Visual Archives of the Silk and Spice Routes

The workshop brings together a diverse, interdisciplinary group of scholars and practitioners exploring questions related to the politics and ethics of heritage-making, curation, and use.

It builds on existing conversations and practices to provide a space for multidisciplinary conversation on the responses, reactions, and resonance of maritime heritage across Asia. To this end, we have three main objectives:

1. Amplify local voices by supporting interdisciplinary collaboration, experiential learning, exchange and best practices in maritime heritage
2. Advance use and access to technology and digital tools; as well as other relevant knowledge for heritage-making
3. Interrogate the relevance and political impact of maritime heritage creation in the region

The sessions will be led by representatives from the Maritime Asia Heritage Survey (MAHS) project based at Kyoto University, the Singapore Historical GIS (SHGIS) project based at Asia Research Institute, and the Visual Archives of the Silk and Spice Routes (VASSR) digital platform, based at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

Visual images are everywhere in international politics. But how are we to understand them? In Sensible Politics, William A. Callahan uses his expertise in theory and filmmaking to explore not only what visuals mean, but also how visuals can viscerally move and connect us in “affective communities of sense.” The book’s rich analysis of visual images (photographs, film, art) and visual artifacts (maps, veils, walls, gardens, cyberspace) shows how critical scholarship needs to push beyond issues of identity and security to appreciate the creative politics of social-ordering and world-ordering. Here “sensible politics” isn’t just sensory, but looks beyond icons and ideology to the affective politics of everyday life. It challenges our Eurocentric understanding of international politics by exploring the meaning and impact of visuals from Asia and the Middle East. Sensible Politics offers a unique approach to politics that allows us to not only think visually, but also feel visually-and creatively act visually for a multisensory appreciation of politics.

The Chinese 21^st Century Maritime Silk Road has triggered a renewed interest in the history and significance of maritime interactions. Across Southeast Asia (SEA), national governments have sought to develop new policies and encourage multiple initiatives to promote their respective maritime heritage. This can be seen as an attempt for SEA countries to counter the Maritime Silk Road meta-narrative, mobilize new conceptions of the region’s historical prominence, and (re)position the respective countries on the global map of maritime interactions. Yet, beyond the meta-narratives of connectivity whose heritage is being celebrated? And how exactly is the ‘maritime’ conceptualized?

To explore such questions, this paper interrogates recent constructions of maritime heritage in Indonesia and Singapore. By focusing on the (mis)alignment between government and community-organized heritage initiatives, the paper highlights the existence of multiple meanings and narratives associated with maritime interactions. The paper argues that while community-led initiatives should not be interpreted as “weapons of the weak,” they do expose both the limits and opportunities of heritage initiatives in constructing larger geopolitical narratives.

Marina Kaneti’s talk interrogates the nature of interactions at maritime ports as well as the broader system of circulation and exchange. She explains how such interactions were contingent on practices and traditions of hospitality and care; and shows how decisions on the inclusion, exclusion and care of strangers depended on the consideration, consent and labor of women.  The talk also maps out the gradual restructuring of gender dynamics in maritime ports and at sea, showing how the careful restructuring of social relations by various European colonial administrations transformed the system of interactions that had propelled pre-colonial maritime connections and exchanges. With the arrival and spread of European control over multiple maritime ports, the multifaceted practices of hospitality and care were (re)conceptualized and (mis)construed as signs of licentious and wanton sexual intercourse, therefore unraveling the social standing, economic prospects, and autonomous decision-making of women. The European colonial monopoly over the maritime trade in the Indian Ocean was therefore not just a function of war and imposition of colonial control over the land, but was also a direct product of the transformation of a networked system of hospitality, care, and social reproduction where women had played a primary role.

This webinar series brings together leading scholars to explore themes related to the Maritime Trade Routes of Asia. Topics range from historical explorations of the movement of religions, peoples, goods, and merchandise to the growing importance today of these trade routes as a platform for heritage diplomacy and geopolitical interactions. Speakers cover different geographical areas, time periods, and cultural spheres, illustrating the diversity, depth, and significance of maritime connectivity and interactions in the region and beyond.

This talk interrogates the global convergence of themes of maritime connectivity and trade across museum exhibits, heritage initiatives, and national government strategies. Using case studies from China, Indonesia, Singapore, and India, the talk examines the proliferation of representations, narratives, and policies linked to the Maritime Spice and Silk Routes. Zooming in on select museum exhibits and heritage sites, the talk explores how governments and communities understand questions of maritime identity, tradition, and the links between past, present, and future.

Illustrated lecture by Marina Kaneti, Assistant Professor, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore. Her research explores questions of global governance, diplomacy, and migration. She is currently finalizing a book manuscript on diplomacy, power, and legitimacy in the age of the Belt and Road.

Responses to the Chinese Belt Road initiative are often presented as corresponding state-led geopolitical and geocultural reactions. Yet, how are narratives and memories of connectivity activated at the level of local communities? How do local communities (re)construct their sense of identity and connectivity? How do community activities fit into national government agendas for “Heritage” promotion and cultural revival? This talk explores such questions in the context of Indonesia’s Spice Route and Global Maritime Fulcrum initiatives.