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Year Three as a Museum Director. Thrived.

Museum 2.0

I''ve now been the executive director of the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History for three years. When I look back at some recent projects that I''m most excited about (like this teen program ), I realize that I had very little to do with their conception or execution. Sometimes it isn''t.

Museum 49
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Games and Cultural Spaces: Live Blog Notes from Games for Change

Amy Sample Ward

Ruth Cohen – American Museum of natural History. Jason Eppink – Museum of the Moving Image. Trying to engaged the teen-to-twenty-something who normally may not use the research library. Ruth Cohen – American Museum of natural History. Jason Eppink – Museum of the Moving Image.

Game 140
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Teenagers and Social Participation

Museum 2.0

Last week, I gave a talk about participatory museum practice for a group of university students at UCSC. During the ensuing discussion, one woman asked, "Which audiences are least interested in social participation in museums?" Many teens love to perform for each other. First, teens often have incredibly tight social spheres.

Teen 49
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Generational Giving at Arts & Cultural Organizations – A Donor Story

Connection Cafe

You gravitated toward the museum, zoo, gallery, symphony, cultural management organization because of your roots. Instead of an event, create a little scavenger hunt for kids to complete as they walk through your historic mansion or art museum, to make it fun for kids to explore and learn. Maybe it’s the same with some of you, too.

Arts 31
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How Different Types of Museums Approach Participation

Museum 2.0

Recently, I was giving a presentation about participatory techniques at an art museum, when a staff member raised her hand and asked, "Did you have to look really hard to find examples from art museums? Aren't art museums less open to participation than other kinds of museums?" I was surprised by her question.

Museum 29
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Guest Post by Nina Simon -- Self-Expression is Overrated: Better Constraints Make Better Participatory Experiences

Beth's Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media

Submitted by Nina Simon, publisher of Museum 2.0. I’ve had it with museums’ obsession with open-ended self-expression. And yet many museums are fixated on creators. Museums see open-ended self-expression as the be-all of participatory experiences. This is a problem for two reasons.

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Reflections on a Weekend with Ze Frank and His Online Community

Museum 2.0

It's not every day that a visitor buys pizza for everyone in the museum. Then again, Saturday was hardly normal at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History. The group was mostly young (teens to thirties) and nerd-diverse: a little bit punk, a little bit hacker, a little bit craft grrl. It was pretty freaking amazing.