Museum Techmuse

Prepping for ASTC

I've been browsing through past issues of ASTC Dimensions a bit, thinking about where things are going with science centers. Just reading the titles on the front covers says a lot. Some that catch my attention: "Forging the Connection to Local Leaders and Communities", "Global Issues, Local Efforts", "Opening Doors and Extending Our Reach".  And a few years ago: "A Powerful Force for Good: Science Centers and Social Issues."

Big stuff. More than what's likely to happen in a few visits to through exhibits.  Stuff that requires communication, coordination, and inspiration among groups of motivated users.  Stories and social media, definitely a role to play.  But the prime mover I think is the commitment of the institution itself, and especially the work coming out of the public programs departments.  But my brain hurts when I try to wrap my thoughts around this -- it's very complex.  Then I become a lot more interested in quirky soulful exhibits, like asking people to tell a story about their shoes (which we did at the Mercer Museum). Maybe there's a way of combining the two: grand and quirky.  Must be some examples out there...

The museum world changed while I wasn't looking...

I've been keeping busy as I need the last 10 years focusing on visitors' stories in exhibits (recording them, emailing them, posting to social media, etc).  And it's all been *exhibit* based. Or, maybe I should say, *but* it's all been exhibit based.  I've come to realize recently that while I've been focusing on exhibits, some of the best work in learning and museums has come from programs, those extensions out to community groups that don't necessarily originate in the exhibit. 

Am I the only one who didn't catch this?  I feel like a dope.  When I think back to websites at Museums and the Web, the ones that catch my fancy are the outreach sites not originating in a particular exhibit.  I always like the Meet Me project from MOMA in this regard.  And of course, all the social media outreach is hard to confine to a particular exhibit.

Museums are changing.  Not all museums, but the trendsetters.  Collections were the founding hub for museums, then exhibits (and visitor-centered exhibits) took much limelight. Now I think programs and outreach emerge as the star for museum learning.

 

The rise of public programming in museums

Here's something I've been thinking about after my conversation with Beck Tench: the area for real action in museum learning may be in the "public programs" department rather than the "exhibits" department.  I grew up in the museum field at Boston Children's Museum in the exhibits department, and I've always assumed that's where the fulcrum is for museum learning.  I'm not so sure about that now...

My focus in museum exhibits has always been to use the exhibit (and visitors' stories in the exhibit) as the means for developing an extended relationship with the visitor.  So we send visitors' off into the world (and back home) with options for reconnecting.  But where does that reconnecting live?  Probably not the exhibits department.  Maybe public programs.  Or maybe social marketing.

One example: the Levine Museum of the New South (where I have an installation) has been doing a great job bringing community groups (and business groups) in through the exhibit for an extended program designed to encourage dialogue on diversity in the South.

What other examples are out there, where technology is used to encourage community participation through programs? Who is doing good work on this?...

Catching up with Beck Tench

At AAM, I had a chance to sit down with Beck Tench at the end of a conference day -- I’ve been looking forward to catching up with her for a year or so since I first heard her talk about her role as Director for Innovation and Digital Engagement at the Museum of Life and Science in Durham, NC.

Here’s what’s she’s doing that is so fascinating and relevant/revolutionary to our work with museums and learning: she's led the development of "Experimonth," a series of month-long explorations of experiential topics such as raw foods, haiku, and mood (the current topic).  For thirty days, Web based participants explore the topic via a project blog. Fascinating stuff. I wanted to jump right in and participate when I heard the topics (though Beck says raw foods was a tough one).

A key moment while we talked: Beck pointed out that she's in the "programs" department, not the "exhibits" department. I let that sink in a bit. When I was a staff member at Boston Children's Museum a decade ago, exhibits was always where the action was.  I was never that aware of programs.  But changes are afoot -- if we’re truly going to impact visitors' lives, it’s going to take more than a museum visit a few times a year.  It’s going to take regular programming.  And month-long commitments. On the horizon: programs rise in importance in museums, especially cutting edge ones that engage visitors/participants over an extended time.

 

Espionage and the Museum Experience

Went last night to an enjoyable get together of the Themed Entertainment Association chapter here in MA (who knew we had a local chapter so far from Orlando?) at the 5 Wits venue at Patriot Place mall.  It's basically a 40 minute or so themed entertainment adventure where you become a spy or venture 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.  Very interesting. Spent my time dodging laser beams and cracking a safe along with 10 or so new-found colleagues.

Five or more years ago, NAME had an event at 5Wits original venue in Boston, and I remember being struck what a unique type of venue it was. Mini theme-park experience in an urban environment focusing on problem solving and group experience.  Nice to see they are still around.  And a few things we in the museum world might learn from -- ways of catching people even in non-traditional environments, engaging them in group experience.

Turns out they also do development outside their venue, and one of their first gigs years ago was for the International Spy Museum working closely with (would you guess?) Nina Simon. This all loosens up the concept of what an exhibit experience might be, pointing toward more themed group experiences.

 

Houston Museum of Natural Science: swarming the appetizers

A natural science behavior observed at tonight's AAM event: swarming the appetizers. At some point we realized this was going to be a "passed appetizers only" event.  No table from which to scoop a spoon of a little something. So we swarmed as the appetizers came out the door.  (Next year, events should note in the description, if applicable, "Not much food will be served at this event.")

Aside from that, my main reaction was awe at the extraordinary display of minerals and gems. I kept wanting to go back to see them again. I want to go back even now, as I type this, when I'm miles away at night and the building is closed.

It's a stunning display.  Talking with one of the interpretive staff, I gather the display was designed intentionally focusing on the visual over the interpretive. In fact, I don't remember any labels at all, except for the bare names of the minerals. It is up to the staff in the space to provide interpretation. And that works for me.  I ate some leftover pie when I got back to my room, and now I want to go back and see the minerals again.

Art Car Parade in Houston

I skipped out of sessions (and booth setup) at the AAM conference to catch the Art Car Parade in Houston today. Glad I did! The Art Car Parade is a massive spectacle -- an hour and a half or more of artistic, folksy, id-driven primal creativity focused on radical transformation of the car.

There were a lot of cars with gnashing teeth, some fuzzy/furry ones, protest cars with poetry readings, blues bands, some extraordinary metallic glitter surfaces, and an inexplicable one with a hundred or more mechanical fish and lobsters that moved their tails in unison accompanied by Handel's Messiah. Oh, and both a urinal car and port-o-potty car.

A huge family turnout for the event. Extraordinary, community-wide, multigenerational audience celebrating artistic expression. What more could a museum want?

The future and museums: webcast notes

Enjoyed the webcast sponsored by Emerging Museum Professionals at the NEMA conference (and beyond). Futurist Garry Golden presented a range of ideas impacting museums in the hour and half online session. Highlights from my notes include:

• the social media model has broad impact on museum communications distinct from past broadcast models. (In my mind, the issue becomes: "how do we plant the seeds that people want to communicate about?")
• Web 3.0: linked smart data, cloud computing, learning systems. (An online participant commented that the online Salesforce program might be a model)
• demographics in the next 15-20 years highlight the central role that multi-generational learning and family learning will play
• "Lifelong learning" becomes the new model, distinct from past models apprenticeship learning and teacher based learning
• museums can leverage the power of "third places," finding ways to bring museums to places like coffee shops
• museum experience may include modeling based on "gaming mechanisms" -- structured programs with goals, challenges, and resources such as Weight Watchers. (In my mind, connects with Elaine Gurian's concept of the "essential museum" in which the museum becomes a resource/tool for visitors' goals)
• a challenge: build smart devices for museum learning environments

Very interesting stuff.  I'm reminded of the way children's museums have been focusing for decades on multi-generational family learning and think there is much for the museum community as a whole to learn from children's museums.

Bishop Museum: Culture, Science, and Spirit

Enjoyed the ASTC reception last night at the Bishop Museum -- and how could I not? A Hawaiian luau, with  food (including the mysterious poi, top notch live music both traditional and contemporary, and a few strong mai tais). But what struck me from a museum perspective is how well the institution as a whole integrates the disparate domains of culture, science, and spirit.

The historic building houses the more cultural exhibits (including Hawaiian Hall), and the new Science Adventure Center is a separate building focusing on the natural wonders of Hawaii.  But themes mingle between the two buildings.

I was struck by the Hawaiian Origins Tunnel in the Science Adventure Center. Visitors walk through a dark tunnel with brightly lit images that are key to traditional understandings of Hawaii's origins. It struck me that it would be very hard to do this in the continental U.S., where issues of science, culture, and spirit are much more polarized.  Maybe it has something to do with the fact that the natural wonders of Hawaii are so abundant, and provide a base of understanding that speaks beyond ideologies. (Note the quote from the scientist and cultural advisor, if you can read it in my blurry photo).

 

AASLH: the view from the exhibit hall

What are the overarching themes emerging from the AASLH (state and local history) conference?  When I was a museum staff member, I would go to sessions to pick up on them.  Now that I'm here in the exhibit hall, tied to my booth, I glean them from conversations with people who stop by. (And find it very helpful to follow AASLH on twitter -- search for hash tag #aaslh10 -- and on the conference blog).

A couple themes that pop out:

1) Serving families in history museums. The new book edited by Lynn McRainey and John Rusick points in that direction, as well as the related conference sessions. Families are such a major audience for museums - how can historical museums tap into that?

2) "Radical trust."  This seems the hotbed issue here this year -- how much do museums trust the process allowing visitors to create content (and relinquish museum control)?  As user-created content continues to evolve this question will only grow, as Jackie Barton notes in the AASLH blog).

What else? Any other themes emerging?