Konferenz

UNIMA Heritage Commission Conference

Puppets, a heritage in danger? How can we face critical situations?

At this two-day conference, international experts will give lectures on the World Heritage of Puppet Theatre and offer a hands-on workshop. The conference will be held exclusively in English.

Fri 25.04.2025 09:00 AM

It is obvious that when a disaster occurs, whether natural (earthquake, tsunami, volcanic eruption, flood...) or man-made (war, terrorist attack...), cultural heritage suffers enormously. Sometimes, the destruction of cultural heritage even becomes a commonly practiced war tactic: by destroying cultural heritage, we seek to deny the identity of the enemy, to put an end to the "immaterial being of peoples".

For the protection of this heritage, international institutions have devoted significant efforts, UNESCO with the Hague Conventions for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (1954) and Geneva (1949). In 1996, the NGO Blue Shield was created with the aim of protecting world cultural heritage against armed conflicts and natural disasters. A few years later, in 2016, the Cultural Blue Helmets were promoted by Italy. In 2017, the United Nations Security Council approved Resolution 2347 against the destruction of cultural heritage.

But is puppet heritage protected? Experience tells us that it is not, and that puppet heritage may not even be considered heritage by the majority of people, and therefore there is no need to protect it. Therefore, we consider it absolutely necessary to organize a seminar on what happens to puppet heritage in countries that suffer a disaster, whether due to the action of man or nature: war, earthquake, tsunami, flood, volcanic eruption...

  • How to manage such situations?
  • Can measures be taken in anticipation?
  • Once the disaster has occurred, what can be done and how can you help?