Under the title "Shaping Transformation. University Collections in a Changing World", ICOM-UMAC and UNIVERSEUM European Academic Heritage Network will hold their first joint annual meeting at TUD Dresden University of Technology from September 24 to 29, 2024. The event is hosted by the Office for Academic Heritage, Scientific and Art Collections of TUD Dresden University of Technology, under the patronage of Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer.
 
University collections are amongst the great cultural treasures in Germany, Europe and the world. They harbor enormous potential for teaching, research and transfer, which has received relatively little attention to date. Due to their unique position at the intersection between research, teaching and society, they find themselves at the center of far-reaching transformation processes, presenting both challenges and opportunities. TUD Dresden University of Technology itself holds more than 40 academic collections with extraordinary objects. Advancing their inventarisation, preservation and  visibility is the mission of TUD’s Office for Academic Heritage, Scientific and Art Collections. 

Around 300 colleagues from all over the world have accepted the invitation to come to TU Dresden and discuss current issues relating to academic heritage. From September 24 to 29, 2024 , the two renowned international associations — ICOM-UMAC (International Council of Museums - Committee for University Museums and Collections) and UNIVERSEUM European Academic Heritage Network  — will meet for their first joint annual conference on our campus. 

"Shaping Transformation. University Collections in a Changing World" brings together international experts to discuss the effects of transformation processes on university collections during a five-day event with keynote speeches, flashtalk sessions and roundtables. The participants have the opportunity to enter into exchange during  a number of workshops and working groups. The conference will open with a keynote speech by Prof. Dr. Johannes Krause (Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig), one of the leading voices in archaeogenetics worldwide. A public evening lecture by the renowned anthropologist and curator Prof. Wayne Modest (Wereldmuseum Amsterdam/Leiden/Rotterdam // Vrije University Amsterdam, Netherlands) will serve as a catalyst to bring a broader audience to the discourse on the relationship between theory and practice in museum work. Both keynotes will be streamed live via Zoom. A special focus of the conference will be on tours of and excursions to various collections, which will present the rich academic heritage of Dresden and Saxony at TUD and sibling institutions in Dresden, Leipzig and Freiberg. 

During the conference, the Office for Academic Heritage, Scientific and Art Collections will also be opening two exhibitions. In the Oktogon, the art gallery of the Dresden University of Fine Arts, visitors can admire works by the renowned artist Olaf Holzapfel and unique historical objects from the TUD collections in the show "Depth and Surface. Scientific Tableaux in Dialogue with Olaf Holzapfel". In the Gallery of the Office for Academic Heritage, Scientific and Art Collections , the exhibition "Ground Truth" by Lena von Goedeke, Artist in Residence at the Schaufler Lab@TU Dresden, highlights the close links between art and science.

A number of renowned cooperation partners from science and culture underline the supra-regional significance and international appeal of the event, serving not only as a lighthouse project, but as a platform for networking across specialist subjects and borders  which bathes Saxony in a cosmopolitan light . The conference is funded by the Excellence Strategy of the German Federal and State Governments and the German Research Foundation, and others.

Important information at a glance

Title
"Shaping Transformation. University Collections in a Changing World" - joint annual conference of ICOM-UMAC and UNIVERSEUM 2024

Date
September 24 to 29, 2024

Venues
TUD Dresden University of Technology
Albertinum, Dresden State Art Collections
Dresden University of Fine Arts

Opening Keynote Prof. Johannes Krause (live stream) (September 25, 2024, 9:45 am)
https://tu-dresden.zoom-x.de/j/62556143904?pwd=N9mtEaUqsZlUpo1Lcfmt1L0ZLskNTj.1
Meeting ID: 625 5614 3904
Passcode: t6z!0VJF

Evening Keynote Prof. Wayne Modest (Livestream) (September 27, 2024, 6:30 pm)
https://tu-dresden.zoom-x.de/j/68193933334?pwd=qnniyvTBT0Tzq9c0HC4imhbbOjN0MN.1
Meeting ID: 681 9393 3334
Passcode: nrbM^60f

Organizing partners
Office for Academic Heritage, Scientific and Art Collections, TUD Dresden University of Technology
International Council of Museums - Committee for University Museums and Collections (ICOM-UMAC)
UNIVERSEUM European Academic Heritage Network

Patron
Michael Kretschmer, Minister President of the Free State of Saxony

Cooperation
Dresden University of Fine Arts (HfBK)
Albertinum, Dresden State Art Collections (SKD)
Coordination Office for Scientific University Collections in Germany
Saxon State and University Library Dresden (SLUB)
International Center for Pietism Research, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg
ERASMUS+ project "Teaching with Objects"

Sponsors
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
ICOM Germany
Society for University Collections in Germany
Gesellschaft von Freunden und Förderern  of TU Dresden
The conference is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Free State of Saxony as part of the Excellence Strategy of the Federal and State Governments.

Website
https://tu-dresden.de/umac-universeum2024

Contact
Else Schlegel