Towards a Digital Exhibition of Collections: SEAMS Collaborates with Museums and Cultural Heritage Institutions in a Workshop with Google Arts & Culture

SEAMS, together with several museums and cultural heritage institutions, held a workshop on developing a digital exhibition of Aceh collections in collaboration with Google Arts & Culture.

The purpose of the workshop was to learn more about the Google Arts & Culture platform and how to develop engaging digital exhibitions.

Through the #KoleksiKita, the team plans to launch a digital exhibition at the end of 2025, showcasing the results of a pilot project focused on strengthening the documentation of museum objects at the National Museum of Indonesia, particularly collections acquired during the Dutch War in Aceh (1873–1904).

The #KoleksiKita and National Museum of Indonesia teams presented the findings from the Aceh Research Mission, which took place from 29 September to 6 October 2025. The presentation served as the basis for discussions about the content and findings gathered for the digital exhibition on the Google Arts & Culture platform, as well as how the materials could be further developed into exhibition narratives.

Following the presentation, Martha Soemantri from Google Arts & Culture led a training session on how to develop digital exhibitions using the platform. The session covered how to upload data into the system, tips for creating engaging content, and an introduction to new tools, including AI technologies, to enrich the digital exhibition experience.

As the next step, the Museum and Cultural Heritage teams, together with SEAMS, will develop a digital exhibition showcasing the results of the Aceh pilot project, which is scheduled to launch in 2025.

This initiative is supported by the U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP), which is committed to supporting the preservation of historic buildings, archaeological and cultural sites, museum objects and collections, as well as traditional forms of expression such as languages and music in participating countries.