A space for cultural exploration and exchange, museums serve as an integral institution for a local community and tourists. Museums have existed for centuries, the oldest in the world perhaps, The Capitoline Museum in Rome, dates to 1471.
Their importance in being cultural storehouses and treasures of wealth is undeniable. Perhaps this is why the International Council of Museums (ICOM) declared May 18 as International Museum Day. An annual celebration, it aims to raise awareness on the importance of museums and the role they play in igniting cultural dialogue. This year's theme, ‘Museums for Education and Research’, could not be more accurate. Given there is a surge in cultural tourism, it is crucial that museums act as responsible institutions, aiding research and educating the growing number of visitors.
Tourist hotspots such as the Louvre in Paris receive approximately 8.9 million visitors annually. However, very few museums in India can be proud to have such growth and large visitor numbers. Even if visitor numbers are high, how engaged is the average visitor at the museum?
With enhanced technology, museums are going above and beyond in implementing creative ways to engage a visitor and create immersive spaces. No longer is a museum a mere space where objects are displayed. In an instant gratification era, an average youngster is not interested, let alone patient, to read and research a museum's collection. However, if presented in a way which is appealing the same collection could stand to be very interesting.
Augmented and virtual reality have given a new lease to dynamic museums, bringing objects to life and allowing visitors to interact and connect with what is displayed.
While all eyes were on the MET Gala red carpet this May, mine were busy reading about their spring 2024 exhibition, ‘Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion’. The exhibition is not a mere display of iconic costumes but allows the visitor to experience the pieces in a dynamic and sensory manner. Using cutting-edge technology such as video animation, artificial intelligence, light projections and sound scapes, the MET has managed to breathe life into these costumes, transcending the visitor to the time when they were worn and adorned.
Given the cornucopia of historic textiles that are housed in museums and foundations, implementing sophisticated tools such as this would improve the visitor experience tremendously. Not only would this lure more visitors but it would also engage them. I wonder why no museum is thinking along these innovative, experiential lines.
Implementation of technology to enhance user experience and bring more youngsters to a historic site is successfully being done across several heritage monuments in India. Laser shows, sound and light exhibitions at monuments such as Red Fort in New Delhi and Kumbhalgarh Fort in Udaipur narrate historic sagas and tales.
Why are museums of India continuing being linear? The outcome is being left behind in creating such multisensory exhibitions.
Limited exhibitions as well as travel shows seem to be upping their game but traditional museums of India have still not found a way of successfully intertwining the object, narrative and technology. For example, a recent exhibition in Bangalore titled, ‘Lost in BLR’, is an exemplary way of depicting art, narrating a story on the city and community with the use of technology. Visitors see the city through the eyes of the main character Sista. An Indian version of Alice in Wonderland. They learn about the cultural fabric of Bangalore as a result. This allows the youngsters of Bangalore to learn about their city, culture and community with a lens which is more relatable and interesting for them.
Similarly, travel shows such as the Van Gogh immersive exhibition experienced a large number of visitor footfall in India. The multi-sensory exhibition, which travelled to over 70 cities worldwide, allowed people from across borders to learn and immerse themselves in the life and work of the Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh. Exhibitions such as these invite more curious youngsters, to take their perfect selfie and Instagram-worthy picture. As a result they have learnt about one of the most brilliant artists to have lived.
The ‘Infinity Mirrored Room- The Eternally Infinite Light of the Universe Illuminating the Quest for Truth’, by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, made its way to India at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Culture Centre (NMACC) and had visitors in lines waiting to witness this experience.
Shows such as these are testimony that with enhanced technology and by making the visitor the focus, the museum experience can be not just a cultural exchange but a cultural experience for locals to connect to their heritage and tourists to learn.
The main challenge in installing technology at a museum is the high cost. However, government-run traditional museums have the funding to make this shift and implement enticing ways of bringing in more footfall. They have the ability to push boundaries. With good creative vision, the mummified historic object can become an object of interest. The way a story is narrated and the manner in which the experience is curated is the responsibility of the museum.
Technology can naturally not be the object but is the source that enhances the object. Being threaded with the script of the museum.
The interplay between the physical and digital when done successfully could essentially add more value to the museum and the objects displayed. However, if done in a shoddy manner, this could also potentially devalue the museum's collections.