Collectish is a website developed by Museum Victoria that allows people to share their collections. The site is simple, clean and has user friendly options like rating, commenting and organizing. While Collectish still seems to be in its infancy, it looks like it could be a great resource for both collectors and the curious visitor. The website Micurio is similar in spirit; a place to catalogue all your collections in one spot. These websites could be a dream for people like my father who have so many collections they can’t even keep track (we’re talking everything from decoys to glass canes), and who want to connect with other collectors. Could also be an interesting resource for museums looking to create exhibits or expand their own collections.
As part of the recent exhibition Decode, the V&A in London commissioned artist Karolina Sobecka to create a roaming projection. Her digital tiger ran through the streets surrounding the museum for a period of three nights. A sensor attached to the car allowed the projection to keep pace with the vehicle; as it moved, the tiger ran faster and when the car stopped, the tiger also rested. What I like most about this project is that there are no tag lines, logos or ads attached. While it was clearly related to the show at the museum, onlookers may or may not have ever made that connection. The artist and the museum took a piece of the exhibition to the outside world, perhaps peaking the interests of some while just providing enjoyment for others.
During coffee today with Charles from the AIGA, I was introduced to the amazing Hatch Show Print workshop. Started over 100 years ago, Hatch Show Print is one of the oldest letterpress shops in the US, specializing in posters for theater and music productions. In the 1980’s the shop was purchased by Gaylord Entertainment (owners of the Grand Old Opry). After reviving the historic workshop, Gaylord gave over operations to the Country Music Hall of Fame. The result is a fully functioning print press (turning out 600 jobs a year) that is part of a museum. The shop’s motto, preservation through production, celebrates country music history while still taking an active role in the industry today. This kind of partnership is unusual in the museum world, but has so many possibilities. It is supporting an important business, while showcasing its historic roots. Perhaps there are other museums that could benefit from this form of active partnership. Ideas?
In the weeks leading up to the election, the Democrats have cleverly unveiled a simple, yet powerful tool to demonstrate the work they have done for the past two years. Users to the PROGRESS website can type in their zip code and immediately see the impacts the Obama administration has made on their community. Sources are listed, links provide more information – not only showing what has been accomplished, but also explaining the challenges our government has faced.
Seeing this website made me wonder how it could be applied to cultural institutions. What have you offered your community over the past several years? Increased programming? More lesson plans reaching more students? Digitizing X number of artifacts? I think this would be an interesting area for a museum or other cultural venue to explore. I could imagine a simple tool like this could accompany annual reports, being updated quarterly. But it could also be a very effective way for museums to share their efforts with the public; not only to prove their worth, but also share in a straightforward way all the programs they offer. The public may be surprised at the resources that are actually available right in their own community, which could lead to increased attendance and revenue.
The Wellcome Collection in London is one of the most inspiring and amazing places in the city. The collection is that of Sir Henry Wellcome, whose love for medicine led him to collect over 1,000,000 objects during his lifetime. Now the museum is looking to update their display of curious artifacts with the public’s submissions. Organized by artist Keith Wilson, the display will showcase the public’s collection of ‘Things’ from Oct. 12th-22nd. Above are some of the items already submitted, which include a childhood piggy bank and “silly seagull” souvenir from a long lost love affair. You can browse through the ‘Things’ exhibition and the stories it has to share on the Wellcome Collection blog.
During the London Design Festival I was running all over town covering the events for both Designklub and MoCo Loco. My very last stop, on my very last day in London, was to the V&A (which was fitting given it’s my favorite museum there).
Tucked away in one of the furthest corners of the building was the 11th Tapestry, an interactive projection created by KikiT VisuoSonic. Set alongside the V&A’s 15th century Devonshire Hunting Tapestries, the digital tapestry was designed to change, based on movements and sounds in the gallery. The effects were truly stunning. In a room where many visitors give the artifacts a brief glance, this installation stopped people in their tracks. While I was there visitors were completely engaged; clapping, chatting, anything to try and activate the tapestry’s response.
The project itself was so impressive that it made me wonder why the museum didn’t capitalize on this captive audience. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to share more information about the historic tapestries that surrounded us and link the changes in the digital version to the centuries old originals. While the 11th Tapestry made me examine the artifacts a little more closely, some context would have made this installation educational as well as beautiful.
I have long been a fan of the Denver Art Museum’s (DAM) monthly late night events called Untitled. It seems DAM is now trying to expand their community oriented programming even further by introducing the Collective, a microsite that bundles all of DAM’s innovative events into one location. One of the features that caught my eye is their recently launched DDIY, which stands for Digital Do-It-Yourself. Every month DAM posts a creative project and asks users to upload their results, similar to the site Learning to Love You More. The first DDIY had participants ‘Make a Still Life for Your Afterlife’ (above) to coincide with their King Tut exhibition. While participation currently seems to be a little low, the site is still fairly new. This is another positive step for the DAM in creating a more inclusive visitor experience – looking forward to seeing how the site evolves.
While doing some research for a client, I came across a recent project called Westminster Stories, a temporary exhibition that shared the stories of the people and places found along Westminster St. in Providence, RI. Created by a local group called the Museum Onsite, the organizers filled a storefront window with a diorama (above) and also placed labels on physical objects (and people!) along the street itself, turning the whole strip into a living museum.
One of the creators Andrew Losowsky explains, “By creating a museum in the middle of a busy street, we are encouraging a greater understanding about what and who is around us. By sharing the information in an unusual way, we hope people will feel closer to the city and what’s in it.” The project ran from December 2009-March 2010, but you can still read through the personal stories archived on their website. These kinds of projects are so inspiring; challenging the notions of the traditional museum and creating an active space for people to get involved.
I think everybody loves a secret hideaway; there is something very special and almost magical about being in a tent. I recently came across two projects that got me thinking about these kind of specialized spaces and the possibilities of using them in cultural institutions.
The first project took place at this year’s Port Eliot Literary Festival in Cornwall. The organizers invited artist Dré Wapenaar to showcase his ‘Tent Village Revisited’ (middle), a series of rounded structures clustered like woodland mushrooms. The tents were available throughout the event for, “…communal conversations and interactions as well as a place to chill out with fellow festival-goers.”
The Weisman Art Museum in Minnesota recently started Tent Services, a program where citizens can check out ‘Expeditionary Conversation Tents’ (bottom) for use inside or out of the museum. The premise is simple; the tents are available for free, provided users share some information about what took place during their expedition along with some photos. Designed by Peter Haakon Thompson, these tents create a lovely, focused space for personal interaction, something not always easily achieved in the hustle and bustle of larger buildings.
The Museum of London recently launched a free iPhone app that looks amazing. Streetmuseum uses hundreds of the institution’s archival photos and links them to Google map. As you walk around the city you can actually hold up your phone and the historical image will superimpose on your screen (above). This is one of the best museum apps I have seen – it makes me wish I had spent a little more on a phone when I got here. My nine pound Samsung can’t handle that much awesome.
