Hybrid Museum Experiences

Abstract

The digitization of museum collections has led to millions of digital representations of objects to be experienced, shared and discussed by online visitors.In most cases, these digital copies live a life of their own, disconnected from the real objects they represent.'Hybrid museum experiences' seek to bring together the original object and digital technology to facilitate visitor experiences that are meaningful, personal and inclusive.Combining the emotional and intellectual force of objects in museum spaces with the participatory, narrative and immersive potential of digital, hybrid experiences aim at reconfiguring the relationship between the visitor, the exhibit and the museum that surrounds them.This book is an ideal reading for anyone interested in museums who is open to an ambitious yet deeper and more nuanced approach to digital technology.Although it is mostly written by academic researchers, it has been informed by work with a variety of museum practitioners, including the authors of this preface.We met as part of the action research strand of the GIFT project, which brought together museum professionals from f ive different countries.Although we represented a variety of museums differing greatly in scope and size, we recognized several shared challenges.How do we get more of our colleagues working with digital technologies?How do we create genuinely audience-focused experiences?How do we embed experimental practice into our organizations?These are thorny questions which resist simple solutions and require a good deal of honesty and self-awareness to try and answer.The workshops supported by GIFT created a safe space for reflection, discussion and using design thinking tools to work collectively toward common goals.Moreover, by establishing a dialogue between different museum sectors, country borders and various disciplines (design, academia, cultural heritage, visual arts, computer science) it equipped those discussions with a rich conceptual vocabulary that helped all the participants to rethink what a museum can mean to its visitors.PrEfacE 13

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