Technology Transforming Museums

‘Tidal Wave of Technology’ Is Transforming Museums - UnBeige: " . . . “Technology provides the context for artworks,” Barton added, then cited the Cleveland Museum of Art, another client. In its Gallery One, visitors can turn tapestries into comic books or film trailers. They can also interact with touchscreens, making faces to express their emotions. The touchscreen then displays the museum’s artworks that match their mood. Technology also plays a role in curation, digitization, and data analysis at museums worldwide, explained Chan “Building digital from the ground up” is a key objective of Cooper-Hewitt’s re:Design campaign. The museum analyzed the colors in its collection, which he said “creates new forms of curation.” They’ve also been incorporating 3-D scanning and printing techniques. As museums take the plunge with high-tech tools, they need to strike the proper balance, panelists observed. As Robbins said, “We need to figure out why visitors are drawn to museum spaces, whether it’s more the art or being social.” Added Chan, “The challenge is to take technology in museums to the places where it makes the most sense.”

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