In July 2013, the ASEMUS newsletter announces the re-branded Virtual Collection of Asian Masterpieces website. With new features for mobile users, the platform now hosts 2,200 masterpieces from over 120 museums in Asia and Europe.
New funding was secured by the Oriental Art Museum in Durham, United Kingdom, for its South Asian and Himalayan collections. This initiative aims to encourage community engagement through public programmes.
Also in the area of community engagement, the number of visits at Singapore museums has been experiencing a rise with the abolishment of entrance fees for Singaporeans and Permanent Residents.
In Vienna, Austria, one of the founding members of ASEMUS, Steven Engelsman, has taken up the position of Director of the Weltmuseum Wien. Steven was previously Director of the National Ethnology Museum in Leiden, The Netherlands. He shares his thoughts about his new role in this video interview.