is an inevitable trend in the preservation and promotion of heritage values ​​in the digital age. Over the past two years (2017-2018), Thanh Hoa province has implemented and updated software for managing tangible and intangible cultural heritage. Simultaneously, plans, projects, and proposals for 3D digitization of artifacts and national treasures have been submitted to the Provincial People's Committee for approval and are currently being implemented; a website has been developed with sections on news, activities, photo reports, exhibitions, etc., making it more convenient for people to visit, research, and learn about heritage anytime, anywhere.

However, to date, digitization has only focused on major tangible cultural heritage sites such as the Ho Dynasty Citadel and the Lam Kinh Historical Site. The digitization of intangible cultural heritage remains limited. The application of information technology to digitize intangible heritage has not been effectively exploited. This is evident when searching online for information about unique festivals and performances in Thanh Hoa province; the results are quite meager. Local websites and information pages also limit the inclusion of images and videos of local cultural heritage. Even searching for information about festivals on the Department of Grassroots Culture's Festival Information Portal (lehoi.com.vn) only yields general data such as: 10,354 traditional festivals, 687 cultural festivals, 79 industry festivals... Information about specific festivals is difficult to find.

In today's society, intangible cultural heritage, especially festivals, plays an increasingly important role in social life. They are a form of cultural activity that unites communities, becoming an intrinsic strength, a driving force for economic development, and a solid foundation for people's spiritual lives. This is evidenced by the fact that many festivals, folk performances, games, and theatrical acts have been revived and attract large numbers of participants. Given this trend, digitizing intangible cultural heritage has become an essential task to extend its lifespan, preserve its original elements for future generations, and especially to promote and introduce its unique features to a wider audience.

To realize the task of digitizing intangible cultural heritage, especially festivals, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has issued and implemented the Project "Digitizing Festival Data in Vietnam". The project aims to collect basic information to review and assess the current situation for the management, preservation, and promotion of festival values; enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of state management of festivals; systematize the database in managing festival activities; and exploit and provide information quickly and efficiently.

Following this general trend, Thanh Hoa province will have to accelerate the digitization of its heritage in the coming time. According to Pham Nguyen Hong, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism: "We will continue to effectively advise the Provincial People's Committee to direct departments, agencies, and localities to synchronously digitize tangible and intangible cultural heritage to achieve the overall goals of the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Digitization Program for the period 2021-2030. Along with that, we will strengthen the dissemination of information on digital transformation programs and projects through mass media. We will continue to update heritage sites and relics into the department's management software and promote them on the province's smart tourism portal to build a national database system on cultural heritage based on a unified digital technology platform, serving the archiving, management, research, preservation, exploitation, and promotion of heritage, and promoting sustainable tourism development..."

Innovation creates breakthroughs.

In recent times, Thanh Hoa province has attracted many tourists not only because of its beautiful natural landscapes, but also because of the unique features of its festivals and performances of local ethnic groups. For example, the sacred and unique atmosphere of the Ba Trieu Temple festival with its procession and rotating palanquin. Or the impressive and vibrant masks and one-of-a-kind dances in the Xuan Pha performance...

Tourists visit the Ba Trieu Temple historical site.

However, to create more breakthroughs and sustainable development in the conservation and promotion of heritage values, raising awareness and responsibility among cultural officials and the public in protecting and practicing heritage is considered a crucial task. Cultural heritage needs to thrive within its own cultural environment, not in a "mass" cultural environment. Furthermore, the practice of heritage needs careful consideration, at the right time and in the right place, avoiding distortion of its value and meaning. Simultaneously, it is necessary to actively innovate the methods of operation and organization of cultural activities to harmonize the preservation of the original elements of the heritage with the adaptability and variability of culture.

Thanh Hoa province possesses a significant number of intangible cultural heritage sites, including the Tam Phu Mother Goddess worship belief of the Vietnamese people and the Mo Muong ritual, both listed in the UNESCO and National Intangible Cultural Heritage lists. Therefore, the province needs collaborative solutions for managing and exploiting these heritage sites. Linking heritage preservation and promotion is an inevitable trend.

However, the current challenge is that the State still lacks a mechanism for managing heritage across regions and provinces, along with regulations for expanding community participation in accordance with UNESCO's provisions. Therefore, localities only manage, protect, and promote the value of intangible cultural heritage within their jurisdiction; collaboration in the preservation and promotion of intangible cultural values ​​is very weak, almost non-existent. Meanwhile, linking cultural heritage is considered a breakthrough in the management, protection, and exploitation of heritage. This is because intangible cultural heritage is formed, nurtured, and developed within the community. Linking heritage sites, communities, and regions will help these heritages thrive and be promoted. In particular, this linkage will help assess and identify the unique characteristics of each heritage site, leading to appropriate protection and exploitation measures.

Text and photos: Thùy Linh

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/thoi-suc-song-moi-cho-di-san-228687.htm