25 Sep 2015
MuseumNext prepares to make North American debut in Indianapolis
BY Tom Anstey
Delegates are gearing up for the first MuseumNext international conference to take place in North America, when the highly successful event comes to the Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) this weekend, bringing with it exploratory talks on engaging visitors with new
technology and industry trends.
With more than 30 speakers, 25 presentations, a MuseumCamp and two social events, MuseumNext Indianapolis will be focused on how museums can make themselves more accessible to different groups, ensuring that equality and diversity is paramount in day-to-day operations.
The event, which takes place between 25-26 September, will welcome more than 200 delegates, with speakers including IMPACTS Research's Colleen Dilenschneider, The Smithsonian Institution's Masum Momaya and MuseumNext founder Jim Richardson, among others.
Starting today (Friday 25 September), the event will kick-off with the Test It Lab – a space where attendees will be invited to try out a number of prototypes developed to test interpretive elements and activities for upcoming exhibitions. Test It Lab is expected to provide an insight into the IMA’s innovative visitor-centred and collaborative exhibition development process, informed by extensive research and evaluation.
Highlights for the day include a welcome from Jim Richardson, as well as talks from Sarah Schultz on the museum as cultural commons, Seema Rao on leading inclusion, and experience designer Heidi Benham on designing museum experiences for those who live with dementia.
Day one will end with an evening reception held at the Cerulean restaurant, with a special farm-to-table menu created for guests.
Day two will follow the theme of accessibility, kicking off with Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History executive director Nina Simon talking about the fight for inclusion, while later in the day Colleen Dilenschneider will look at the data-backed urgent need for museums to engage new audiences.
The conference will conclude with a panel of experts discussing key topics from the presentations over the previous two days. An evening reception held in the gardens of the Indianapolis Museum of Art with a closing celebration hosted by the IMA Audience Experience and Performance team will round off the event.
MuseumNext returns to Europe in April 2016, coming to Dublin, Ireland. For more information on MuseumNext Indianapolis and MuseumNext Dublin, click here.
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