Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

72
NEMO 21st Annual Conference Documentation Bucharest, Romania, November 2013 Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of Active Citizenship

Transcript of Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

Page 1: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

NEMO 21st Annual Conference DocumentationBucharest, Romania, November 2013

Museums in the Digital Age

Museums and the Developmentof Active Citizenship

Page 2: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

NEMO Annual Conference, Bucharest, Romania, November 2013 - 'Museums in the Digital Age,Museums and the Development of Active Citizenship'Authors: Luca Bergamo, Kelly Donahue, Paul Klimpel, Kimmo Levä, Massimo Negri, Julia Pagel,Enrica Pagella, Nick Poole, Volker Rodekamp, Margherita Sani, Charlotte Sexton, Dimitrios Tsolis,Harry Verwayen, Jorge Wagensberg, Siebe Weide, Henrik Zipsane

NEMO - Network of European Museum OrganisationsDeutscher Museumsbund e.V.Edited by Julia Pagel, Kelly Donahue

With support from Die Beauftragte für Kultur und MedienPublished: 19. March 2014

Printed by: AZ Druck und Datentechnik GmbHGraphic design: Kelly Donahue

Front cover:Image 1 (left): Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Sandra Dürdoth)Image 2 (centre): Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Florian Wallenwein)Image 3 (right): Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Martin Wipper)

ISBN: 978-3-9816628-0-1

Page 3: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

1

Table of Contents

Introduction 3Julia Pagel, Kelly Donahue

Museums in the Digital Age 8Introduction: Paul Klimpel

Where do museums stand in the digital age?Private companies, heritage institutions and the civil society.Paul Klimpel 9

Successful museums in the modern world.Nick Poole 13

Mobile museums: where things stand.Charlotte Sexton 15

Legal aspects of digitising the museum: both sides now!Dimitrios Tsolis 20

Museums and Europeana.Harry Verwayen 24

Museums going digital: a look at Finland.Kimmo Levä 27

Digitising the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum Leipzig.Volker Rodekamp 30

Page 4: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

2

Museums and the Development of Active Citizenship 34Introduction: Henrik Zipsane

Museums and the sense of European citizenship: key themes and dilemmas.Massimo Negri 36

Collaborating with the public: Museo Palazzo Madama and its crowdfundingcampaign.Enrica Pagella 39

The 'total museum'.Jorge Wagensberg 43

The Future of the EU Cultural Strategy 47Introduction: Margherita Sani

Europe: it is a transition, not a crisis.Luca Bergamo 50

Conclusion 59Siebe Weide

Authors' Biographical Details 62

Image Credits 67

Contact Information 68

Page 5: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

3

In times of an ever-changing society, museumsface a shift of values. This development - anincreased demand for museums to act as socialagents encouraging social cohesion while alsocontributing to a growing economy - hasbecome even more pertinent as Europeendures a financial crisis that impacts the entirefunctioning of its social system.

While museums' basic tasks will not changedramatically, with whom, for whom, where,when, how and why museums performparticular tasks will shift. All of these variousaspects of museums' work need to beconstantly questioned and debated. Theproximity to the audience, the public, is acrucial factor for a successful museum in thefuture. As the true legitimisers of value, thepublic is central to any value creation. Only ifpeople take part in shaping and forming theirpublic space, one where different values meet,mingle and merge, can a democratic societyexist and can the development of society benegotiated. The expression of these very valuesby the public becomes a society's culture.

Having recognised the crucial component ofredefining the cultural value of museums,NEMO has developed four key areas that formthe base of its strategic focus from 2013 to2015. These four key areas, social value,collection value, educational value andeconomic value, are becoming increasinglyimportant as museums strive to balance newtechnological developments, economic chall-enges and a changing public. In addition, notonly do these values align with the objectives ofEurope 2020, but they also provide aframework for developing a comprehensivestrategy for cultural heritage in the EU, an assetthat offers enormous potential for Europe'seconomy, society and identity, and an asset thatis at the core of museum work today.

These four strategic areas are also behindNEMO's current core activities: highlighting thevalue of museums for society, increasingcollection accessibility for European citizens,ensuring museums are able to exploit thebenefits of the digital shift and to develop theirpotential as economic drivers, and lastly,supporting museums in reaching their full

Introduction

Page 6: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

4

potential as both formal and informal learningenvironments.

As key components of NEMO's work formuseums and museum professionals of Europe,these topics also significantly shaped the issuesexplored at NEMO's 21st Annual Conference inBucharest, Romania, from November 1-3 2013;the proceedings of which are documentedchronologically in this publication. Theconference itself was divided into three maincomponents that are connected to therepositioning of museums in a contemporary,learning, digital, analogue, participatory andentrepreneurial society: Museums in the DigitalAge, Museums and the Development of ActiveCitizenship and The Future of the EU CulturalStrategy.

Museums in the Digital AgeWhat challenges and which opportunities comealong with the digital shift for museums? Howcan museums use ICT in order to connectpeople to their collections? How can museumshandle open questions, e.g. with regard tocopyrights? Between private companies andcivil society, how can museums manifest theirrole and identify strategies to best positionthemselves toward the general public? Theseare just some of the issues and questions at thecore of museum business today.

In order to set the stage, Paul Klimpel examinesmuseums' position in the digital age, situatingthem between civil society, private companiesand public institutions. He argues for museums'crucial relevance for our shared culturalheritage and thus the necessity of museums toadapt to the digital age. Mr. Klimpel also offersspecific examples of ways in which museumscan adapt their current tasks to address therequirements of the digital shift.

Rather than looking to how museums canrespond to new challenges of the digital age,Nick Poole focuses on how museums can findsuccess by redesigning museum experiencesaround the expectations of their audience -modern consumers. Mr. Poole argues that suchadaptation must be made at every level of themuseum, from its business model to itscollections. Similarly, Charlotte Sexton outlinesthe potential of mobile technologies formuseums, how museums can best respond tothis opportunity and emphasises the necessityof keeping the audience's needs andmotivations at the forefront. While providing aguide to creating an engagement strategy, Ms.Sexton also offers a checklist of practicalconsiderations museums must address beforelaunching mobile development projects.

Offering a legal perspective and addressing thevarious aspects museums face in the digitalshift, Dimitrios Tsolis examines issues in regard

Page 7: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

5

to legislation, including its important role inprotecting museums as copyright holders butalso its inadequacy in adapting to fast-paceddevelopments of the digital age. Mr. Tsolis alsoprovides specific examples of legislation thataffect modern museum activities, offerspossible solutions and takes a look at howthese issues will play out on the EU level in thefuture.

With issues of copyright and accessibility inmind, Harry Verwayen presents the EuropeanInternet portal Europeana, which providesdigital access to cultural content from heritageinstitutions all over Europe, and highlights itsnew strategic vision that will focus oncommunity-based sharing and the reuse ofcultural heritage material. Mr. Verwayen alsoreminds us of the importance in asserting an EUpublic presence within the cultural heritagemarket, one that is mostly dominated byprivate enterprises. Using Finland as a casestudy, Kimmo Levä examines the three stagesof digitisation for museums, placing anemphasis on the current third stage thatfocuses upon accessibility and the creation ofonline platforms where multiple museums canshare collections. Mr. Levä also sheds light onthe issue of copyright law, which he believesposes a problem not in its mere existence, butrather in its complexity.

To conclude the discussion, Volker Rodekampdescribes in detail the centralisation anddigitisation of the collections of the Stadt-geschichtliches Museum Leipzig (Museum ofCity History Leipzig), an ongoing project thatbegan over fifteen years ago. Effects of thisdigitisation project include not only significantlyincreased access to the museum's onlinecollections, but also increased communicationand outreach within the local community. Theproject serves as a prime example of thesuccesses digitisation can bring to a museumand its community.

Museums and the Development of ActiveCitizenshipWhat is the potential that museums have inshaping an active civil society, one which relieson reflective citizens not only being consciousof their rights and responsibilities but alsofurthering them? What demands can be madeof museums in shaping such a society?

Within the 2013 European Year of Citizens,NEMO examines new developments anddemands from a society in change, one that isageing, facing financial crises, communicatingdifferently and wanting to increasinglyparticipate in political decision-making. Whatare the tendencies of European museums inreacting to these changes? In which sectors aremuseums engaging successfully? Where mustmuseums invest more attention and resources?

Page 8: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

6

How do other cultural sectors respond to thesechanges themselves? How do other culturalsectors perceive museums' work in this regard?

These are the key questions that characterise adiscussion about museums and their influencein the development and reception of a sense ofcitizenship in Europe - questions that wereaddressed in various ways by the speakers atthe 2013 NEMO Annual Conference.

Tracing the historical development of museums,Henrik Zipsane begins the discussion byexamining the connection between museumsand the creation of regional and nationalidentities. Mr. Zipsane further explores thecurrent responsibility placed on museums bythe EU of teaching about and promotingunique 'European values', ones that areinextricably linked to ideas of citizenship inEurope. Similarly, Massimo Negri discusses theexistence of a common European heritage, one

that results from a common Europeancivilisation. Mr. Negri argues that the increasingcommitment to cultural heritage, one thatdepends on citizen contribution, is particularlyevident within the museum sector and a drivingforce behind the construction of 'the spirit ofEurope' and a sense of European citizenship.

With a focus on citizen collaboration, EnricaPagella details the Museo Palazzo Madama'ssuccessful crowdfunding campaign, whichduring a time of financial hardship, restored animportant work of art to the region andrenewed enthusiasm in the museum'scommunity projects and activities. Ms. Pagella'sstory highlights the crucial connection betweencultural heritage and citizen participation. Alsofocusing on citizen participation and audienceinteraction, Jorge Wagensberg details his visionand concept of a 'total museum'. Conceivedfrom the experiences of his own museum,Museo de la Ciencia of the 'la Caixa'

Page 9: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

7

Foundation, Mr. Wagensberg's concept of the'total museum' characterises a shift of museumlanguage and a new emphasis on audienceparticipation, one in which the sign of success isnot the mere number of visitors, but rather, thestimulation and inspiration the audiencereceives from visits.

The Future of the EU Cultural StrategyWhat can the EU contribute to bolster thecultural sector - and in particular, museums - toserve their communities and pave the way inallowing them to provide a meaningful serviceto the public? In which direction does the EUproceed with its 2020 Strategy for a smart,sustainable and inclusive economy in regard tothe cultural sector? How do museums fit intothe EU's strategy for culture? How and wherecan museums find support in order tocontribute to this vision, or are they onlyexpected to supply to a creative economy?

Two presentations focused specifically on theEU's cultural policy and the crucial role ofmuseums in taking Europe out of its crisis.Beginning with a short discussion on the legacyof the Lisbon Treaty, Margherita Sani goes on toexamine its implications upon museums andthe new audiences that were engaged as aresult of the strategy's emphasis on lifelonglearning. Ms. Sani also explores the EU 2020Strategy and the potential conflict it poses formuseum funding, specifically whether or not

museums will be forced to adopt moreeconomically focused goals.

In a similar vein, Luca Bergamo examines thetopic of cultural capital as a major asset toEuropean society, an asset that he believes canbring Europe out of the current crisis and into ashared place of diverse and democratic valuesand beliefs. Mr. Bergamo details both the needfor a new way of thinking about culture and alsothe need for museums, museum professionalsand their audiences to participate more fully inthe political decision-making process.

Through these three components, the 2013NEMO Annual Conference helped to fosterimportant dialogue and initiate discussion onissues vital to museums today, museums thatare working for a constantly changing Europeansociety. This dialogue also helped NEMO tofurther develop strategic argumentation for itswork of promoting the value of museums tosociety, increasing collection accessibility,aiding museums in becoming an economicdriving force and helping museums becomekey learning environments for European society.

Julia Pagel, NEMO Project ManagerKelly Donahue, NEMO Executive Assistant

Page 10: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

8

While the Internet's democratic potential hascreated corresponding demands and greatopportunities, heritage organisations havebeen slow in engaging in digitisation. Why hasthis been the case? Understanding historicaldevelopments is crucial for appreciating boththe multitude of current initiatives likeEuropeana and the emergence of other newactors in the field.

The Internet's promise of providingfundamental access to and distribution ofEuropean culture to within reach of its citizens,was enthusiastically created by this emergingknowledge-based society. However, due tounresolved legal controversies over copyrights,insufficient financial resources, a lack oftechnological expertise and inflexible mindsets,the practical realisation of making culturalheritage accessible through digitisedrepresentations has turned out to be asignificant challenge.

During a period of intermediate consolidation,the cards were reshuffled and a new structurequickly emerged. Heritage organisations have

by now developed their own strategies ofpresenting and interconnecting culturalheritage, strategies that in part, can beunderstood as reactions to the activities ofcommercial enterprises such as Google. At thesame time, new collaborative and civil societybased projects such as Wikipedia have alsoemerged, whose dynamics remain unparalleledeven by commercial actors.

Museums in the Digital AgeIntroduction: Paul Klimpel

Page 11: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

9

Mr. Klimpel examines museums' position in thedigital age, situating them between civilsociety, private companies and publicinstitutions. By partnering with public organ-isations and private companies who havedigital competencies, museums can takeadvantage of such know-how and providedigital access to cultural heritage. In order toaid museums in becoming more active playerswithin the digital shift, Mr. Klimpel also offersspecific examples of ways in which museumscan adapt their current tasks for a future in thedigital age.

In today's world, the Internet's relevance for ourshared cultural heritage depends upon its openstructure and how it is shaped by civil society,by companies that pursue commercial aims andby public institutions. Archetypes of these threedifferent actors are Wikipedia, Google andEuropeana. While on the one hand these actorsare competitors and hold suspicions of oneanother, on the other hand, they cooperatewith each other on many specific projects.

Museums were never the driving force behinddigitisation or the new Internet possibilities of

access, negotiation, dissemination andknowledge-networking that emerged from it.Rather, private initiatives beyond institutionalpublic structures capitalised on this potentialmuch earlier. The most important example byfar is Wikipedia. For a long time Wikipedia wasviewed critically and even ridiculed, howevernow, Wikipedia enjoys a considerable rep-utation and has established itself in the field ofencyclopaedias.

Other companies have also, with immensecourage and high investment, started todigitise and make more information accessibleonline. The Google Books Project, the mostfamous example of mass digitisation, is by nomeans the only one. While Google's projectswere, and still remain controversial andcontested, they have been very successful andmany museums are currently cooperating withthem, for example within the Google ArtProject. Google is a dominant commercialplayer in the field, but there are many others -competition is just a mouse click away.

Although clearly museums have so far not beenthe vanguard in the process of digitisation, theneed for them to become more active players is

Where do museums stand in the digital age?Private companies, heritage institutions and the civil society.Paul Klimpel

Page 12: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

10

crucial. Museums' tasks of collection,preservation, study and exhibition of culturalheritage remain vital ones, but the ways inwhich these are carried out must change andbe adapted to the digital age. The followingare examples of the way museums can changeand adapt in the future:

1. ProcureIt begins with procurement. In earlier decades,museums were often offered objects atdiscounted prices from beneficiaries who didnot know how to handle such objects. For themost part, beneficiaries were unable to sellobjects as there were often no other interestedparties, and thus, no market. In the moderntimes of Ebay and countless other e-commerceenterprises where a buyer can be found foralmost anything, times are very different.Museums face a new and interesting task.Instead of waiting for beneficiaries to come tothem with discounted objects, museums mustadvertise and they themselves offer deals tosellers.

2. PreserveWith regard to preservation of digital objects,museums face entirely new challenges -challenges that they cannot solve themselves.Often museums lack the technical expertiseneeded for digital preservation. This will forcethem to increasingly rely on collaboration withdata centres, external companies and experts.

3. ObtainMuseums today must not only create digitalobjects themselves, but also obtain themetadata via analogue objects - since metadatais the key to understanding cultural heritage. Inthe future, anyone conducting research willneed access to digital collections, digitalcollections that require standardisation.Standardisation in the digital world includesweb services, personal data standards andmetadata exchange interfaces. Data modellingand collection in the digital age is a far greaterchallenge than the more classic 'book-finder'.

4. ExploreDigitised collections and modern, networkeddatabases open up countless new valuableresearch possibilities. In order to takeadvantage of such opportunities in the digitalage, museums must meet two basic conditions:they must digitise their holdings and they mustmake their inventories available online. Thisrequires the standardisation of metadata so thatthe records can actually be used. TheEuropeana Data Model has made importantsteps toward such standardisation and offers avaluable example for museums. However, it willstill be quite some time until museumsimplement these standards.

5. AnnounceThe possibilities are great for museums to maketheir holdings available through the Internet.

Page 13: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

11

Although, again, this rests on the condition ofdigitising one's collections and the standard-isation of those collections' metadata. The mostambitious and demanding project in Europe sofar is that of Europeana, a crucial contributionto making the European cultural networkdiscoverable. However, the paths of such anonline cultural network are not yet completelyclear-cut.

6. ExhibitThe area of physical exhibitions is probably thearea that needs the least amount of adaptation.Exhibitions will continue to function through theaura of the original object and will continue to

be subject to their own rules. Questions ofexhibition design are only very indirectly relatedto digitisation. Sure, there are 'virtualexhibitions', or the use of new technologiessuch as smartphone apps as a replacement tothe traditional audio guide. Such technologiescan often create attention and awareness,prompting a physical museum visit. But, digitaltechnology here has only a subordinatefunction, nothing can replace a museum visit.

Not avant-garde, but still essentialSo, where are museums then in the digital age?While they are not the vanguard of theinformation age, they occupy an important

Page 14: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

12

position in the middle. They are, and willremain, places that open up new worlds tovisitors, which take collection, preservation andresearch seriously. The museum's place is in thecentre of a society that is becomingincreasingly interconnected through digitisationand in the centre of a rapidly changing networkof institutions, initiatives and companiesseeking to preserve and provide access tocultural heritage.

As long as museums stay in this centre position,all options for the future are left open.However, if museums refuse to participate insuch cultural networking, their public missionwill be lost and museums will become irrelevantand left behind in a rapidly changing society.

Soberly consider the new players in the digitalage, Wikipedia, Google and the countlessothers. These new players have opportunitiesand capacities in the digital age that museumsdo not have. In the area of digital preservation,for example, data centres have skills thatmuseums will never attain. Where museums cantake advantage of these competencies throughpartnerships, other players can simultaneouslydraw attention to museums and provide accessto cultural heritage, which is a gain for society.

Museums should confidently enter into suchpartnerships. However, it is important thatterms of cooperation are negotiated and made

public - transparency is key. When conditionsare unclear between museums and companies,suspicions grow. For example, the BavarianState Library and Google entered into a verybeneficial partnership, but as they did notpublicise the cooperation agreement from thevery beginning the reputation of thepartnership suffered.

Cultural heritage belongs to all, not to someMuseums have a great responsibility. Culturalheritage belongs to everyone and digitisationand the Internet can help make it accessible toeveryone. What museums do with public fundsfor society must remain public and access mustnever be limited in order to serve a minority'scorporate interests. All collaborations must becommitted to transparency and authenticity -timeless principles that must govern all actions- especially those of the digital age. The publicspace, which includes museums, must bepreserved and protected.

Page 15: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

13

Mr. Poole argues that the question museumsface today is how to succeed in the digital age,and more specifically, how to redesignmuseum experiences around the expectationsand ways of life of its audience - modernconsumers. New technologies offer hugepotential for museums to intrigue and educatethe public, especially society's young people,who will become the museum visitors of thefuture, individuals who know nothing but adigital world. He claims that adopting newdigital technologies is now a museum-wideundertaking, an endeavour that needs to occurat every level of the museum.

Technology is no longer new. The Internet hasbeen a part of daily life in the developed worldfor more than two decades. There are manypeople alive today for whom Wi-Fi access,smartphones and tablets are simply a fact oflife.

The question is therefore less about howmuseums can respond to a 'digital' age, but ofhow one can design exciting, successfulmuseum experiences around the way thatmodern consumers live their daily lives.

Museums must always look ahead and findways to capture the hearts, minds andimaginations of children and young people sothat they grow up to become the museumvisitors of the future. To do this, it is vital tounderstand some of the changes that are likelyto impact the life of someone who is under tenyears old today.

In the field of technology, emerging trends suchas wearable technology, convergent smartdevices, smart materials, sensors and 3Dprinting will begin to open up new capabilitiesto create, personalise and distribute culture.

Lifestyles will change, placing greater emphasison trust, accountability and locality as peopledepend less on large-scale institutions andincreasingly on smaller social and familyconnections.

The production, consumption and underlyingbusiness models of the media will change tosupport the targeting of content to increasinglynarrow niche communities, finally workingtowards personalised, on-demand experiences.

Successful museums in the modern world.Nick Poole

Page 16: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

14

Science, the environment and business willevolve, building on tools that support theinterpretation of large volumes of data,defining more effective ways for people to livewithin the boundaries of resources andsustainability.

This is the broader context which lies ahead fora museum, and which defines the expectationsof a museum's visitors - not in some distant,imagined future, but today. The challenge istherefore not simply to situate 'digital' as adiscrete area of work, but to look at a wholeorganisation and consider how it can beredesigned around the needs of modernconsumers. This adaptation needs to happen atevery level of the museum, including:• The organisational mission - the strategy

which drives a museum's work• The policies and plans a museum has in

place

• The collections (physical and digital) which amuseum manages and makes accessible

• The facilities and experiences a museumprovides

• The capabilities and values of a museum'sstaff

• The services a museum manages• The business model of a museum• The way a museum communicates and

presents itself to the outside world

This is not a radical change. The core value of amuseum in the modern world - to enablevisitors to lead more meaningful, better-informed lives - is exactly the same as it hasalways been. It is simply a continuation of theongoing process of evolution that hascharacterised the museum community for thepast 150 years.

'MUSEUMS MUST ALWAYS LOOK AHEAD AND

FIND WAYS TO CAPTURE THE HEARTS, MINDS AND

IMAGINATIONS OF CHILDREN AND

YOUNG PEOPLE'.

Page 17: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

15

Charlotte Sexton outlines the potential ofmobile technologies for museums, howmuseums can best respond to this opportunityand emphasises the necessity of keeping theaudience's needs, learning levels andmotivations at the centre of every decision. Ms.Sexton provides a guide to creating anengagement strategy centred on the customerexperience and examines other practicalconsiderations museums must address beforelaunching mobile development projects,particularly a museum's available resources,infrastructure, skills and expertise.

The current rise in popularity of mobiletechnologies such as smartphones and tabletdevices is forcing cultural organisations, andespecially museums, to think both strategicallyand creatively about how best to exploit thesenetworked communication tools in order tomore effectively connect with audiences. Theability to access information anywhere, anytimeand in any context via these small, hand-helddevices is transforming peoples' expectationsand behaviours.

As people actively seek ways to betterunderstand, interact with or simply enjoy'culture', the question faced is how canmuseums, often with limited resources, bestrespond to this opportunity? This is particularlychallenging given the potential complexity andcost of developing new products and servicesfor these devices. The following provides acontext for a wider strategic discussion and alsoa checklist for practical considerations that anyorganisation must think about beforeembarking on a mobile development project.

Modern society has a tendency to fixate on the'new' and to be seduced by the next sexygadget, especially as mobile technologies inparticular have become almost ubiquitous overthe last five years with the phenomenal take-upof smart phones and tablets like the iPad.However, it is important not to dismiss thepower that an 'old fashioned' audio tour stillhas in transporting the listener, whetheremotionally or intellectually, on a journeyduring which they can focus on objects anddiscover hidden stories.

This capacity of a portable device to engage aperson with his or her cultural heritage is as

Mobile museums: where things stand.Charlotte Sexton

Page 18: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

16

valuable a goal today as it was nearly fifty yearsago when audio guides first emerged.However, the current challenge museums faceis to consider how one can bring thisexperience up to date by making the best useof the contemporary communication tools thatmodern society has at its disposal.

By building upon the legacy of the traditionalaudio guide service, one that has been highlysuccessful as a form of mobile interpretationssince its inception in the 1950s, museums arenow recognising the potential of these newmobile devices to extend the museum's appealand to also deepen the relationship between a

Page 19: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

17

museum and its public by providing relevantcontent and compelling experiences.

To do this effectively requires a clearunderstanding of not only a museum'saudiences - who are they? - but also what theirgoals and motivations are for accessing andusing cultural content. Only by having this levelof understanding can an organisation have anyhope of successfully developing new productsand services that will actually engage andmotivate audiences to use them.Fundamentally, this requires a robust designphilosophy, which always seeks to put theneeds of the audience at the centre of thedecision-making process.

Should mobile play a role in museums?The truth is, at most museums, mobile is mostlikely already playing a role in some way -whether through an existing audio guide tour,by people simply choosing to use their owndevices while in the building or by peopleremotely connecting with the museum. Thus,the real question is how can museums thinkmore strategically in order to exploit thepotential of mobile engagement?

It is very tempting when one talks about the'mobile museum' to assume the conversationshould start with technology, but some wouldargue this is entirely the wrong place to begin.If the goal of museum professionals is to help

audiences form meaningful connections withtheir social and cultural legacy, then they mustbe more thoughtful and creative about howthey attempt to engage these audiences. Oneimportant way of doing this is by agreeing on,planning and implementing an engagementstrategy.

An engagement strategy must focus on theaudience and enable a museum to make smartdecisions about which methods and tools touse in order to ensure the best experience forpeople, especially if that requires the use ofmobile hand-held devices.

There are several essential factors to consideras a museum develops its engagementstrategy:• Audience - for all projects a museum must

have a clear understanding of its audiences,their needs and their motivations.

• Collections - some projects might requirenew content or the re-presenting of existingcontent.

• Financial resources - depending upon sizeand complexity, a project can potentially bevery expensive and thus, a museum willneed to invest and plan carefully.

• Infrastructure - for some projects, a museummight need to enhance its infrastructure inorder to support mobile use (e.g. Wi-Fi),which will require both investment and effortto install.

Page 20: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

18

• Organisation - many projects will involveorganisational change, which often entailsmodifications to daily working practices.

• Staff - mobile technologies in museumsrequire staff to 'think digitally' and to applythis mindset across all aspects of their work.

• Sustainability - each project must besustainable in the long term. Thus, it is oftenbest if the project is part of a widerprogramme of work.

Planning for successIn addition to creating an engagement strategy,there are several other factors museums mustaddress in order to deliver a successful mobileproject. One of the best ways to ensure successand to create a great match for the audience, isto ensure the entire design process is as 'usercentric' as possible. This means that a museummust not only know its audience, but shouldactively design products with them. The bestway to do this is for the museum to adopt anagile approach to development. This ensures

that each important aspect of the product canbe developed and tested with the people whowill ultimately be using it.

Another essential element for success is toensure that content offered is the right kind ofcontent - content designed with the audience -keeping in mind their levels of interest andpresenting content in a way that mirrorslearning styles. For example, the NationalGallery in London utilises an editorial approachtermed 'Skim, Swim and Dive', a three-tierapproach to user engagement:• 'Skim' is the most basic level, providing

content designed to hook the visitor andentice them to find out more.

• 'Swim' is the middle level, providing contentthat is a bit more in-depth.

• 'Dive' is the deepest level, providing morecomplex material designed for visitorsalready familiar and interested with thesubject.

'IT IS VERY TEMPTING WHEN ONE TALKS ABOUT

THE "MOBILE MUSEUM" TO ASSUME THE

CONVERSATION SHOULD START WITH

TECHNOLOGY'.

Page 21: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

19

Alongside essential design principles sits arange of further strategic considerations thatare vital factors in ensuring that the effort andexpense of developing mobile services will notonly meet the needs of the audience but alsoserve the objectives of the museum. Thisrequires clarity of vision, identification of long-term goals and an articulation of the museum'sapproach to public engagement. With these inplace it will then be possible to consider what,if any role mobile technologies might play.

A museum needs to be smart about the way itmanages its resources, whether those are itsstaff and their expertise, monetary funds forinitial and continued development or thetechnical infrastructure needed to manage anddeliver content. It must also address:1. Brand - it is important that a museum stays

true to its brand. Whatever new tech-nologies a museum deploys they mustalways reflect the characteristics of themuseum's brand, exploit its values and fit inwell with the visual identity of the museum.

2. Marketing and promotion - whatever amuseum produces, it will be wasting its timeand resources if it does not actively engagein marketing these new projects and servicesto its public. The marketing needs to involveas much creative thinking as the develop-ment of the mobile offer itself to ensure thatthe right method of promotion is used andthe right message delivered.

Only by building on these strategicconsiderations is it possible to develop tacticalplans that will take into account issues such asavailable resources, infrastructure, skills andexpertise required, as well as how best to reachthe target audiences through an effectivemarketing plan.

Creating an effective engagement strategy andthen deciding whether or not to embark on amobile development project can be achallenging undertaking for a museum. While itcan take considerable time and effort, it isessential for any museum thinking seriouslyabout going mobile to consider the following ifthey want to give themselves the best chanceof success:• Always start with the audience and not the

technology; centre any engagement strategyon the customer experience (from start tofinish).

• Tailor content to the audience and theirneeds and fully exploit the attributes of thechosen delivery mechanism.

• Be prepared to consider the possibility thatthe best solution to engaging an audiencemay not necessarily be digital at all.

Page 22: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

20

Dimitrios Tsolis takes a look at various issues inregard to legislation that create critical legalchallenges for museums as they shift into thedigital age. Legislation plays an important rolein protecting museums as copyright holdersbut also often proves inadequate in adaptingto the fast-paced developments of the digitalshift. Mr. Tsolis also examines several examplesof legislation that critically affect modernmuseum activities, such as orphan works andprivacy, offers possible solutions and takes alook at how these issues will play out on the EUlevel in the future.

Museums are currently at an historical turningpoint. They face the great challenge ofwidening their structure and scope from long-term preservation and exhibition organisations,to online cultural content aggregators andservice providers. Today, museums are asked toprovide services ranging from digitisation andaggregation of digital cultural content, tointeractive navigation, culture experiences,lifelong learning, social media and augmentedreality applications. In addition, museums areworking tirelessly to adjust their capacities andto reinforce their personnel expertise and

competence for these new challenges whilebattling with budget restrictions, fragmentedknow-how and non-supportive governmentalstructures.

European and international initiatives have alsovastly changed the museum landscape. Thecurrent digital environment calls for open-minded content approaches. Europeana, as apan-European initiative, should be enriched sothat it can disseminate European culturalheritage globally. Today, Europeana supports awide range of content aggregation projectswhere public and private museums play asignificant role in the diffusion of content tonational and international aggregators or toEuropeana directly.

A museum then, as a result, is expected to bothsafeguard memory and act as a larger culturaldata centre, providing among other things,global, uninterrupted cross-platform access topriceless content. If successful, the museum willplay a key role in the global market of the'knowledge economy' as WIPO (WorldIntellectual Property Organization) defines it.The opportunity for a museum to succeed inthis new global market is vivid.

Legal aspects of digitising the museum: both sides now!Dimitrios Tsolis

Page 23: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

21

Page 24: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

22

Legislation on the other hand has two sides: a)it is established to protect a museum as animportant copyright holder, and b) it is in manycases inadequate or adapting too slowly tocope with fast-paced developments. Whilesome museums are on the forefront and areadequately dealing with new technical anddigital developments, others are in the middle,simply behind, or in several cases uncertain,sceptic or even exposed when struggling toalign with legislation.

It is true that legislation is originally establishedin order to create rules of protection,management and access to content. Lawsprotect creators, publishers, content holders,collective management societies, individualsand their personal data, individuals throughouttheir transactions, etc. In this sense, it isabsolutely natural that a law could pose certainbarriers towards access - towards the use andreuse of cultural content in the digitalenvironment, and thus extend the scope ofprotection to new media, networks, mobilenetworks and devices, and social networks.

Indicatively, the laws affecting a modernmuseum throughout its activity are:• Intellectual property rights legislation - in

many cases contradicts the open use ofcontent and its metadata on globalnetworks. As a legislative framework, it setsa museum at risk even when simple

digitisation activities are implemented oreven when a museum's web portal providesaccess to content online.

• Privacy law - is threatened by the reuse ofdigital cultural content (especially contem-porary arts, books, photographs, news-papers, audio and video archives) inworldwide networks and aggregators. Therelevant legislation poses additionalrestriction to access when personal data is atstake.

• E-commerce legislation - regulates businesstransactions made on the Internet. Thecommercial exploitation of a museum'sdigital content is also regulated.

• Orphan works regulation - is being finalisedat the EU level and will significantly affectthe museums, libraries and archives sector.

There have been several solutions proposed,such as, defining a strategy for clearing rights,designing a well-defined business plan,outsourcing difficult and costly tasks and tryingto gain new funding. When applied, acombination of such solutions (which do needto be tailored to each individual museum'sneeds) delivers beneficial results and definitelystrengthens the museum so that it can standstrong within the new cultural digital market.

Page 25: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

23

What does the future hold?With Germany leading the developments, theEU Directive on orphan works is currently beingadopted by the Member States. Greece'sMinister of Culture has also presented anamendment proposal to the EU Parliament thatshould be adopted in the following months.The future compatibility of EU Member States'national legislation will boost the use of orphanworks in the digital environment in the nextyears. Depending upon the definition of'orphan work' used, more than 50% of contentowned by museums can be considered orphanworks, and under this assumption, thedigitisation, dissemination and further exploit-ation of this content in the digital environmentwill be prominent. Thus, the current develop-ments at the EU level will help to prevent suchexploitation in the future.

The need for reviewing licensing mechanismsand terms of use is also growing stronger,especially as Europeana and similar initiativesdevelop. Current practice demonstrates that

the existing legal terminology, the complicatedcopyright regulations and 'rights statements'are often misleading to both the contentowners and the users. An open discussion isnow underway concerning the actual meaningof 'public domain', the benefits of CreativeCommons, the difference between the use ofand the access to digital content and howterms such as 'paid access', 'copyrightunknown', 'orphan work' and 'rights reserved'are understood by users. These are issues andterms that will be addressed in the near future.

In the short term, and as global initiatives foraggregating cultural content, such asEuropeana, continue to grow, a simpler andmore global legislative framework with a clearset of rights statements understandable to theInternet user and focusing especially on the useof digital objects in global networks will benecessary.

'IT IS ABSOLUTELY NATURAL THAT A LAW COULD

POSE CERTAIN BARRIERS TOWARDS ACCESS -TOWARDS THE USE AND REUSE OF CULTURAL

CONTENT IN THE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT'.

Page 26: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

24

Harry Verwayen examines the new strategicvision of Europeana that focuses on increasingcommunity-based sharing, reusing culturalheritage and contributing both to the creativeeconomy and to social innovation. Mr.Verwayen also emphasises the crucialimportance of providing people with access toculture - culture that has been collected forcenturies in museums, libraries and archives.He also underscores the importance ofEuropeana and other public initiatives asexamples of the greater shift in EU policytoward an increased presence in the digitalworld of cultural heritage - one that has untilnow been mostly dominated by privateenterprises.

For the past five years Europeana hasdeveloped from a political aspiration to uniteEurope in diversity, to a full-blown operationservicing a network of thousands of libraries,archives and museums across Europe. The mosttangible expression of this endeavour is aportal, which allows users to discover materialfrom every Member State and every domain inEurope. Europeana is now entering a newphase of its existence, where the focus will be

placed even more on its contribution to thecreative economy and to social innovation.

Why has culture been collected in museums,audiovisual collections, libraries and archives?Because the knowledge and ideas expressed inthese institutions constitute key values ofcivilisation, ideas one finds expressed in long,complicated documents such as the LisbonTreaty, which states 'the Union shall respect itscultural and linguistic diversity and shall ensurethat Europe's cultural heritage is safeguardedand enhanced'. However, what treaties like thisdo not highlight is how important it is toprovide people with access to that very culture.It is exactly this transmission of culture andcreativity from one generation to the next thatencourages people to rethink those ideas andto reuse them to shape their future.

That makes museums the transmitters ofEurope's cultural DNA. It is a vital role.Especially now, that computing is everywhere,in every pocket, on every desk, in every home,people, including children, have almostunlimited opportunities to access the wondersthat museums hold.

Museums and Europeana.Harry Verwayen

Page 27: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

25

Museums have an important role to play andEuropeana can be a powerful instrument toachieve their goals in the future. Europeana iscurrently re-establishing how best to service itsnetwork under a new strategic plan 2015-2020,funded under a new financial instrument by theEuropean Union. This will mean less of a focuson inviting individuals to explore their heritagein a predefined way on the portal, and more ofa focus on developing communities who reusethe data, content, knowledge and technologythat Europeana and its partners make availableto them. This shift is essential to enable a futurethat will be give-and-take, where one will beable to take from, and give back, to one'scommunity.

Practically, this means that Europeana willcreate service infrastructures such as EuropeanaLabs, where developers and creatives will find(at least screen resolution) content, technologyand documentation that they can use to buildnew services upon. It means Europeana willwork with strong, like-minded partners such asWikimedia to make all specifically licensed for-reuse content available on the platforms whereone can expect the highest visibility and userinteraction for one's content. Europeana willalso ensure that a user is able to track andunderstand the impact of that engagement onone's own statistics so that users are not left inthe dark. Furthermore, it means that Europeanawill develop open source products, such as

channels, for partners who want to reach deepinto specific interest groups, like fashionistasand foodies.

Europeana is a prime example of the greatershift in the EU's policy towards an increasedpresence in the digital world of culturalheritage, one which has until now beendominated by private companies, like Googleor Wikipedia. Through Europeana, the EU hasestablished a platform that will not onlydemocratise information and bring Europe'scollections into the homes of its citizens, butone that will also generate revenue through thecreation of new business models. The projectdemonstrates the need for a continued publicpresence in culture - tangible and intangible -in the digital world, one that unlike its privatecompetitors does not threaten museums' rightsor citizens' personal data.

Page 28: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

26

Page 29: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

27

Kimmo Levä uses Finland as a case study toexamine the three stages of digitisation formuseums, focusing specifically on the currentthird stage, which is witnessing increasedpublic accessibility to cultural content and anincreased number of online platforms sharingmuseum collections. Mr. Levä also examinesvarious complex copyright law issues that posesignificant challenges for museums - issuessuch as compensation, orphan works andunforeseen costs.

A different way of doing thingsMuseums today must accept the Web 2.0assertion that if you do not have an Internetpresence, you do not exist at all. For museums,this entails digitisation in every function. It notonly calls for investments in new technologies,but also demands more inclusive and expansiveways of working and thinking.

Museums have highly educated personnel, sothe use of the requisite tools in the newinformation society does not pose a problem.However, a lot of work is needed to change theway things are done and this will not be easy,especially since museums have deep-rooted

methods for how tasks should be approachedand carried out. In most cases, these methodswere created before the advent of theinformation society and the wealth ofopportunities that accompanied it.

From local to globalDigitisation and networking in the informationsociety are part and parcel of globalisation,which is often difficult to realise. For such along time, museums have been housed inbrick-and-mortar buildings and their customersstayed within their walls.

Similar limitations apply when it comes tocataloguing objects. Rarely, for example, havemuseums documented objects with the words:'Europe, Finland, Helsinki'. Rather, in mostcases, museums have begun with the name ofthe object. One is used to visiting and viewingobjects in the same place where they arephysically located.

Going digital in Finland: the stages ofdigitisationIn Finland, the digitisation of collections andmuseum work is currently moving into the thirdstage of development, one that focuses on the

Museums going digital: a look at Finland.Kimmo Levä

Page 30: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

28

ease of access and the versatile use of materialsand objects.

The first stage occurred in the 1990s andbasically involved digitisation. Museumsdigitised photos, documents and collectiondata. However, despite such digitisation,material was still stored on hard disks inmuseums. During the second stage ofdigitisation, in the early 2000s, museums beganto implement collection management systemsthat made material accessible to the audiencevia the Internet.

Currently, in the third stage, the primary focus isupon creating a network where museums sharethe same collection management system, clientinterfaces and services based on the digitisedmaterial. A vital part of this third stage is tomake client interfaces a well-known brand. InFinland, the most important project in this

respect is 'Museum 2015' and in particular,'Finna'.

The objective of the Finnish MuseumsAssociation's 'Art to interfaces' project is toenable museums to use their collectionswithout incurring fees and to earn money forthemselves and for the copyright holders.Museums earn money directly from the endusers and copyright holders acquire an effectivemarketing channel, which helps them to build acareer and a reputation, and hopefully generatea profit.

Notwithstanding the problems, digitisationpresents a great opportunity for museums. Itgives them the chance to open mobile andpurely virtual museums alongside brick-and-mortar establishments. In actuality, mobile andInternet services are not just a possibility, but anecessity.

Page 31: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

29

COPYRIGHT QUESTIONS FOR MUSEUMS

Internet accessibility does not come withoutcopyright problems, which arise not from themere existence of copyright laws, but rather,from their complexity. The thrust of the law isbasically this: those who created the originalartwork, photograph or artefact need to becompensated. This compensation can come inthe form of a fee, fame or both.

THE FIRST PROBLEM museums must resolveconcerns the person or persons who shouldbe compensated. It goes without saying thatmuseums house a lot of material where theowner is not acknowledged. In many cases,museums have not made contracts withcopyright holders regarding publishing terms.Oftentimes, the copyright holder is actuallyunknown. These so-called orphan artefactspose a problem, primarily when it comes tophotographic collections.

THE SECOND PROBLEM is an economic onethat can be divided into four categories: a)unforeseen costs, b) foreseeable costs, c) whopays the bill and d) who receives the money.

Museums have unforeseen costs due toorphan works, not least because they do nothave enough information regarding to whom

and in what circumstances they need to paycopyright fees. Foreseeable costs are thosethat museums have promised to pay, eitherdirectly or indirectly, to the copyright holders.For the most part, museums consider thesefees too high, discover that the terms are fortoo short a duration or cover only one form ofpublication or distribution.

The question of who pays the bill isstraightforward if the museum has opted topay. But, if a museum cannot afford to pay, itmust collect money from the end users. Whenmuseums do this, the open data ideology andexpectations concerning museums areundermined as open data enthusiasts and themajority of museum customers expect toreceive everything from museums for free.

THE THIRD PROBLEM arises if museums havedecided to exhibit or distribute material freeof charge. The open data philosophy does notbind the end user and it is highly likely thatsomeone will generate money along the wayfrom the museum's efforts. In the short term,this is unfair, and in the long term, it isunprincipled.

Page 32: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

30

Volker Rodekamp describes in detail anongoing project begun fifteen years ago tocentralise and digitise the collections of theMuseum of City History Leipzig (Stadt-geschichtliches Museum Leipzig). Results ofthe digitisation project include significantlyincreased access to the museum's collections,increased on-site visits to the museum andincreased communication and outreach withinthe local community. The project serves as aprime example of the successes cooperatingwith knowledgeable partners and digitisingmuseum collections can bring to a museumand its community.

After recognising the need for change in regardto its collections, the Museum of City HistoryLeipzig began a project that ultimatelytransformed the museum into one that nowaddresses the needs of a modern public. Notonly were collections centralised andcatalogued in a new collection managementsystem, but the ways in which visitors interactwith, communicate knowledge to and receiveknowledge from the museum were alsocompletely transformed. The Museum of CityHistory Leipzig acts as a great regional case

study of how museums can digitise in themodern world and enhance the ways in whichthey connect with their community.

The way things were beforeUntil 1999, the source information about theobjects in the museum were completelydecentralised, each maintained by itsrespective curator. Therefore, the knowledge ofeach single curator about a respective objectwas more extensive than the existing writtendocumentation in the collection.

Over the years it became more and moreapparent that the documentation of thecollection, one that was more than a hundredyears old, needed a fundamental reorientation.In the course of in-house restructuring, aposition 'Head of Central Documentation' wascreated, and under its watch, a thoroughanalysis of all existing source information wasmade and centralised. Following this, a newcollection management system, GOS, wasintroduced and is now used for newacquisitions. This retrospective documentationand centralisation was done with the support ofthe local Leipzig employment centre, whichprovided temporary staff for over fifteen years.

Digitising the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum Leipzig.Volker Rodekamp

Page 33: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

31

Page 34: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

32

The entire process of collection managementhas now been changed and is centrallymanaged. Today, there are a total of 300,000objects which have been documented and cannow be accessed online by the public. Since2010, this data has been shared nationally andinternationally with online portals such asEuropeana, Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek andKalliope. CooperationSince the museum began its new approach todocumentation, it has cooperated with partnersin order to take advantage of their own

experience and knowledge. In particular, theseare the Institute for Museum Research and theZuse Institute in Berlin. While working togetherwith several volunteers in the Leipzigcommunity, the museum also implemented adatabase of all victim groups in Leipzig duringthe Nazi regime.

Communication and outreachIn 2008, the museum first began to presentobjects to the public on its webpage. A replybutton was included that allows website visitorsthe ability to email any additional informationthey have directly to the museum. Since 2008,

Page 35: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

33

the museum has received a considerableamount of feedback from academicresearchers, collectors and family descendantsthat continues to grow steadily. With thecollective knowledge from this feedback, themuseum has significantly expanded theinformation about its objects.

In addition to serving public requests, themuseum's online database is used for severaleducation services and projects. The onlinedatabase connects the museum with local andregional schools, thus supporting explorativelearning, developing students' research skills,preparing and processing student projectscompleted in collaboration with museumeducation officers and enabling the integrationof real museum objects into the theoreticalcontent of the education curriculum. Together,all of these activities combine to establish ahands-on and active relationship betweenstudents and their local and regional history.

Results for the museumThrough the online presence of the collectionsand the new permanent exhibition, themuseum has become more popular than ever,and online visits to the collection have faroutnumbered physical museum visits. In 2012,the museum received about 205,000 visitors tothe physical premises of the museum, allowingthem to see approximately 4,000 objects in thegalleries, while at the same time, the museum

received about 700,000 online visitors to thecollection database. In the end, the museumreceived about two-thirds more visitors to itsdigital collections than to its physical exhibitionand collections. Additionally, along with itslarger online presence, the museum has noteda considerable increase of objects donated.

Together, the increased visitor interaction andinformation exchange through online requestsand online visits, help to enhance themuseum's own knowledge and the ways inwhich it shares this knowledge with the public.

The futureThe museum still has about 200,000 objects,most of which are written documents, that stillneed to be entered into the online database.To accomplish this, the museum will needanother six to eight years and additional staff toperform retrospective documentation.

It has become clear that the broadenedpresence of the museum's collections on theInternet and in portals has yielded a significantincrease of requests from the public. Withoutadditional staff and technical equipment,however, it will be a challenge to adequatelyserve these new requests and keep the pace ofdigital progress the museum would like.

Page 36: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

34

The history of museums is very closelyconnected to the key principles of theprocesses of nation building, democracy andcitizenship. Even today in 2014, such processes,in particular the concept of citizenship, play animportant role in shaping the ways museumsand their ever-expanding public audienceinteract.

In the 19th century and for much of the 20thcentury, museums were given and accepted thetask of constructing the common history of apeople in a country or a region. This task was ofequal importance to teaching the country'shistory in compulsory school education and tothe parallel task of creating a commonlanguage and information structure in thecountry, both tasks that for a large part weretaken up by the media.

The production method of museums,illustrating a vision of national and popularprogress and a vision of national cultural wealth

through regional diversity, has been a greatsuccess. If it had not been a success - which itclearly was, as evident in museums havinggrown so explosively in numbers - museumswould have disappeared. The museum, as aconstruction of history and as a tool to exhibitthat history, was well suited for the purpose.

Historians and museologists in twenty or thirtyyears from now will see the development since1945 and not least since the 1970s in a newlight, one which bears resemblance to thedevelopment in the earlier days of museums. Inthe first decades of the 21st century theinternational and particularly the Europeancommunity has been assigning museums a newtask: 'museums should be advocating for andlearning places of basic universal humanvalues!'

In a European context one can go even furtherand interpret the message from both theEuropean Union and the European Council as a

Museums and the Development of ActiveCitizenshipIntroduction: Henrik Zipsane

Page 37: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

35

cry for museums to spread the knowledge,understanding and acceptance of what may becalled 'European values', values that are basedupon the unique struggle for human rights.

These values differ fundamentally from the restof the world - not least the USA - by, forexample, categorical respect for human life(absence of the death penalty) and basic social

security. Clearly linked to the concept ofcitizenship, such 'European values', which aretoday taken up by museums, makes thedimension of citizenship an essentialcomponent of the museum community and ofmuseum work today.

Page 38: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

36

Massimo Negri discusses the dilemmas andopen questions that have arisen from anincreasingly apparent European culturalheritage, one created from a commonEuropean civilisation that shares a certain set ofspecific features. He also examines theimportance of citizen contribution to preserveand share this cultural heritage, underliningmuseums' responsibility to promote and fostersuch citizen participation. Mr. Negri addressesfive key questions regarding museums'changing role in European society in the pastdecades, including how museums contributeto a sense of European citizenship and theimpact of social networks on museums'identities.

Although the concept of a European culture isharder to define, it is undeniable that acommon European civilisation with its ownspecific features has produced a vast commonheritage. The commitment towards culturalheritage, which is developing with urgency, isevident within the complexity of contemporarymuseums' ambitious aims. Raising awareness ofthe importance of citizen contribution topreserve and enhance this cultural heritage also

remains, whether directly or indirectly, anessential element of any museum's mission. Inorder to achieve such aspirations, it is thereforeessential that all citizens, including youngpeople, are called upon to contribute.

Museums can thus play a crucial role in thebuilding of 'the spirit of Europe' and thedevelopment of a sense of Europeancitizenship. 'Museums for the many', 'Approchedu publique', 'Musei dalla parte del pubblico',are different ways in different languages tostress the importance of an open door policyand of effective involvement of the audience inthe life of 'their' museums.

Among others, the following key questionshave emerged in the last decades that shedlight on this changing role of museums.

1. Access: What are the essential features ofan access policy of European museums?It is no longer only a matter of free entrance,simplification of contents, effective commun-ication or good cultural promotion. As DirkHoutgraaf (2012) writes, '[s]lowly but inevitablywe will move into an era of co-creation andconnectedness. The main driver is the strong

Museums and the sense of European citizenship: key themes and dilemmas.Massimo Negri

Page 39: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

37

ICT revolution'. Access no longer merely meansattracting people into a museum, but rather,encouraging active participation within themuseum itself and its community. Simply put,access means participation.

2. Europe in museums: What does Europemean in museum terms?To be straightforward, the different narratives ofEurope are still openly debated. There is an'almost shared' memory of European history,but when one moves beneath the surface tothe deeper feelings of European citizens onesees how difficult is to ignore stereotypes andto openly discuss the most radical beliefs.Society in the 21st century is still a woundedsociety. How does one deal with the effect ofpast conflicts? A dissonant heritage still existsand in what ways museums can present this inan adequate and coherent way is still debated.

3. What is the possible role of museums inthe development of a sense of Europeancitizenship?From information to seduction: museums willbecome relevant only if their role is recognizedadequately by society and is in tune with thecontemporary events and developmentsimpacting their society. They need to documentand address issues that are currently relevant totheir audience's everyday life. It is not enoughto speak about Europe (although it is stillstrongly needed), but rather it is essential that

museums make effective use of their power ofintellectual seduction to encourage a Europeanperspective.

4. What are the implications of the impact ofsocial networks on the museum identity andactions within the community?Through content sharing, such as throughEuropeana, museums can boost theirleadership in society. As the Internet is used asa primary information source and is seen asauthoritative, which was not always the case,there is a chance for museums to positionthemselves as authoritative sources ofknowledge in the cultural arena as well as in theedutainment ('educational entertainment')market.

As local, national and global dimensionsbecome more and more interrelated,established ideas and principles from onedimension can be potentially undermined.Museums have the potential to show thevarious perspectives and diversity of beliefs,histories and narratives, and thus have thepower to help build the interrelatednessbetween the local, national and global levels.

The 'virtual museum' has brought with it a shiftin meaning, from the idea of the Internet as ashowcase for attracting visitors, to the Internetas a fully digital and fully 'connected' vision ofthe museum's presence; today the museum on

Page 40: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

38

the Internet is a comprehensive and articulateddigital entity sometimes exhibiting its ownautonomous life. This digitisation and virtual-isation of museums, has also created newprofessional positions, such as cyber curators,that could not have existed ten years prior.

5. In the era of globalisation, how can amuseum fulfil its mission while necessarilybalancing various influences and differentways of interpreting its collections andcultural contents?This is of course not only a challenge formuseums. However, as one takes a wider lookat museums and narrows in on the specificnature of museological discourse, it becomes

evident that the core of the problem is a matterof museum linguistics. Museum linguistics ispassing through a mutation process of which itis hard to identify the direction of development.This has to do with processes within westernsociety, but also increasingly within the globalworld in general. In the case of the museum, itsidentity may be involved in a radical mutation;in the last fifty years, ICOM has reformulatedthe definition of museums quite frequently asnew kinds of institutions entered the picture.Today, the crucial point is not what a museum isdefined as, but rather how a museum thinksand acts.

Page 41: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

39

Enrica Pagella examines the successfulcrowdfunding campaign of the Museo PalazzoMadama that restored an important work of art,an 18th century Meissen porcelain service,back to the region. She attributes the successof the crowdfunding campaign to three mainfactors: the quality of the service itself, qualityof the organisational process and the quality ofthe participatory approach. In addition, Ms.Pagella further explains how this projectrenewed enthusiasm for both the region'scultural history, as well as new projects andactivities in the museum community.

In early 2013, the citizens of Turin, Italy,participated in one museum's extensive projectto acquire a work of art very important to theregion's history, culture and identity. Theoutpouring of citizen support, which came inthe form of a crowdfunding campaign, was theMuseo Palazzo Madama's only hope inacquiring the work of art and demonstrated thecrucial necessity of citizen participation in themodern age. In addition, the campaignrenewed community enthusiasm for themuseum's various projects and activities and

transformed the museum's audience bybringing in new parts of society.

With an acquisition budget of €0, the museumlaunched the first Italian museum crowdfundingcampaign as its only alternative to acquire a 42-piece Meissen porcelain service dating fromaround 1730, which once belonged to theTaparelli d'Azeglio family of Turin.

Intended to be sold at a Bonhams auction inLondon for the price of £66,000 (around€80,000), the service instead came back hometo Turin to the Palazzo Madama, after thecampaign successfully raised €96,203.90 in justtwo months from over 1,500 contributors. Thesuccess of this crowdfunding campaign can beascribed to three main factors: quality of theartwork, quality of the organisational processand quality of the museum's participatoryapproach.

1. Quality of the artwork: identity andaesthetic valuesThe d'Azeglio service, dating from around 1730is a splendid example of early Meissenporcelain. It bears the crest of Taparelli

Collaborating with the public: Museo Palazzo Madama and its crowdfundingcampaign.Enrica Pagella

Page 42: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

40

Page 43: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

41

d'Azeglio, a family that played a leading role inmodern Italian history and whose lastdescendant, Marquis Emanuele (1806-1890),was the director and patron of the MuseoCivico di Torino. The service was donated to anancestor of the d'Azeglio family in Dresden, byAugustus II the Strong, and then kept in Turinuntil 1903, when it was sold after beinginherited by a cousin.

The search for evidence surrounding the servicestarted from a cup of hot chocolate found in apainting by Massimo d'Azeglio, Emanuele'suncle from 1843. The long story of the dispersaland then of the rediscovery of the servicecontained many twists and turns that engagedand intrigued the public of Turin. Facing suchan exciting story, the public answered the callto play the part of real 'actors' by ensuring ahappy ending for both the museum and the citythrough crowdfunding the campaign to acquirethe service.

2. Quality of the organisational process:human and relational values, reliabilityTeamwork and the collective commitment ofthe museum staff was another importantelement in gaining public support andultimately in the success of the campaign. InDecember 2012, the museum's mainstakeholders were approached in order togather ideas and gain consensus and support.After the initiative was launched, all members

of staff personally contacted their colleagues,friends, associations and local communities -schools, families, people taking part in theactivities of the museum, etc. - with e-mails,phone calls, meetings, lectures and interviews.

Then, once the campaign commenced, its stateof progress was examined weekly. This includedcounting the number of donations, the amountsraised and the effects of the social mediacommunication campaign. Every week the listof donors was updated, donations fromcollection boxes in the museum were counted,bank payments effectively made by donorswere checked and the counter on the websitewas updated. Progress was monitoredconstantly so that further actions could beplanned, staff could be motivated and, mostimportantly, so that partial results could becommunicated in a transparent and efficientmanner to the public, keeping the emotionaltemperature high.

3. Quality of the participatory approachadopted by the museum: community andsocial valuesWhile the museum was aware that this projectwould be full of uncertainties and risks, it alsoknew that it could count on the considerablework of community building that it had carriedout since 2009. Since 2009, the museum hademphasised certain techniques and pro-grammes including: forms of communication,

Page 44: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

42

accessibility and a focus on visitors' real needs;an analysis and application of visitor studies;the 'listening museum' experience of 2011, withthe reconstruction of Italy's first Senatechamber; the inclusion of the institution in alocal and international network; the desire tocreate a strong brand identity; and lastly, themassive amount of work carried out throughthe online community. All of these had pavedthe way for the success of the crowdfundingcampaign by creating a sense of communitythat generated an emotional connection thatpeople feel when something touches theirhearts and drives them to action.

Conclusion - the unveilingThe service was welcomed to the PalazzoMadama and presented to the public on 4 June2013 along with the names of over 1,500

donors. The following weekend the museumoffered free admission to the public andenjoyed over 11,000 visitors who came to seethe service. The service was then settled in itsfinal destination, one of the showcases on thesecond floor dedicated to the Decorative Arts.

Because of this work of art, the Ceramic andPorcelain Gallery now has a new importantnarrative spot, the new Meissen showcase.Within the showcase, the major donors arewelcomed and thanked with a label reportingtheir name and the date of acquisition. Afternine months, in December 2013, the museumstill had single donors, families and friends whocame to the museum simply to see the service.The museum staff is currently working toinvolve all of them in new projects in 2014.

'FACING SUCH AN EXCITING STORY, THE PUBLIC

ANSWERED THE CALL TO PLAY THE PART OF REAL

"ACTORS" BY ENSURING A HAPPY ENDING FOR

BOTH THE MUSEUM AND THE CITY THROUGH

CROWDFUNDING THE CAMPAIGN'.

Page 45: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

43

Using the example of a science museum, JorgeWagensberg details his vision and concept ofthe 'total museum', one that embodies a shift inmuseum language - from using only objects tousing objects and their phenomena. He arguesthat a museum, more so than a textbook,presents the most suitable location forindividuals to witness and interact with reality,to better understand the interconnectedness oftime and space. He also emphasises that theconcept of the 'total museum' hinges on a newkind of audience participation, one where thesign of a museum's success is the stimulationvisitors receive and the impressions that remainlong after the visit, not the mere number ofmuseum visitors.

A museum is a space of enormous socialinterest and its audience is totally universal. Thereason for this is in its initial definition - sinceemotions, real objects and real events are'words' that are ageless and have no specificsocial class or cultural level.

May this introduction serve to present a newvision for how museums can engage theaudience and as a concept for a museum that,

in virtue of the scope of its ambition, one mightcall the 'total museum'. In order to illustrate thenew vision and concept of a 'total museum' thespecific example of a science museum is usedhere.

A science museum is a space dedicated toproviding a stimulus to scientific knowledge,the scientific method and scientific opinion.This is the straightforward definition thatproduces the unspoken working hypotheses ofover twenty years' envisioning of Barcelona'sMuseo de la Ciencia of the 'la Caixa'Foundation, and the definition that todayexplicitly sums up the ideas of CosmoCaixa, themuseum opened on 23 September 2004. This,if you will, is a real mission statement of a totalmuseology.

It is something that is already in the air as atendency at some present-day museums, butneither the science museums of the past normost of today are in line with. In principle, tofollow through with this definition and toconsolidate these tendencies, a new muse-ography might need to be invented. The firstscience museums were natural history museumsor museums of machines and instruments that

The 'total museum'.Jorge Wagensberg

Page 46: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

44

exhibited real items in glass cases to the public,but held a clear mission to build up andconserve collections for scientific researchers.The more recent science museums aremuseums - generally physics museums - wherereal phenomena are presented and which thevisitor interacts with, but where there is also anabsence of real items and also a certain degreeof abusing audiovisual and IT resources.

However, it so happens that science seeks tounderstand reality and that reality is made up ofboth objects and phenomena. Objects aremade of matter that takes up space, andphenomena are the changes experienced byobjects, which take up time. Thus, the museumpresents a more suitable location, than say abook, for witnessing the interconnectedness oftime and space - reality. This also means thatreality, whether objects or phenomena, is anirreplaceable aspect of a museum, in other

Page 47: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

45

words, a must-have. Reality is 'the museologicalword'. Going even further, a museum isconcentrated reality.

Perhaps this is the only thing that distinguishesmuseology from any other form of scientificcommunication. The lecturer and the teacheruse the spoken word as a basic element oftransmission, even while they enlist the aid ofthe written word, still or moving images,models, simulations, computer programmes,etc. A lecture can be given without slides,without reading text, without diagrams orwithout demonstrations of any kind, but alecture cannot be given without speaking. Infact, a lecture cannot even be given just byreading a text.

Books, newspapers and magazines have thewritten word as their basic element oftransmission, even though they use diagrams,drawings, maps and photos. But books ormagazines without written words do not exist;they would be something else, an albumperhaps. Silent films exist, but films withoutimages do not exist, nor radio without sound.In a museum, there is no ban on usingsimulations, models, graphic images or newtechnologies, but only as accessories to reality,not to replace it.

At a science museum there is no ban onteaching, informing, instructing, entertaining - it

cannot even be avoided - but none of this is apriority. In fact, for any of these goals there isanother medium that does it far better. A goodteacher or a good conversation with colleaguesteaches us better and more than a visit to amuseum. A good Internet search engineinforms us better. Life itself is the greatinstructor, and each individual has his or herown favourite pastime for entertainment (forsome people, of course, this can be themuseum itself). But - what is the museum's veryown job? What is its ideal function? What doesit do better than any other system?

The answer lies in the definition started outwith earlier: stimulation - creating a differencebetween before and after. At a good museumor a good exhibition, you have more questionswhen you are finished then when you began.The museum is a tool for change, for individualchange and, therefore, for social change, too.The museum is irreplaceable in the mostimportant stage of the cognitive process: thebeginning, moving from indifference to a desireto learn. And there is nothing like reality toprovide such a stimulus.

A new museography must be invented: amuseography with objects that are real but ableto express themselves in a triply interactiveway: manually interactive ('hands on' in today'smuseum jargon), mentally interactive ('mindon') and culturally interactive ('heart on'). These

Page 48: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

46

are objects that tell stories, which talk to eachother and to the visitor. They are objects withassociated events, living objects, objects thatchange. It is one thing to exhibit a sedimentaryrock on its own and another to display anexperiment that shows the process in real timeof how the rock was formed.

How does one evaluate whether exhibitionsreally provide a stimulus to science? Museumsusually strive to show off their visitor numbersand this is a bad habit. Visitor numbers shouldbe of concern, especially if there are none or

very few, but they provide no idea of thechange effected in the audience. What reallymatters is whether an exhibition stimulatespeople to read books, to ask new questions inclass, to make different choices when watchingTV, to travel in new ways and, above all,whether it generates conversation, conversationduring the visit itself, conversation with othersafter the visit, conversation with oneself(thinking) and conversation with surroundings(observation, experimentation).

Page 49: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

47

When examining the larger Europeanframework and its strategy for museums, themind goes to the Lisbon Strategy, which waslaunched in 2000 and established strategicgoals for the following decade, i.e. to transformEurope into 'the most competitive and dynamicknowledge-based economy in the world,capable of sustainable economic growth withmore and better jobs and greater socialcohesion'.

Very soon after the Lisbon Strategy waslaunched, it became clear that these ambitiousobjectives would not be met and indeed theywere not. Nevertheless, there was an importantlegacy of the Lisbon Strategy, which waslifelong learning and the importance it assumedfor museums and cultural organisations. The EUdefined lifelong learning as 'all learningactivities undertaken throughout life with theobjective of improving knowledge, skills,competencies in a personal, civic, social orworking perspective'.

Since investing in people and in their capacityto learn throughout their lifetimes was

considered an essential feature of theknowledge-based society Europe wanted tobecome, lifelong learning was one of the pillarsof the Lisbon Strategy. And as was laterapparent, its philosophy trickled down toinform the practice of many actors in theeducation and learning fields, includingmuseums.

In recent decades, more and more culturalorganisations in different European countrieshave been urged to engage with new andsometimes unusual audiences: migrants, thedisabled, the socially excluded, but also adultswho choose to visit museums in order to betterunderstand, to gain new insights, to be inspiredor to simply enjoy themselves. Lifelong learning- and the EU funding attached to it - hasopened up a new era for museums: that ofquestioning one's own assumptions, ofexperimenting, of building up partnerships, ofbeing challenged by encounters with differentpublics, new audiences, new citizens, and oftrying to make a positive difference in theselives.

The Future of the EU Cultural StrategyIntroduction: Margherita Sani

Page 50: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

48

Currently, the museum community is facing anew European strategy, the EU 2020 Strategythat was launched in 2010. What does it sayand is it possible to imagine what its legacy willbe at the end of the decade? The EU 2020Strategy defines itself as a strategy for smart,sustainable and inclusive growth. The strategyrests on three interconnected and mutuallyreinforcing priority areas:1. Smart growth - based on knowledge and

innovation; promotion of know-how; edu-cation; and the digital community;

2. Sustainable development - the 'green'economy; low carbon emissions; efficiencyof resources; and competitiveness;

3. Inclusive growth - enlarged labour marketand specialisation; war against poverty; ahigh employment economy delivering socialand territorial cohesion.

Tracking the progress of growth within eachpriority area will be evaluated against fivemeasurable headline EU-level targets, whichMember States must translate into nationaltargets.

These targets relate to:• Employment - raising the employment rate

for women and men aged 20-64 to 75%,including through the greater participationof young people;

• Education - improving education levels, inparticular by aiming to reduce school drop-out rates to less than 10% and by increasingthe share of 30-34 year-olds havingcompleted tertiary or equivalent educationto at least 40%;

• Sustainability - reducing greenhouse gasemissions by 20% compared to 1990 levels,increasing the share of renewables in finalenergy consumption to 20% and movingtowards a 20% increase in energy efficiency;

• Research and development - raisingcombined public and private investmentlevels in this sector to 3% of the EU's GDP;

• Social inclusion - lifting at least 20 millionpeople out of risk of poverty or exclusion.

In order to meet these targets, the EUCommission proposed a series of sevenflagship initiatives: 'A Digital Agenda forEurope', 'Innovation Union', 'Youth on theMove', 'Resource Efficient Europe', 'AnIndustrial Policy for a Globalisation Era', 'AnAgenda for New Skills and Jobs' and 'TheEuropean Platform Against Poverty'.

Against this backdrop, what role will the culturalsector play? The cultural and creative sectorsare a significant driver of growth and jobs inEurope as they offer a key source of creativityand innovation, as well as contributingsignificantly to social cohesion and well-being.However, if all revolves around the economy

Page 51: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

49

and job creation, and the word 'culture' ishardly mentioned in the EU 2020 Strategy, willcultural institutions - if they are aiming at EUfinancial support - be able to pursue their owngoals or will they have to stage actions whichare instrumental in achieving some kind ofmore general economic performance?

Page 52: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

50

Luca Bergamo examines economic, societaland political changes in Europe over the pastdecades and their implications on the culturalsector of today and of the future. Mr. Bergamodiscusses the transition that Europe facestoday and emphasises that a new vision andnarrative for the future is needed if theEuropean project's founding values - e.g.democracy, human rights and education - willbe promoted in the future. In addition to anew narrative, Mr. Bergamo details both theneed for a new way of thinking about cultureand also the need for museums, museumprofessionals and their audiences to activelyparticipate in and influence the Europeanpolitical decision-making process.

For too long society has surrendered to ashort-term approach to work, to politics andeven to private life. For too long society hasaccepted that everything can be replaced bysomething newer and more efficient,something shinier or smarter. Society has donethis up to the point where citizens havebecome increasingly incapable of nurturinghuman relations.

In November 1966 young people from all overItaly ran to rescue Florence's cultural treasureswhen flooding threatened the city. Thishappened because these young men andwomen were used to looking at their worldwith a larger span in time and space, feltconnected to the world and consideredthemselves as active parts of theirsurroundings, more so than citizens today. Thehistorical period of today requires that citizensreclaim this very thinking, that they begin toview the world with a broader perspective,keeping in mind the passage of time and awide variety of issues.

What does the picture of today look like?Where is Europe in time and space? What isthe framework of European museumscomposed of and what responsibility does thecultural sector have? What can be thecontribution of museums in helping Europe torecover from a turbulent crisis? These andothers, are the questions that need to beanswered in order to find a sustainablestrategy for museum advocacy in the comingyears.

Europe: it is a transition, not a crisis.Luca Bergamo

Page 53: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

51

In 1810 the average lifespan of a Europeanwas below forty and the average income peryear was between a few hundred and threethousand US dollars. In less than two hundredyears the world population's life expectancyand average wealth have dramaticallychanged. Currently, the differences betweenthe world's regions, both in life expectancyand in average income seem wider however.Looking at the transformation following WorldWar II, a clear correlation between a longer lifeand a higher income exists, except for Africa.

Parallel to this enormous transformation duringwhich the average life expectancy almostdoubled, there was also an immense growth ofthe world population and a substantial changein its influence distribution. While the westernworld's decisions were shaping worlddestinies, its population was about 21.5% ofthe total in 1800 and about 30% in 1900. In2050 this percentage is expected to drop toabout 10% or less. Meanwhile, China andIndia's share of the global trade will increasefrom 5% to about 30%.

A period of almost continued Europeandomination that lasted centuries, dating backto the early 16th century, is now coming to anend. New emerging transitional players andpowers are challenging the role of nationalstates as regulators of citizens' lives, asembodiments of citizens' sovereignty and as

vehicles for mitigating the effects of capitalisticeconomies on inequality by redistributingglobal wealth through welfare.

In addition to all of this, Europe is being calledon to deal with the impacts of a changedpopulation where the producers are now ashrinking minority. Moreover, long-termunemployment is dramatically impacting largegroups of younger generations that findincreasing challenges in building their futureand seeing themselves as full citizens in asociety that largely connects social identity tobeing recognized as a contributor to GDP.

Since 2008, European citizens have been toldthey are living in a crisis. They are told that inorder to recover from that crisis they mustrestore the conditions for economic growth onwhich a basis of fair redistribution of wealthcan be achieved. And while Europeans havebeen told every year since the so-called crisisstarted, that it would get better, reality hasproven differently. What Europeans are nottold is that the basis on which they built theirprior wealth no longer exists: people are livinglonger, natural resources are being depletedand traditional job descriptions are becomingscarce.

Most of these conditions are irreversible. Thereis no going back. From the identity crisisbrought about through economic and social

Page 54: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

52

Page 55: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

53

policies, to the crisis of ethics where advancesin science increases our ability to influence ourdestiny, to the environmental crisis where ourabuse of the natural world ultimately threatensour survival, our crises are complex andinterrelated.

The inconvenient truth is that we are today notliving through a crisis but rather through atransition whose outcome is yet to becompletely understood. It is also abundantlyclear that society's fate will change incomplexity. If Europe wants to promote thefounding values of the European project suchas democracy, human rights and rule of law,equal rights and opportunity for all, peace andprosperity, decent education and standard ofliving, society must strive for, and bring to life,a new vision and narrative for the future.

This is Europe in the early 21st century: fivehundred million people at a turning point. Theproject and peace of the continentendangered by a growing distrust in itscapacity to solve today's problems. Thisdistrust springs not only from the clear andexisting limits of EU institutions' abilities toproblem solve, but also, and perhaps more so,from the growing influence of the attitudes ofnational decision-makers and opinion-makers.

For decades in Europe, governments haveacted to redistribute accumulated wealth totheir citizens in order to mitigate inequalities,support citizens in better fulfilling their needsthrough public services and to grow privateconsumption. Nevertheless, over the last twodecades inequalities have continued to growin most European countries, widening the gapbetween the very few wealthy, and the manywhose standard of living slides progressivelytowards poverty. Cultural participation has alsodrastically dropped since the so-called crisisbegan.

Today, new challenges confront Europeangovernments: they are called on to ensure theindividual and collective well-being of theircitizens not only through redistributingeconomic resources, but also throughguaranteeing the necessary conditions forsocial cohesion and human rights fulfilment.

Culture and Europe: the major assetThe European Union itself is the first and themost ambitious attempt at establishing a newform of democracy where local and globaldimensions can coexist. Building a commonEuropean identity within the European Unionis an extraordinary challenge and is currentlyunder attack. Creating such a common identityrequires ancient and deep-rooted nations toreduce their sovereignty not because of thehegemony of one language, culture or

Page 56: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

54

religion, but rather because of a willingness toorganise cultural life around an intrinsicallycomplex and diverse identity.

Despite the fact that European integration hasprioritised the economic dimension, Europe isfirst and foremost a cultural and politicalproject. A project whose future depends oncultural factors in a broad sense: on howdifferent nations can come together around asingle political, social and economic projectbased on, and respectful of, cultural diversity,fulfilment of human rights for current andfuture generations, acknowledgment of thelimits to growth and adoption of a sustainableway of life.

This could be the potential future for Europeas it possesses the needed assets, tangibleand intangible - democracy, rights, rule of law,freedom of expression, welfare/solidarity,education, environmental sensitivity, publicspaces, etc. - and, just as important, hasalready developed a culture suited to bringthis future to fruition. However, it is clear thatwithout a substantial shift toward prioritisingthe need to build upon our society's sharedassets and investing in adequate skills andmindsets, this opportunity will surely bemissed.

This implies a completely new approach that isnot based only on economic resources. Rather,

such an approach will require investing in thedevelopment of social capital, which ultimatelydepends on the cultural capacity of citizensand on the quality of their everyday lifeexperiences. Enhancing people's culturalcapacities such as cooperation and creativity,openness to diversity and curiosity, to lyricismas much as logical thinking, is essential indeveloping a fully sustainable society wherehuman rights, civil liberty and shared well-being can be achieved. Art and sciencepowerfully contribute to the enhancement ofsuch capacities, as do cultural life, education,research, architecture and civic engagement,to name a few.

It is time for all decision-makers as well as allcitizens to be aware that a broader discoursesurrounding the development of societalcultural assets is needed, a discourse thatconcerns not only every citizen, but also mostof the policies impacting the public sphere. Itis time to better understand the impact ofpolitical decisions concerning a wide spectrumof policies on societal cultural assets andcapacities, and to make an assessment of theircultural impact, similar to assessing theenvironmental impact of decisions.

What are the next steps? What is the rolefor NEMO and museums?After testing new cooperation methods andpartnerships by stakeholders - the EU

Page 57: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

55

Commission, the EU Parliament, MemberStates and civil society - the launch of theEuropean Agenda for Culture in 2007 markeda turning point in the way advocating forculture and arts is viewed in Europe. Todayhowever, citizens live in a different world. Inthis period of profound transition, promotingthe role of culture calls for changes, includinga new way cultural organisations andstakeholders think about culture and its role insociety. Culture enables evolution and humandevelopment and should be understood asone of the key components towards citizenshipand a new social contract.

With regard to policymaking, the world'sculture should no longer be identified as afield of action limited on one side by artisticlife and on the other by heritage protection.Cultural policy, intended as the set ofmeasures concerning the protection anddevelopment of artistic life and heritage,

should be replaced by something called Policyfor Cultural Development. This would bebased on the notion of culture thatincorporates a large set of human activitiesthrough which individuals and communitiescould forge and consolidate the capacities andresources essential to compose the socialfabric, which is composed of various sectors.Culture plays a role in each of these sectors.

For a long period of time most culturalnetworks and operators have worked toinfluence decision-makers by providing adviceand valuable knowledge on most mattersconcerning cultural policy. However, theiranalysis, debate and action too often evadedfocusing on these actors' responsibilitytowards the society at large, thus progressivelydisconnecting the sector from the rest of civilsociety. Taking that into consideration, itshould not come as a surprise that a majorityof citizens does not consider cultural policy as

'SUCH AN APPROACH WILL REQUIRE INVESTING IN

THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL CAPITAL, WHICH

ULTIMATELY DEPENDS ON THE CULTURAL CAPACITY

OF CITIZENS'.

Page 58: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

56

a priority, a consideration that prompts majorconsequences in a period of shrinking publicspending.

In order to encourage the notion that culture isa necessary element for development, closerto the core of decision-making and publicdebate, it is now time for cultural operatorsand their representative organisations to:• Place fostering societal cultural develop-

ment at the heart of their reflections andactions.

• Partner with citizens' organisations and thecivil society at large in search of converge-nces to make a positive difference on theaccumulation of social capital.

Museums and their representatives can play aleading role in this endeavour. Museums aremade up of public space, communities,competences, research, social processes,learning, art, architecture and much more.They can provide a long-term perspective inrelation to the past and the future to empathy,

Page 59: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

57

act as learning environments and challengethe beliefs of individuals or groups; in short,they provide experiences that impact thoseessential cultural capacities that are theelementary components of social capital.

If understood and managed as complexrealities to be fully embedded into the societyfor its ultimate benefit, museums are a majorasset in any policy aimed at paving the way fora new European way of life, one based on thefulfilment of human rights and sustainability. Tothis extent, existing valuable museum assetsmust be made known beyond the museumworld and be made accessible in order tonurture different contexts, such as libraries,theatres and schools, to name a few.

A new way of thinking about culture is anecessity though it will not suffice to reversethe tide of political and private decision-making that reduce the resources available tocultural activities. Despite good will, politicaldecision-making is still much more aboutbalancing demands from different and oftenopposed constituencies. Building the case forculture is essential in order to foster newconstituencies that recognise themselves assuch - as participatory citizens of Europe. Infact, this is the most important condition thatwill impact decision-making processes.

As stated above, while the past years'discourse over culture was somehow 'self-centred', today's constituency in support ofnew and more effective policies to fostercultural development is fragile. A new way ofthinking about culture will pave the way for thecreation of a European-wide movement forculture that is, more than ever, a necessity inaiding society to overcome its depression.Museums, museum professionals, their comm-unities and their representative organisationscan play a major role in shaping andpromoting this new way of thinking and ininfluencing the process of creating a Europeancultural movement.

Beginning in 2014, Culture Action Europe(CAE) is integrating its traditional advocacyinto a new larger set of actions. Using ametaphor, CAE will also function as a 'publictransport network' (PTN) to facilitate inter-connections between civil society organ-isations, to foster convergence aroundcommon messages and provide support toconvey them, and to maximise CAE's globalimpact on public opinion and decision-makingboth at the national and European levels.

The PTN will 'follow lines', lines that tacklemajor societal issues seen through the lens ofculture - from learning to citizens rights, fromwelfare to the human footprint on the planet.The lines' stops consist of activities such as

Page 60: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

58

debates, knowledge building and dissem-ination, training and expertise, activism andcampaigning, communication initiatives andtargeted projects, which will provideorganisations or individuals with the oppor-tunity to join.

By paving the way for new and strongerpartnerships and giving space to experimen-tation whilst welcoming and integratingnewcomers, this structure aims to develop aparticipatory common agenda with unitedaction expressed by a single voice, the one ofculture. The better coordinated those engagedin providing culture the right role in the public

sphere are, the better the impact of each andevery undertaking will be.

NEMO as an appreciated and influentialmember of CAE can, and hopefully will, act asa leading partner of that transformation. This isa process of mutual empowerment throughwhich all actors can directly benefit bycontributing to the growth of social capital inEurope and eventually to every citizen's well-being.

Page 61: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

59

The presentations have shown how inter-connected the topic of society's digital shift isto a new sense and understanding ofcitizenship. Continued digitisation of oureveryday lives is undeniable and irreversible;the young generation does not even talkabout 'digital' anymore. The changes we seeall around us - from communications, toeducation, to business and to medicine, just toname a few - might have started and beenshaped by the digital shift, but after all arestrong indicators of society's changing needsand behaviours.

We still lack a strategic vision for this newsetting. There is no one-to-one translationfrom the analogue world to the digital one. Forexample, is the assumption that moreinformation leads to more democracy stillviable? Or, in the digital world with assumedlyall information available, does the abundanceof information lead to less democracy? Canthe overload of information keep citizens frombecoming active citizens because it becomesincreasingly difficult to determine relevantinformation? And, can museums help by

making visible and structuring such infor-mation?

How can museums contribute to navigatingthis new analogue-digital world and make useof the great benefits it brings while remainingaware of the challenges arising from it? Canthey help to find a new paradigm thatresponds to today's world?

We - as society, as individuals and as culturalplayers - must create a new and compre-hensive narrative for our lives. This narrativeincludes basic questions like 'how do wepicture our relationship between private andpublic life?', 'how can we translate"togetherness" into the digital age?', 'how dowe want to earn our money?' A review ofsociety's relevant values is needed to createsuch a narrative, including the definition ofcultural values. This narrative should enableour society to reflect, recognize and capturethe full range of values expressed throughculture, to make explicit a much broader rangeof cultural, non-monetised values, to view theentire cultural system including all of its

Conclusion

Page 62: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

60

subsystems and to better understand howsystemic health and resilience are maintained.

If we begin by examining theses culturalvalues, we must ask how, and in what ways,museums can contribute to social cohesionand make a positive difference in the lives ofindividuals and their communities. That meansparticularly that public organisations mustactively and continuously seek input from thepublic to ensure an organisation's legitimacyand must engage the public as co-creators sothat communities can consciously shape theirsurroundings. This requires active involvementfrom citizens in the development of a newnarrative - citizens who understand their rightsand duties as well as the possibilities toinfluence and shape their environment.

Where does the unique project 'Europe' comeinto the reframing of our common values andthe creation of this new narrative? Is there aEuropean approach at all? How can we keep inmind the bigger questions of how we want tolive together in a diverse and democraticEurope while still relating to our immediatesurroundings? Certainly, one of the manyanswers is to connect with and to be aware ofthe other. Networks can play a leading role inthis.

NEMO is working towards this goal. Ournetwork wants to contribute to a Europeanmuseum sector that exploits its potential tofurther a broader social agenda, that makes itsmuseum collections as widely accessible aspossible to all citizens and that is recognizedas an important provider of formal andinformal learning and a contributor to Europe'seconomic development in the future.

Siebe Weide, Chairman of NEMO

Page 63: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

61

Page 64: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

62

Authors' Biographical Details

Luca Bergamo is the Secretary General of Culture Action Europe (CAE). Previously he served asDirector General of the Italian National Agency for Youth where he promoted, and later directed,the NMC initiative on sustainable development in collaboration with UNESCO, UNDP, ILO,UNHABITAT, IADB, WB and other non-governmental agencies. He also served as Director Generalof the 'Global Forum', an international foundation promoting peace dialogue, cultural cooperationand active citizenship in sensitive regions in cooperation with UN Agencies and local authoritiesworldwide. Mr. Bergamo also served as the Executive Director of Zone Attive, a public-privatecompany fostering cultural innovation in Italy, and worked on the team of the Mayor of Rome,leading the youth policy department.

Paul Klimpel is a practicing attorney at iRights.Law and chairs the iRights.Lab Culture. He alsocoordinates several projects concerning cultural heritage at the Internet and Society Collaboratory.He moderated an expert group and published the 'Berlin appeal on preservation of digital culturalheritage' in 2013. Previously, Mr. Klimpel worked at the Museum of Film and Television as itsAdministrative Director and also as the Chief Executive of the German Network of MultimediaResource Centres. Paul Klimpel studied law in Bonn and Munich as well as philosophy, psychologyand social sciences at the Jesuit University of Philosophy in Munich. His doctorate thesis on legalpaternalism was published in 2003.

Kimmo Levä is the Secretary General of the Finnish Museums Association and has been theManaging Director of Oy Chronicon Ltd. since 1992. His previous positions have included MuseumDirector at Mobilia (National Road Traffic Museum) and Mobilia Foundation Commissioner from1994 to 2011. Mr. Levä is currently a Board Member of ICOM's Committee of Management andLeadership (INTERCOM) and the Vice Chairman and Board Member of the Culture for AllAssociation. In the past he has served on several other boards including the Finnish MuseumsAssociation, the Kangasala Tourism Association, the Trafiikki Museum Association and the FinnishMuseum Directors Association.

Page 65: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

63

Massimo Negri is the Director of the European Museum Academy. Prior to directing the EuropeanMuseum Academy, he was the European Museum Forum Director and a jury member of theEuropean Museum of the Year Award. He was also awarded two Fulbright Scholarships at thePennsylvania State University and at the Smithsonian Institution. Mr. Negri is a member of theScientific Committee of the Museum of the Cathedral (Museo del Duomo) of Milan and theScientific Director of the Executive Master Course in European Museology, IULM University, Milan.He is an independent temporary exhibition specialist and an active lecturer on industrialarchaeology. He has written several publications in this field and on museological matters ingeneral and also teaches museology at the State University of Padua.

Enrica Pagella is the Director of Palazzo Madama and the Borgo Medievale in Turin. Beforebecoming Director, Ms. Pagella worked on the new display settings and restoration of PalazzoMadama that opened to the public in 2006. Previously, Ms. Pagella directed the municipal ArtMuseum of Modena and was responsible for its refurbishing and reopening project. Graduatingwith a degree in Medieval Art History, Ms. Pagella has devoted a great part of her career to thefield of conservation and museum management, with particular attention to accessibility andparticipation policies. As a member of ICOM, she was nominated as 'Best Curator of the Year' in2012. She has also taught as a fixed-term lecturer at the universities of Bologna and Turin andpublished several papers on medieval art, collecting and museum history.

Nick Poole is the Chief Executive of the Collections Trust, a UK based not-for-profit organisationthat works with a network of 23,000 museums to open up their collections for discovery and use.Mr. Poole is also the Treasurer of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionalsand Chair of the Europeana Network, a network of 800 cultural and creative industry partnersacross Europe. He was formerly a Trustee of the Museums Association and Chair of ICOM UK. NickPoole studied modern and medieval languages before working first as a portrait painter and thenin investment banking. He has held positions as a Government Policy Advisor and is currently theUK representation to the European Commission on matters relating to culture and technology.

Page 66: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

64

Volker Rodekamp is the Director of the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum Leipzig (Museum of CityHistory Leipzig) and the President of the German Museums Association. He also has variousteaching assignments at the University of Münster, Humboldt University Berlin and University ofLeipzig. Mr. Rodekamp studied folklore, ethnology and journalism in Braunschweig and in Münster,and received a doctorate with a study focusing on the influences of structural changes ontraditional labour work in the 20th century. He is a member of multiple scientific organisations andprofessional associations such as the Institut für sächsische Geschichte und Volkskunde e.V., theKulturstiftung Leipzig and the Stiftung Völkerschlachtdenkmal Leipzig.

Margherita Sani is in charge of European museum projects, specifically in museum education,lifelong learning and intercultural dialogue at the Istituto Beni Culturali of the Region Emilia-Romagna. She has led a number of European funded projects, including the Network 'LEM - TheLearning Museum', the Grundtvig Multilateral Project 'Lifelong Museum Learning', the LearningPartnership 'Museums tell many stories' and the Grundtvig Multilateral Project 'MAP for ID -Museums as Places for Intercultural Dialogue'. Since 1996, Ms. Sani has organised the annualEuropean Museum Forum Workshop, an international training event in the museological field. Shehas also been an Executive Board Member of NEMO since 2008 and since 2012, a jury member ofthe Children's Museum Award. She is one of the European Museum Academy experts and amember of ICTOP (ICOM Committee Training Personnel).

Charlotte Sexton is the President of the Museum Computer Network (MCN), responsible for theorganisation's administration and strategic direction. In her previous role as Head of Digital Mediaat the National Gallery, London, she was responsible for designing digital experiences to engagephysical, online and mobile audiences with the Gallery's world-class collection. She successfullydeveloped the National Gallery's Digital Engagement Strategy and transformed the way theGallery thought about digital and its central role in delivering key organisational objectives. Ms.Sexton has more than fifteen years experience in managing complex digital projects for mobile,online and in-gallery consumption - many of these have been widely recognized and awardwinning. She frequently lectures in digital media and strategy and has been a visiting lecturer bothin the UK and internationally. She has worked independently as an Interaction and Multi-Mediadesigner, was a director of a .com and has been a fine art filmmaker and photographer.

Page 67: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

65

Dimitrios Tsolis is a lecturer at the Cultural Heritage Management and New TechnologiesDepartment at the University of Patras and a researcher in its Computer Engineering andInformatics Department. Mr. Tsolis has participated in various European and national projectsregarding digital content ingestion processes and technologies for museums, long-term digitalpreservation, e-Archiving, IPR and DRM systems. He also participates in various committees suchas Europeana v1.0 Workgroup 1.2 Legal and the Greek IPR Committee. He is the advisor to theHellenic Intellectual Property Organisation, the Azerbaijan's Copyright Office and the CopyrightAgency of the Republic of Armenia in matters including technical means for protection andmanagement of intellectual property rights of digital works, and digitisation of cultural heritage. Hehas authored more than seventy research papers.

Jorge Wagensberg is the Scientific Director of the Foundation 'la Caixa' and the former Directorof the Area of the Environment and Science at 'la Caixa'. Previously, he also worked as the Directorof CosmoCaixa, the science museum of the Foundation 'la Caixa' from 1991 to 2005. In addition tohis work at 'la Caixa', Jorge Wagensberg is a professor of Theory of Irreversible Processes in theFaculty of Physics at Barcelona University. He also created and currently directs the seriesMetatemas published by Tusquets Editores, a collection that is a reference point for scientificthought. Jorge Wagensberg has published over a hundred research works in fields as wide-rangingas biophysics, entomology, mathematics, microbiology, palaeontology, philosophy of science,scientific museology and thermodynamics.

Harry Verwayen is the Deputy Director of Europeana, responsible for the development ofEuropeana's business with a main focus on the design and implementation of new businessmodels that will support Europeana in fulfilling its mission as 'distributor, facilitator and innovator'.Prior to Europeana, Mr. Verwayen worked at the Amsterdam based think-tank Knowledgelandwhere he was responsible for business model innovation in the cultural heritage sector. He holds aMA in History from Leiden University and has worked over ten years in the Scientific PublishingIndustry. Mr. Verwayen has published several articles including 'Business Model Innovation CulturalHeritage' (2010), 'A business-model perspective on end-users and open metadata' (2011) and thewhite paper 'The Problem of the Yellow Milkmaid, a Business Model Perspective on OpenMetadata', along with Arnoldus, Kaufman (2011).

Page 68: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

66

Henrik Zipsane is the Director of the Jamtli Foundation, a heritage organisation in central Sweden.In addition to his work at the Jamtli Foundation, he is a co-founder and senior researcher at TheNordic Centre of Heritage Learning & Creativity, an R&D organisation for learning through heritageengagement. Mr. Zipsane is a guest professor in heritage learning and regional development atLinköping University and an associate of Pascal Observatory and the Centre for Research andDevelopment in Adult and Lifelong Learning (CR&DALL). He is also an associate of the EuropeanExpert Network on Culture and an appointed expert on culture and adult education by theEuropean Commission. Mr. Zipsane is a board member of Culture Action Europe and holds a PhDin education and history from The Danish University of Education.

Page 69: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

67

Image Credits

Page 6: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Jens Gyarmaty, Marcus Reichmann).

Page 11: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.

Page 16: Audio guide circa 1964. Photo credit C. Sexton 2013 | © Amon Carter Museum ofAmerican Art, USA (Archive display).

Page 21: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Verena Müller).

Page 26: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Florian Wallenwein).

Page 28: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.

Page 31: Digitised photograph of 'Julie von Axelson' at the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum Leipzig.

Page 32: Original inventory card at the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum Leipzig.

Page 35: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Martin Wipper).

Page 38: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Jens Gyarmaty, Marcus Reichmann).

Page 40 (top): The d'Azeglio Meissen porcelain service. Christie's Images Limited.

Page 40 (bottom): The unveiling of the d'Azeglio Meissen porcelain service at the Museo PalazzoMadama. Archivio Fotografico della Fondazione Torino Musei.

Page 44: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.

Page 46: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.

Page 49: Archivio Fotografico della Fondazione Torino Musei.

Page 52: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.

Page 56: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Martin Wipper).

Page 58: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.

Page 61: Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (Verena Müller).

Page 70: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...

68

Contact Information

NEMO - The Network of European Museum Organisationsc/o Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.In der Halde 114195 [email protected]

Page 71: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...
Page 72: Museums in the Digital Age Museums and the Development of ...