OCAD University (Canada) and ISDSI (International Sustainable Development Studies Institute) (Chiang Mai, Thailand) successfully built an interdisciplinary international study abroad program that bridges their respective fields of ecology and visuals arts entitled ‘Preservation and Perseverance: Cultural Heritage and Contemporary Practice in Thailand’. We used culture as a common ground to explore knowledge transmission itself, influencing every step of our program development and implementation.
Grounding our work in the shared values of community-based and hands-on education, we designed a program that revolves around social engagement collaborative approaches. A primary concern of our collaboration has been considering how we can enact decolonial methodologies including making beneficial community outcomes as well as reducing barriers to participation.
Using the historical and contemporary context of Chiang Mai, Thailand, we examined how expressions of cultural heritage are transmitted, revitalized, and expanded in contemporary practice. An interdisciplinary group of students learned directly from community leaders, participated in hands-on workshops, and gained other first-hand experiences designed to complement personal research/production. These activities took place the temples, palaces, galleries, and streets of the 700-year-old city, as well as nearby rural villages and upland indigenous communities.
A look at highlights from the program.
We had the opportunity to delve deep into the importance of the preservation continued transmission of wood, metal, textile, mural and other techniques, as well as reflected on how and why many of these approaches have also been adapted and refreshed.
Participants built an understanding of varied approaches to transmitting and preserving cultural techniques, including recognizing how and why some cases undergo revitalization or innovation as they adapt to new or changing conditions. Ongoing contemplation and dialogue on how this individualized experience was embedded throughout. This included reflection on how the experience may have influenced and expanded their own contemporary practice, including the ways they each connected with the concepts and techniques explored to their own conditions and positionally.
Course leaders are excited to present their work at international education conferences and look forward to building future partnerships between OCAD U and ISDSI, strengthening the connection between art, culture, and sustainability.