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Section 1. Museology, preservation and restoration of historic and cultural objects
Novikova Anna Yuryevna, Academic degree: post-graduate student of Kharkov State Academy of Culture, Kharkov city E-mail: [email protected]
UKRAINIAN PRACTICES IN CREATING LIVING MUSEUM COMPLEXES (ON THE EXAMPLE OF THEME PARKS "KYIVAN RUS PARK", "MAMAEVA SLOBODA")
Abstract: The article analyzes the experience of creation of theme parks of cultural orientation in Ukraine. Categorization of theme parks of a cultural orientation as the living museums based on the key feature — the ability to museumificate the cultural environment, is explained.
Keywords: theme park, museumification of environment, living museum, museumification, historical and cultural environment.
In the 70-s of the 20th century, a new era in museology began. It can be defined by the development of the ideas of the "new museology". In the 21st century, the active spread of those ideas has begun, which is demonstrated by the research and creation of new types of museums that are the opposite of the traditional type of museum. The need to make a departure from the traditional approach to the definition of the term "museum" was reflected in the ICOM Statutes of the 2001 edition, Article 2, where a number of institutions, that differ from traditional museums, fall under definition of "museum" [6]. In the ICOM Statutes of the 2007 edition changed the definition, that ICOM "may recognize other institutions as having some or all of the characteristics of a Museum"
[7].
In this regard, the museologists have classified the relevant institutions that are divided into museums and museum-type institutions (institutions that do not have all the characteristics of a traditional museum, but have and perform some museum func-
tions) [5]. Theme parks are also can be classified as the museum-type institutions [5].
In the works of Maria Eliseevna Kaulen theme parks are classified as one of the models of living museums, where the museumification of the environment results from the methods of reconstruction and simulation [8, p. 105, 107].
The Croatian museologist Tomislav Sola highlights a number of "heritage institutions". In addition to traditional museums, he includes a number of other institutions related to cultural heritage (in particular, theme parks) to this classification [11].
Viewing theme parks under the definition of the museum - "a place where things and related values are preserved..." [3, p. 50] - it is possible to identify certain signs in the theme park, since the absence of mention of material cultural artefacts, with only "things and related values" instead, allows to include here the modern replicas and reconstructions presented in theme parks, which present the cultural values. From the point of view of exhibit creation, modern replica
and reconstructions are means of exhibit creation, which help to convey the information, laid in the foundation of the exhibit [16].
Theme parks fall under the definition: Museums can also be "a specific function which may or may not take on the features of an institution, the objective of which is to ensure, through a sensory experience, the storage and transmission of culture understood as the entire body of acquisitions that make a man out of a being who is genetically human..." (Deloche, 2007) [3, p. 50], given the fact that historical and cultural theme parks are preservers and spreaders of culture to a certain extent, which affects the national identity of a person, its self-determination, education and development, and can even act as examples of cultural authenticity.
In general, a theme park is a special area, which, by recreating an environment, can preserve and actualize the tangible and intangible heritage. Researchers A. Yu. Alexandrova and O. N. Sedinkina, referring to foreign English-language publications, describe two directions for simulating the environment: fantasy (among them: fairy tale, fantasy, myths and legends) and history and culture (native history and culture, cultural authenticity, cultural heritage, ethnic features of peoples, various historical era, etc.) [1, p. 25-26].
Therefore, modern museologists have proved that a theme park dedicated to culture and based on objects of tangible or intangible heritage preserves cultural memory and can be considered as a "memory space".
International practices show, that creation of theme parks of cultural natures demonstrates the diversity of ideas on the basis of which the cultural environment is museumificated. Examples of this include the theme parks: Nikko Edomura (Japan, Kinugawa) [14], Dinopolis (Therouel, Spain) [13], Moominvalley (Finland, Naantli, Turku Archipelago) [10], "Wizarding World of Harry Potter" [15], and others.
Taking international experience of museumifica-tion of the historical and cultural environment with-
in the theme parks in consideration, Ukraine started to create such institutions during the first decade of the 21st century. Among the most large-scale theme parks of a cultural orientation in Ukraine, it is possible to pick out a few - Mamaeva Sloboda (2009, site) and Kyivan Rus park (2010) [4]. The concept of the "Mamaeva Sloboda" park is based on the idea of recreating the environment of the Cossack village of the XVIII century using the methods of "living history". The object of the museum exhibition in the "Mamaeva Sloboda" park is spiritual culture of Ukraine (religious traditions and rituals, folklore, traditional way of life, national cuisine, etc.) [4]. "Mamaeva Sloboda" park is named after Cossack Mamay, because the image of Mamay in Ukrainian houses was considered a protective charm and an amulet [9, p. 33]. Recreation of the Cossack settlement and its environment in the museum is realized by methods of simulation and reconstruction of the environment. An active church on the territory of the park gives "Mamaeva Sloboda" the status of a "living museum". Therefore, "Mamaeva Sloboda" is an environmental theme park, which recreates the historical and cultural period of the Cossacks.
Kyivan Rus park adds to Ukrainian experience of creating theme parks that museumificate another historical period [2]. The concept of "Kyivan Rus Park" is based on the idea of recreating the cultural capital of the East Slavic countries on a scale of1:1 with the environment and atmosphere of Kievan Rus. The object of the museum exhibition is the environment of Kievan Rus (X-XIII centuries) [2]. The method of museumification of the environment in "Kyivan Rus Park" is reconstruction based on historical data and a modeling method. Intangible heritage is recreated on the basis of the museum in the form of way of life of the period of Kievan Rus, master classes, medieval dances, etc. The highlight of the park is horses that act as "live exhibits" and recreate the entourage of a medieval city. In "Mamaeva Sloboda" and "Kyivan Rus Park" museum specialists act as imitation actors who, while not being the bearers of the culture
of the period of Kievan Rus or Cossack times, help to reproduce it on the basis of scientific data, which allows to create the sense of authenticity of the reconstituted period to museum visitors.
The classification of environmental theme parks as museum-type institutions makes it possible to analyze the principles and methods of recreating the environment. The historical environment, recreated within the theme parks ofMamaeva Sloboda and Kyivan Rus Park, is a specific kind of museum exposition that is built on the principle of universality (which takes into account perception specifications of different museum visitors groups). Since the exposition in the theme parks "Mamaeva Sloboda" and "Kyivan Rus" is environment, there is a need to use a set of methods of exposition construction. First of all, when creating environmental theme parks, a thematic method is used - the main task is to recreate the specific historical environment that underlies the concept. In relation to immovable monuments or their modern replicas, an ensemble method of building an exposition is used to recreate the real environment of ways oflife in a specific historical period (for example, recreating the architectural image of a Cossack settlement or a detinets (a city-fort) from the period of Kievan Rus and other buildings that could become part of the ensemble). The main feature of environmental museums is the process of recreating the relationships between different types of heritage: tangible (movable, immovable), intangible and natural. It is viable to highlight the environmental method ofbuilding the exposition, as a part of which the attraction and intensity of the use of the intangible heritage, people and animals as elements of the environment, and other processes that can create interrelations between different types of heritage. These methods, under the theme parks "Mamaeva Sloboda" and "Kyivan Rus Park" are used in a complex, which allows achieving the maximum realism of the recreated environment. Despite the fact that in Ukraine the theme parks do not yet legally belong to the category of museums, scientific research is beginning to appear that define Mamaeva Sloboda
and Kyivan Rus Park as such. It signifies the first step towards the active creation of theme parks and living history museums Ukraine [17; 18].
Analysis of the ideas and functions of theme parks "Mamaeva Sloboda" and "Kyivan Rus Park" allows us to assert that these are environmental living museum complexes. This thesis is confirmed by the way of creation typical for theme parks - the "idea" to recreate a certain historical and cultural period based on available scientific information, elements of the intangible cultural heritage and recreating the objects that are selected for the realization of the idea. Such emergence of environmental museums is possible on the basis of modern replicas (which are considered as additional means of building the exposition) and do not imply the mandatory availability of objects of tangible cultural heritage. The main focus areas of cultural oriented theme parks are:
- research work, results of which are used to recreate or simulate environment;
- exposition work;
- work with museum visitors, the purpose of which is the realization of historical and cultural information, its popularization through museum exhibition [18].
Main focus of theme parks is on the exposition work (recreating the environment) and working with museum visitors, makes it possible to classify "Mamaeva Sloboda" and "Kyivan Rus Park" as theme parks and to state that they can relate to living history museums, because by the means of museumification of the cultural environment, they perform some socio-cultural functions of the museum. The basis is the concept of M. E. Kaulen, according to which theme parks of cultural orientation are considered as one of the models of living history museums, which is able to museumificate the environment, to recreate traditions and intangible cultural heritage. Accordingly, the theme parks are an innovative model of the living history museum. Their existence and development meets the concept of a "new museology" and is closely connected with modern museology.
The Ukrainian practices of creation of environmental living theme parks demonstrates that theme parks in Ukraine are created mainly on the basis of national historical themes, with the purpose of preserving and actualizing Ukrainian culture and forming a national identity. It should be noted that in Ukraine there are no living environmental theme parks that museumificate other historical and cultural periods and are not devoted to a national historical theme. Theme parks in Ukraine are recognized not only as amusement parks, but also as "heritage institutions"
(T. Sola), which are capable of museumification the historical and cultural environment, and can contribute to the creation of new museum forms in Ukrainian museology, research of phenomenon of theme parks in XXI century and development of the classification of various types of theme parks and spread of the ideas of the "new museology", which do not exclude the creation of a variety of museum forms that preserve the cultural heritage, remain accessible to the public and are able to respond quickly to the needs of society and socio-cultural changes taking place in society.
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