. . . . telling tales

interpretation in the conservation and design process

Australia ICOMOS 2003 annual conference

28-29 November 2003

Manly, Sydney, Australia

CONFERENCE THEME & ISSUES:
The 1999 amendments to the Australia ICOMOS Burra Charter incorporated interpretation as an essential part of the conservation process. Internationally, ICOMOS is involved in the development of the Ename Charter- ‘international guidelines for authenticity, intellectual integrity and sustainable development in the public presentation of archaeological and historical sites and landscapes’.

Begun by an international group of archaeologists and virtual reality experts based in Belgium, the Charter was initially concerned with scholarly authenticity in new media simulations, but subsequently expanded to include presentation infrastructure and techniques, community collaboration, documentation and tourism aspects. ICOMOS Australia is actively contributing to the joint evolution of the Charter, proposed for adoption by the ICOMOS General Assembly in Beijing in 2005.

The 2003 Australia ICOMOS national conference will discuss and develop draft Guidelines to the Burra Charter on interpretation and contribute to the input from Australian members to the international ICOMOS Ename Charter. At present there are no generally accepted Interpretation Guidelines or Standards in Australia to develop or assess interpretation that is increasingly being required as part of development consents relating to heritage property.

What constitutes an Interpretation Strategy or Interpretation Plan will be a key issue of the conference. In association with the conference the NSW Heritage Office is holding an expert workshop to develop such standards.

AUDIENCE:
ICOMOS members, historians, heritage practitioners of all persuasions, local government staff, interpreters, IT virtual designers, cultural planners, heritage site managers, educators.

PAPERS:
The Conference presenters have been selected to present a range of approaches and interpretation techniques using examples from Australia and overseas.

Publication of the conference presentations/papers is anticipated.

CONFERENCE BULLETIN No 9 - the last!!
5 December 2003

And what tales they were. Beginning with our Sargeant Major taking control on the parade ground and utilising delegates to tell tales about the venue; then Sarah Macdonald telling tales of inappropriate hand signals in downtown Delhi as well as comments on the use of the written and spoken word, particularly as an observer of another culture; and finally to James Broadbent challenging us to consider the relevance of interpretation, and asking the question "How many interpreters does it take to change a light bulb?"

Between these first and last speakers were a very broad range of presentations which were both informative and challenging. Rarely has there been a conference where almost everyone stayed for all of the presentations. Usually there will be at least some people who will feel that one or two of the sessions are not worth attending or are not relevant to them, but not here. The tales were too interesting!

We could summarise many of these presentations for you, but if your were there, then you already know and if you weren't, then bad luck. You will have to wait until the papers are on the ICOMOS website but you will have missed the colour, the Artillery School ambience, Stephen Couling's blindingly white naval officer's uniform (and sword!!), the water taxi ride through the middle of a sailing regatta on the harbour, the limericks over dinner, and the vigorous discussions both after the papers and during the breaks.

Combined with the most perfect weather Sydney could offer as well as excellent food, this was a very memorable and informative conference.

The program was designed to expand and explore our understanding of what 'interpretation' means, and the roles each of us plays or is able to play in this process. In order to achieve this, most speakers were selected from outside the ICOMOS membership, to provide this expanded viewpoint and to challenge our own understanding and practice.

As everyone knows, events such as this require considerable effort on the part of many individuals to put the program together and to make sure everything happens as planned. Given the very short lead time for this conference, the demands were more intense, but the result was very worthwhile. There were many individuals who gave very generously of their time, expertise, creativity and wisdom to make 'telling tales' the resounding success it was. And it would not have been successful at all if those who attended had not done so.

We had a total of 219 registrations, of which 15 were students and 55 were not members of ICOMOS. Every state was represented with an especially strong contingent from WA. ICOMOS is an organisation of individuals from a very broad range of disciplines and professions. That is our strength and also what makes our conferences and other gatherings so stimulating.

Thank you to ......
On behalf of the executive of Australia ICOMOS as well as the conference organising committee, I want to thank all those who attended the conference. To those who did not attend, commiserations.

Thanks also to the speakers, chairs and rapporteurs, many of whom had very little lead time and travelled from as far as New Zealand to contribute to the conference program. Your commitment and efforts in putting together such stimulating presentations has raised the bar considerably.

Thanks to Allen Madden from the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council for welcoming us to his people's country, and also to members of the Aboriginal panel, Uncle Bill Robinson, Evelyn Crawford, Chontarle Pitulej, and especially Adell Hyslop from the NSW Heritage Office for co-ordinating and participating in this part of the program.

Thanks to my fellow members on the organising committee:
Sheridan Burke, Susan Macdonald, Sam Moody, Lori Sciusco, Stephen Couling, Sue Jackson, Bill Nethery, Peter Phillips, Diane Jones, John Pastorelli, Geoff Ashley, Adell Hyslop, Kate Langford, Meredith Walker and Kylie Winkworth. Also Anita Smith who kept a watchful eye on us for the executive.

The Brochure was designed by Maxine Addinsall in Alice Springs. Thanks to the tour organisers and contributors (Simon Macarthur on the Magical Mystery Tour so masterfully arranged by Geoff Ashley and Sheri Burke from Godden Mackay Logan and the friends who packed the Ration Bags; Peter Maclaren and friends for the (shortened) Layers in the Landscape walk on Saturday), caterers Gillian Flower and Jenny Jarrett of Spiced Lemon Catering, actor Paul Wilson, technicians Brad and Anthony of Microhire, and the team from Valiant Hire who carried chairs, tables and display boards up too many stairs and Fiona Garrity who serenaded us into a glorious sunset at the Conference pre-dinner drinks.

And then the volunteers without whose energy and enthusiasm so much would not have been done (Registrations, welcoming & car-parking, Tea & Coffee service, Lunch duty, selling (not many) caps and T-shirts (see website for sartorial elegance the Australia ICOMOS way!), cleaning and stocking the WCs and clearing away at the end. They were (and if anyone is left off the list we are sorry): Jane Ainsworth, Pam Lofthouse, Kate Langford, Mary Clare Swete Kelly, Sarah Phear, Emmeline Goodchild, Ian Kelly, Samantha Fabry, Walt Graham, Hendry Wan, Robert Gasparini (we forgive you the Flag!), Masayo Matsuda, Catherine Brew, Lori Sciusco & Sam Moody.

There is also a list of sponsors whose support is greatly appreciated. They are (in no particular order): the NSW Heritage Office, Godden Mackay Logan and Design 5 - Architects (running these conferences is a huge commitment for private firms and everyone is affected in some way); Sydney Harbour Federation Trust for providing the premises (and especially for the teams who put in good order the disused kitchen) under the direction of Geoff Bailey and Libby Bennett; the Australia ICOMOS Indigenous Conference Assistance Fund and Godden Mackay Logan who provided funding for some of the students; Armsign who provided the new banner and name cards; Arrow signs (Jacob Kujian) who attended the conference and provided Australia ICOMOS with a flag; Interium (John Matyear) who also attended and gave a substantial donation to the conference; Historic Houses Trust of NSW who gave financial support; Queer as Flowers who provided a wonderful flower display and organised the caps and t-shirts for us; Valiant Hire who gave us a generous reduction on the hire of all the furniture; the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority in the person of Wayne Johnson who lead a fascinating tour around the city for those who could not attend the Heritage Office workshop on the Sunday.

The whole conference has been expertly co-ordinated by Stephen Couling who works in my office. Without Stephen's dedication and attention to detail, I would not be able to write such a glowing report. He acted and performed well beyond the call of duty.

To the rest of my office, who kept the Design 5 ship afloat while my attention was on this conference, thank you.

To all of you, THANK YOU! It has been great fun, but let's not think about another one until we have caught up on sleep and work.

Alan Croker
for the Conference Organising Committee.