In the past few months, museums around the world have engaged in rapid response collecting to preserve the truth about how we are living through these times that are marked by social distancing protocols and city-wide closures. Most of the collecting ranges from stories of the COVID-19 pandemic to the BlackLivesMatter movement; objects being collected however could either be digital-born or physical items. With wider access to digital technology, it is easier today for museums to reach a larger part of the society, inviting participation and contribution to these ongoing collections.
However, implementing these participatory / public memory projects is not as easy in practice. It is not uncommon for museums to record low participation or response – sow how can museums plan digital co-creation or collecting projects in a way that is successful? What motivates audiences to contribute? From data gathering to data preservation, how can museums leverage digital means to co-create knowledge & collaborate with their audiences?
POEM Fellow Franziska Mucha (former Curator of Digital Practice at the Historisches Museum, Frankfurt am Main) is currently researching Co-Creation & Crowdsourcing using digital means in the museum sector. In the podcast she speaks with Medhavi Gandhi from TheHeritageLab.in about planning digital crowdsourcing projects and understanding audience motivations; ensuring relevance for the wider public and more.
You can read the full article and listen to the podcast here.
