Photogrammetry for Digitization and Digital Display as a Sustainable Way to Develop Vietnam’s Museum Sector? A Co-Designed Action Research Project between RMIT University and the Vietnamese Women’s Museum

Main Article Content

Emma Duester
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1114-4870
Michal Teague
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3850-7507
Ondris Pui

Abstract

This paper explores how photogrammetry and free, open-source software can be used to sustainably develop museum sector capacity to digitize and publish Vietnam’s cultural heritage online. This approach was developed and applied during a digitization project as a solution to overcome challenges experienced in Vietnam concerning a lack of human, technical and financial resources. This paper draws on findings from a co-designed action research project between RMIT University Vietnam (RMIT) and the Vietnamese Women’s Museum (VWM) that developed an approach to create 3D (3 Dimensional) digital artifacts of their Betel Nut Collection using free, open-source software and applying the technique of photogrammetry. The aim was to co-design and co-produce a sustainable solution focused on readily available and easy-to-use digital technologies. However, not all artifacts could be digitized using this method, which sheds light on the challenges and opportunities of digitizing cultural heritage in the Global South. Overall, this sustainable approach can be applied by other museums and cultural institutions and can be a way to empower museums in the Global South to digitize and digitally display cultural heritage artifacts.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Article Details

How to Cite
Duester, E., Teague, M., & Pui, O. (2023). Photogrammetry for Digitization and Digital Display as a Sustainable Way to Develop Vietnam’s Museum Sector? A Co-Designed Action Research Project between RMIT University and the Vietnamese Women’s Museum . Studies in Digital Heritage, 7(1), 68–90. https://doi.org/10.14434/sdh.v7i1.35960
Section
Research Articles
Author Biographies

Emma Duester, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China

Dr. Emma Duester has been a Lecturer in the School of Communication and Design at RMIT University (Vietnam) from 2019 until 2023. Emma is principal investigator of a research project entitled ‘Digitization of Art and Culture in Vietnam.’ She is the author of ‘Digitization and Culture in Vietnam’ (Routledge, 2023) and ‘The Politics of Migration and Mobility in the Art World: Transnational Baltic Artistic Practices Across Europe’ (Intellect, 2021). She has also been Associate Lecturer at the University of Roehampton, the University of the Arts London and Goldsmiths, University of London. Emma received a PhD in Media and Communications from Goldsmiths, University of London, in 2017. Her areas of research interest include the art and culture sector, preservation of cultural heritage, digital technologies, and transnational communication.

Michal Teague, RMIT University, Vietnam

Michal Teague is an Associate Lecturer in the School of Communication and Design at RMIT University and co-investigator of a research project entitled ‘Digitization of Art and Culture in Vietnam.’ She has curated and organised creative industry workshops, exhibitions, and seminars for the ‘Vietnam Festival of Creativity & Design’ in Hanoi. Teague has worked professionally as a transnational practitioner educator in art, design and communication in the Middle East and Vietnam. She holds a Master of Art in Public Space from RMIT University, Melbourne. Prior to becoming an educator, she directed a graphic design agency for over 10 years in Sydney, Australia. Teague’s research and creative praxis focuses on urban spaces, speculative design, design curation, social and co-design, the creative and cultural industries and the digital preservation of cultural heritage.

Ondris Pui, RMIT University, Vietnam

Ondris Pui is a transdisciplinary educator and practitioner working at the intersection of media, design, and cultural studies, with a research emphasis on Higher Education, digital cultures, and alternative media. Pui’s current research focus is using interaction design to encourage physical activity through sports in virtual and physical space using augmented reality, virtual reality, interaction design, and motion graphics. Ondris obtained a Master of Multimedia (Design), from the University of Sydney. He received an RMIT Award for Excellence in Learning and Teaching in 2018 for preparing future-ready design students through the enhancement of curriculum based on rapidly evolving AR (Augmented Reality) & VR (Virtual Reality) technologies and the establishment of the Mixed Reality Lab.

References

Altrichter, H., Kemmis, S., McTaggart, R. & Ostrun, Z-S. (2002) The concept of action research. The Learning Organization, 9(3), 125-131.

Astle, P. J., and A. Miur. 2002. “Digitization and Preservation in Public Libraries and Archives.” Journal of Librarianship and Information Science 34 (2): 67–79.10.1177/096100060203400202

Barker, T., and L. Y. Beng. 2018. “Making Creative Industries Policy: The Malaysian Case.” Kajian Malaysia 35 (2): 21–37.10.21315/km2017.35.2.2

Bertrand, S., Vassiliadi, M., Zikas, P., Geronikolakis, E., & Papagiannakis, G. (2021). From Readership to Usership: Communicating Heritage Digitally through Presence, Embodiment and Aesthetic Experience. Frontiers in Communication, 6.

Bieczyñski, M. (2021). Cultural shock- Activities of museums during a pandemic. Muzealnictwo, 62, 23-29. https://doi.org/doi:

British Council (2018) Cultural and Creative Hubs in Vietnam 2018–2021. https://www.britishcouncil.vn/en/programmes/arts/cultural-creative-hubs-vietnam (accessed March 23, 2020).

Bryman, A. (2016) ‘Research Designs’ in Social Research Methods. 5th Edition. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Burns, A. (2009) ‘Action Research’ in Heigham et al. (eds) (2009) Qualitative Research in Applied Linguistics. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Clerkin, C. C., & Taylor, B. L. (2021). Online Encounters with Museum Antiquities. American Journal of Archaeology, 125(1), 165.

Debono, S. (2021). Thinking Phygital: A Museological Framework of Predictive Futures. Museum International, 73(3), 156-167.

Decker, J., Doherty, A., Geigel, J., Jacobs, G. D., M., S., & T., S.-L. (2021). Bridging Past and Present: Creating and Deploying a Historical Character to Engage Audiences Through AR and VR (Vol. 1432). Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.

Duester, E. & Teague, M. (2022) Redressing digital orientalism: how Vietnamese cultural professionals are harnessing new digital technologies to reclaim the narrative on Vietnamese art and culture, Creative Industries Journal, 15:3, 272-292, DOI: 10.1080/17510694.2021.1938926

Džikić, V., and M. Radin. 2019. “Digital Technologies in Conservation of Cultural Heritage: Digitization and Values.” Преглед НЦД 34: 39–48.

Flores-Fuentes, G., and Y. Navarro-Rangel. 2020. “Research Perspectives on Indigenous Knowledge and ICTs: A Decolonial Approach.” Educare 24 (2), https://doi.org/10.15359/ree.24-2.6

Gabellone, F. (2022). Digital Twin: a new perspective for cultural heritage management and fruition. Acta IMEKO, 11(1).

Garlandini, A. (2021). Museums and Heritage in the Digital Age. The Challenge of Cultural Change and Technological Innovation. SCIRES-IT, 11(1), 11-18.

Giuffrida, D., Mollica Nardo, V., Neri, D., Cucinotta, G., Irene Calabrò, V., Pace, L., & Ponterio, R. C. (2022). Digitization of two urban archaeological areas in Reggio Calabria (Italy): Roman Thermae and Greek fortifications. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 43, 103441.

Guazzaroni, G. (2022). Virtual and Augmented Reality in Art During the Pandemic (Vol. 216). Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.

ICOM (2020) Museums, Museum Professionals and Covid-19. https://icom.museum/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Museums-and-Covid-19_third-ICOM-report.pdf

Ivic, S. (2020) ‘Vietnam’s Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak.’ Asian Bioethics Review 12 (3):341-347.

Kang, Y., & Yang, K. C. C. (2022). Framing Digital Reality Technology Applications Among Museums During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparative Text Mining Research (Vol. 216). Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.

Keane, M. (2013) Creative Industries in China: Art, Design and Media. 1st Edition. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.

Kim, T. (2017) ‘Creative Economy of the Developmental State: A Case Study of South Korea’s Creative Economy Initiatives’ in The Journal of Arts Management, Law, and Society, Vol. 47, Issue 5, pp. 322-332.

Lerario, A. (2021). Languages and Context Issues of ICTs for a New Role of Museums in the COVID-19 Era. Heritage, 4(4), 3065.

Lim, L. and Lee, H-K. (2018) ‘Introduction’ and ‘Culture, Digitization, Diversity: Asian Perspectives’ in Routledge Handbook of Cultural and Creative Industries. London and New York: Routledge.

Lowry, J. 2019. Designing for Decolonisation: Equitable and Representative Professional Networks. ICA blog. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog-ica.org%2F2019%2F06%2F06%2Fdesigning-for-decolonisation-equitable-and-repre&data=04%7C01%7Cemma.duester%40rmit.edu.vn%7C8abb0a1f8b314881dabe08d96da8ec85%7Cd1323671cdbe4417b4d4bdb24b51316b%7C0%7C0%7C637661394563188752%7Cunknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=ouByJh4IHt9HfoXr5dQ48lFM1eNrUJJFPZzRgXyU25E%3D&reserved=0 sentative-professional-networks (accessed September 12, 2021).

Maitra, A. and Chow, R. (2015) ‘What’s In? Disaggregating Asia through New Media Actants’ in (eds) Hjorth, L. and Khoo, O. (2015) Routledge Handbook of New Media in Asia. London and New York: Routledge.

Morley, D., and K. Robins. 1995. Spaces of Identity: Global Media, Electronic Landscapes and Cultural Boundaries. London and New York: Routledge.

NEMO (2020) ‘Digitization and IPR at Museums in Europe’ https://www.ne-mo.org/fileadmin/Dateien/public/Publications/NEMO_Final_Report_Digitisation_and_IPR_in_European_Museums_WG_07.2020.pdf

Ostrowska-Tryzno, A., & Pawlikowska-Piechotka, A. (2022). Cultural tourism, museums and COVID-19 pandemic impact. Sport i Turystyka, 5(1), 123-139.

Oyama, S. (2019) In the Closet: Japanese Creative Industries and their reluctance to forge global and transnational linkages in ASEAN and East Asia. Accessible online: https://www.eria.org/publications/in-the-closet-japanese-creative-industries-and-their-reluctance-to-forge-global-and-transnational-linkages-in-asean-and-east-asia/ (accessed June 12, 2021).

Oyelude, A. A. (2022). Trending issues in advancing blockchain technology in libraries, archives and museums. Library Hi Tech News, 39(6), 6-7.

Pawelec, M., J. Heesen, L. Schelenz, and K. Schopp. 2019. “Digitization in the Global South, TATuP Zeitschrift für Technikfolgenabschätzung.” Theorie und Praxis 28 (2): 10–51, https://doi.org/10.14512/tatup.28.2.s10.

Pisa, C., Zeppa, F., & Fangi, G. (2011) Spherical photogrammetry for cultural heritage—San Galgano Abbey and the Roman Theater, Sabratha. Journal on Computing and Cultural Heritage, 4(3), pp 1–15 https://doi.org/10.1145/2069276.2069278

Plasencia, R., Herrera, G., Garces, L., & Espinosa, E. (2021). Dissemination of Cultural Heritage: Design and Implementation of a VR environment for the preservation of art and culture in Pujilí - Ecuador. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.

Puspasari, S., Ermatita, & Zulkardi. (2021). Constructing Smart Digital Media for Museum Education Post Pandemic Recovery: A Review and Recommendation. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.

Samah, K. A. F. A., Nasaruddin, N. I. S., Afandi, M. A. R., Rahim, N. Z. A., Rum, S. F. M., & Saman, F. I. (2021). Non-immersive virtual reality for Malay and Islamic world museum Melaka: effects from covid-19 pandemic. International Journal of Advanced Technology and Engineering Exploration, 8(74), 91-101.

Sulistiono, W. E., Muhammad, M. A., Andrian, R., Martinus, Nama, G. F., Ghuffrony Rezaldhy, S., Annisa, R., Mulyani, Y., & Djausal, A. N. (2021). Virtual Reality as Learning Media for Lampung Historical Heritage. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.

Siniscalco, A., & Appolonia, L. (2021). Rethinking Lighting and Communication for a Cultural Asset, a Case Study: The Roman Villa La Consolata. SCIRES-IT, 11(1), 53-62.

UNESCO (2019) Creative Cities Network. Available online at: https://en.unesco.org/news/joining-hands-promote-ha-noi-creative-city-and-unesco-creative-cities-network-viet-nam. Accessed 26 May 2020.

Vietnam Government (2020) ‘2020 National Strategy for Digital Transformation to 2025, vision towards 2030.’ Available online at: http://vietnam.gov.vn/portal/page/portal/English/strategies/strategiesdetails?categoryId=30&articleId=10050825 Accessed 28 April 2021.

Webb, R., Bai, X., Smith, M.S., et al. Sustainable urban systems: Co-design and framing for transformation. Ambio 47, 57–77 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-017-0934-6

Yilmaz, V., and H. Celic. 2011. “Extending the Technology Acceptance Model for Adoption of e-shopping by Consumers in Turkey.” Journal of Electronic Commerce Research 12 (2): 152–64.