Win with ‘My Selfie – My Cultural Landscape’

On 18 April 2016 Mr James Vos, member of the national Parliament for Witzenberg, launched a competition at the Togryers Museum in Ceres to increase public awareness of International Museum Day.

International Museum Day is commemorated on 18 May world-wide and the International Council of Museums (ICOM) announces a specific theme every year to highlight the role of the preservation and celebration of our heritage and humanity. The theme for 2016 is Museums and Cultural Landscapes.

People from the Cape Winelands district, museum managers and board members of the following museums participated in the launch: Huguenot Memorial Museum, Stellenbosch Museum, Wellington Museum, Jan Dankaert Museum, Oude Kerk Volksmuseum and Togryers Museum. 

The competition is open to everybody and participants are being asked to post their selfies with an artefact of one of the abovementioned museums on the ‘My Selfie – My Cultural Landscape’ Facebook page. A one-liner caption should accompany the selfie, explaining why the participant chose that particular background.  The closing date for the competition is 20 May 2016 at 12:00.  Weekly prizes are on offer and first and second prizes will go to the selfies with the most ‘likes’ on 31 May 2016.  

Mr Vos emphasised the important role museums play in bringing communities together through exhibitions, programmes and special events.  “The aim of this competition is to enhance museums as cultural landscapes and to also showcase museums as tourism activities where history is alive and exhibitions interactive.  It is important that museums form part of the tourism routes around the Western Cape so that local and international tourists can be educated on the unique themes displayed at each museum.  This Selfie Competition will put the emphasis on museum objects and its importance as part of our history,” he said. 

The Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport and its province-aided museums preserve our heritage for future generations.  Let us celebrate our heritage, BETTER TOGETHER.