F A I T H
Experience certainly counts for more than it used to in the gallery. This is not to say that 'art' is any more or less important than it ever has been, but that somehow, culturally, we expect to encounter something more than just a collection of art objects in a space now. The integration of technology into the all day, everyday of contemporary life has had important implications upon many industries, and the arts have not - and cannot - be exempt.
Rosa's experience of David Bowie is illustrates an acknowledgement of this appetite for innovation - despite how ineffective she felt the experience of Sennheiser's sound guide may have been. For a 'blockbuster' exhibition in one of London's most popular art institutions, the decision to make a start at enhancing exhibition experience on such a large scale should be applauded - and through such a development, we can take the opportunity to consider the critical strengths and weaknesses of mobile interpretation and exhibition design within the gallery.
During last month's Museums and Heritage Show, D I S C O U R S E were excited by and really impressed with a talk from Antenna International, who provide a wide variety of top class guides and tours for galleries and museums. 'Experience Design: Evolving Mobile Data' was given by Jessica Taylor (Global Head of Digital Media) and Giles Pooley (Experience Designer at EMEA), and gave the audience not only an insight into what Antenna International delivers, but what enhancing experience through technology can mean for all kinds of art institutions. The context of our increasingly connected lives - particularly through the exponential growth of smartphone use - does result in the gallery's development into somewhere that is no longer discrete from the informational networks through which we operate. The challenge for companies like Antenna is to cut through the additional or unnecessary noise in order to give a gallery visitor the best experience possible of the art, and with this context in mind, content is incredibly important. Delivering a story using appropriate language and format is essential for engagement, and what is often helpful here is the use of a familiar device. Ensuring that people engage with digital possibilities needs to be very simple, and in some situations, allowing the personalization of interaction methods can be a perfect way to allow that visitor access to what Antenna referred to as that 'third space': the area of access that mediates the visitor and the art space.
As is obvious from this post as well as Antenna's fascinating (and very well delivered) talk, there are many questions and important tangents to such a discussion. But aside from these separate points of interest, its brilliant to see that galleries and museums are looking ahead for new ways to engage wider audiences with art - particularly through technology.
