Chen Chi-ming (陳濟民) on March 23 assumed his new post as director-general of the Bureau of Cultural Heritage (BOCH) under the Ministry of Culture (MOC) at the handover ceremony at the Cultural Heritage Park in Taichung. Chen pledged to strengthen the ecosystem of cultural industry to ensure cultural assets preservation.
Those present at the ceremony included Vice Minister of Culture Lee Lien-chuan (李連權), who oversaw the handover, BOCH's former Acting Director-general Zhang Ren-ji (張仁吉), and renowned personalities from academic and art circles.
Over the past years, Chen has served as department director of the Council of Cultural Affairs (predecessor of the MOC), deputy director of the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (NTMoFA), chief secretary of the MOC, director of National Taiwan Museum (NTM) and director of the National Center for Traditional Arts (NCFTA), among others.
Regarding the prospects for BOCH, Vice Culture Minister Lee pointed out that for tangible cultural assets, there is thoughtful measure from planning and design, restoration to revitalization. He hopes that an industrial chain for cultural heritage restoration can be developed, and BOCH can become a center for the restoration of tangible heritage in the future.
Regarding the development of intangible cultural assets, Lee noted that many living human treasures have contributed to the nurture of new talents and preservation of traditional arts.
Lee hopes that traditional arts as a whole, whether they are crafts or social customs, will sustain and further develop.
Chen Chi-ming pointed out the importance of BOCH's mission in preserving and passing on Taiwan's cultural heritage, and expressed his gratitude towards his predecessors for having laid the groundwork.
He said, as director-general of BOCH, he will make use of professionalism and respect professionalism, applying the experience that BOCH has accumulated for more than 10 years to ensure sustainable development of Taiwan's cultural heritage.