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INTERACTIVE EXHIBITS – WHAT AND WHY?
AMCV1550
(An Agenda for Museums in the 21st Century)
• "Now is the time for the next great agenda of museum development in America. This agenda needs to take as its mission nothing less than to engage actively in the design and delivery of experiences that have the power to inspire and change the way people see the world and the possibility of their own lives. . . . This will not be an easy task. It will require changes in focus, organization, staffing, and funding for museums."
• 18,000-20,000 museums in U.S. today
• 3/4s of world’s museums created since 1945
• From “being about something to being for somebody”
• “the field has shifted from internally focused and collection-driven organizations to externally driven and market-driven organizations with greatly broadened stakeholders.”
• Since WWII, in U.S. huge increase in #s of museums:– Growing audience (baby boom, increase in college
education)– New sources of funding:• 1960s creation of NEA and NEH• Private foundations• Growth in local arts councils
– Increased professionalization of museum staff– “new” social history – new kinds of stories
• Decline in government (federal) funding for museums:– 2008 study by IMLS – most museums receive 7%-
24% of funding from govt sources• Support mostly for projects (e.g., exhibitions)• Only 4% from NEA and 8% from NEH (nearly half
through Congressional earmarks)– 2006, NEA distributed $12.3 million to museums
Sources of Support for All Museums in Sample, by Type, FY 2006
Source of Support Private Earned Investment Government Art Museums 23.3% 46.1% 17.5% 13.1% Children’s Museums 24.4% 48.1% 20.5% 6.9% History Museums 32.9% 21.6% 13.2% 33.2% Natural History and Natural Science
29.5% 41.6% 5.7% 23.6% Science and Technology Museums
22.8% 42.8% 4.0% 30.4% Historical Societies 32.2% 21.5% 24.7% 21.6% Arboretums and Botanical Gardens
34.1% 28.9% 13.7% 23.3% Zoos, Aquariums and Zoological Societies
17.4% 60.3% 4.2% 18.1% Hybrid and Other 27.2% 38.5% 9.6% 27.5% Overall 24.4% 43.7% 12.2% 19.7%
Source: Urban Institute analysis, IMLS Museum Public Finance Survey, 2008.
Median Operating Income by Source and Type of Institution, FY 2006
Source of Support Private Earned Investment GovernmentArt Museums $429,775 $190,393 $56,250 $144,802
Children’s Museums $357,550 $490,345 $600 $50,000
History Museums $46,187 $26,120 $695 $32,182
Natural History and Natural Science Museums $11 0,309 $408,321 $4,500 $86,465
Science and Technology Museums $350,000 $898,911 $12,602 $289,970
Historical Societies $32,727 $23,000 $3,023 $7,751
Arboretums and Botanical Gardens $251,355 $253,226 $14,128 $130,000
Zoos, Aquariums and Zoological Societies $437,706 $2,686,310 $15,277 $911 ,480
Hybrid and Other $59,171 $48,267 $1,000 $36,737
Measuring relevance
– What impact can a museum claim?– Does impact require thinking about exhibits in
new ways?– How can that impact be measured or
demonstrated?– Who benefits?
Exhibit interactives
• Create new ways to engage with visitors• Add ‘value’ without expanding collections• Create immersive “experiences”• Connect tangible/physical with virtual
CHALLENGES AND QUESTIONS
• “Voice Piece for Soprano,” Yoko Ono (1961):
• Scream:1. 1. Against the wind2. 2. against the wall3. 3. against the sky
http://vimeo.com/18596090
Nina Simon’s principles for participation
• Good projects:– create new value for the institution, participants, and
non-participating audience members– Offer scaffolding to support people’s participation– Meet visitors needs –
• Convey that their participation matters• Offer clear information about what to do (but with
flexibility)• Show respect• Integrates products of participation back into the institution
in a quick and respectful way