Technology as a tool/technology as art

Photo by Esther Simpson on Flickr.

One of the most important lessons I learned about the use of technology in galleries is that when using it, there’s hardly a middle road. (Hardly… there is maybe one.) Either the technology should be immersive and unobtrusive. Or, it should be overwhelming, in your face, undeniable.

Either technology (and media, etc.) should be used as a tool, or be art in itself.

The moment people notice tech (because of an unintuitive touchscreen, a distracting beamer, flickering lights) it should be part of the artistic experience, or be unplugged. In the V&A I stumbled upon a plague that said it quite nicely, “Only when the technology is invisible is it of any use” (Jonathan Barnbrook, 1990). Read the rest of this entry »

Evil Plans – How we can make culture dominate the world

Photo by Alex Eylar on Flickr.com (CC BY-NC-SA)

Hugh MacLeod of Gapingvoid wrote a book with a title that immediately put it at the top of my reading list: Evil Plans, having fun on the road to world domination. Maybe world domination is predominantly a manly hobby, but I guess it’s on everybody’s mind once every while. Mr. MacLeod’s book is for the (small) entrepreneur, but most of its lessons fit culture neatly. In fact, I believe we’re halfway there, if not closer. This post, thus, only repeats what we already know, and details some of the steps on the road to world domination we could take.

“It’s not what you make, its what you believe in” (p. 15)

As cultural institutions we’re competing for people’s time. It’s either a visit to a museum, or watching television, or a drink with friends. We’re not something extra; we’re something else. Culture (the stuff in our heads and habits, not the expositions and stuff) however, is always there, even when you’re watching television or having a drink with friends. You can add art to anything. Make stuff with a reason and believe in the greatness of what you do, and culture can be in the hearts of people, even long after they saw your flyer or exposition.

Tell a story that’s about your audience as much as it’s about you

Personalisation of expositions, making them meaningful to our visitors… Like in the Humanity House in The Hague, where you become part of the experience and they address you by name, so you feel it’s about you. This is an easy one; many of us are doing this already.

Read the rest of this entry »

What industry are you in?

This is a question and a thought experiment. Which category do you pick, working on new media, participation, communication, etcetera, etcetera, in a museum, when the wild card “other” is omitted? I’m sure the answer says something about how we perceive the role of a museum in society.

Considering the options in the example above, I disagree with the obvious “Nonprofit” choice. Museums with hundreds of millions in assets may not be after profit, but they’re a long way from the struggling charity applying for this label as well. Also, I believe, we’re about adding value to the lives of many, which in a way is very much about profit.

I’m definitely not into banking or automotive or medicine between nine and five. There’re enough people I know, however, who work in museums and dedicate their time to finance, law and retail. That’s more about profession, though, not about industry.

So in what industry is a museum? Education, certainly. Art/Architecture/Design, occasionally. Government, too often, unfortunately. More than anything, though, the museum of the future is Media/Entertainment, I believe. Media to reach people with our stories and entertainment to engage them. The industry of imagination and inspiration. Of begeisterung and participation. That’s the industry I’m in, most of the time.

What do you usually pick? And why?