Museum 2.0

OCTOBER 15, 2009

Over the past year, I've noticed a strange trend in the calls I receive about upcoming participatory museum projects: the majority of them are being planned for teen audiences. Why are teens over-represented in participatory projects? Teens are a known (and somewhat controllable) entity. The first of these reasons is practical.

Teen 24

Teen Participatory Experiment Museum 24

Museum 2.0

AUGUST 19, 2015

Don't assume that content/form that is relevant to you or your existing audiences will be relevant to people from other backgrounds. Here are two examples: Our Youth Programs Manager, Emily Hope Dobkin, wanted to find a way to support teens at the museum. It's rooted in the assets and needs of creative teens in our County.

Teen 20

Teen Museum Voice Collaboration 20

Museum 2.0

NOVEMBER 7, 2010

I had a healthy second life as a slam poet, and I loved the world of artists and performance. At the big one, I worked on a small project with teens to design science exhibits for community centers in their own neighborhoods. We had only eight people doing everything related to content and programming at the museum.

Museum 52

Museum Boston Participatory Job 52

Museum 2.0

MAY 5, 2009

which followed a very strict formula that frustrated some participants who wanted to be treated like artists, not contributors to a data experiment. Some of the most interesting questions included: how do you verify the accuracy and authenticity of visitor-contributed content? This was particularly true for Click!,

Slides 20

Slides Participatory Museum Children 20

Museum 2.0

JUNE 12, 2012

It is multi-disciplinary, incorporates diverse voices from our community, and provides interactive and participatory opportunities for visitor involvement. We experimented with many different forms of visitor participation throughout the building, trying to balance social and individual, text-based and artistic, cerebral and silly.

Participatory 51

Participatory Museum Blackboard Game 51

Museum 2.0

APRIL 6, 2011

Let's say you spend a year working with a group of teens to co-create an exhibition, or you invite members and local artists to help redesign the lobby. A gallery that otherwise would have felt dead came alive with the children's voices, laughter, and antics. Community processes are both exciting and time-consuming.

Participatory 48

Participatory Process Museum Children 48

Museum 2.0

FEBRUARY 27, 2013

Paul home over time, or the Boston Museum of Science's beautiful theater experience about Nikola Tesla, or an incredible single artist show, it stands out. The narrative device was almost nil, and yet the content experience was better than I've had in most exhibitions. This seems strange given that museums are organized around objects.

Museum 53

Museum Story Captivate Artist 53