Mark Simmons is the audience development manager for Hartlepool Arts and Museums
Yes: Our experience with the Curiosity Shop travelling museum project has definitely shown the benefits of taking exhibitions out into non-traditional venues, such as shopping centres. Preliminary evaluation clearly shows that we are reaching an audience that is more representative of local communities.
Survey results indicate that approximately half of our 124,000 visitors, so far, are non-users of museums; in other words, it has been more than a year since they last visited a museum. One in ten at the Curiosity Shop said they had never visited a museum.
Reaching out also has had positive impact on visits to the museums the Curiosity Shop is promoting, with visitor numbers increasing markedly both during and after it has been in town. This is because it is pitched in a busy town centre environment - and provides an inspirational, if unusual 'shopping' experience.
During our recent stay in Darlington's Cornmill Shopping Centre, 58 per cent of our visitors said a definite yes to the question: 'Has your visit inspired you to go on and visit another museum in the Tees Valley region?' A further 24 per cent said, maybe.
The Tees Valley experiment has shown that mounting temporary exhibitions in non-traditional venues as a means of audience development is an effective use of resources.
However, it is important to maximise the investment by nurturing goodwill with town centre managers, site owners and local businesses to secure match funding through sponsorship and in-kind support.
Ken Arnold is the head of public programmes at the Wellcome Trust
No: I used to be an advocate of shopping centre exhibitions. I once mounted a genetics show in the heart of a trade fair, with 100,000 visitors in a week. But how many of them really noticed what our stand was about, let alone went away pondering the impact of genetic research on their lives?
Taking museum fare out to the people rather than waiting for them to seek it out has a seductive logic. But the hoards who flock to shopping centres often have little time to spare; they are bombarded with lots of other glossier enticements and they tend to be more in the mood to consume than contemplate.
As museums have increasingly discovered, the context in which exhibitions are presented is almost as important as their content. In shopping centres, rather than working with the environment, effort is wasted on screening it off.
The amount of 'passing trade' logged in evaluation statistics can be impressive, especially compared with visitor numbers to an average local museum. But taking into account the quality of audience experience, based on pounds spent per meaningful experience rather than merely body-count, I doubt if such projects make financial sense.
A display about shopping could work in a mall, but otherwise I recommend refocusing the energy and creativity poured into these projects either on other outreach projects or, better still, on museums and galleries, still the best places for exhibitions.
Yes: Our experience with the Curiosity Shop travelling museum project has definitely shown the benefits of taking exhibitions out into non-traditional venues, such as shopping centres. Preliminary evaluation clearly shows that we are reaching an audience that is more representative of local communities.
Survey results indicate that approximately half of our 124,000 visitors, so far, are non-users of museums; in other words, it has been more than a year since they last visited a museum. One in ten at the Curiosity Shop said they had never visited a museum.
Reaching out also has had positive impact on visits to the museums the Curiosity Shop is promoting, with visitor numbers increasing markedly both during and after it has been in town. This is because it is pitched in a busy town centre environment - and provides an inspirational, if unusual 'shopping' experience.
During our recent stay in Darlington's Cornmill Shopping Centre, 58 per cent of our visitors said a definite yes to the question: 'Has your visit inspired you to go on and visit another museum in the Tees Valley region?' A further 24 per cent said, maybe.
The Tees Valley experiment has shown that mounting temporary exhibitions in non-traditional venues as a means of audience development is an effective use of resources.
However, it is important to maximise the investment by nurturing goodwill with town centre managers, site owners and local businesses to secure match funding through sponsorship and in-kind support.
Ken Arnold is the head of public programmes at the Wellcome Trust
No: I used to be an advocate of shopping centre exhibitions. I once mounted a genetics show in the heart of a trade fair, with 100,000 visitors in a week. But how many of them really noticed what our stand was about, let alone went away pondering the impact of genetic research on their lives?
Taking museum fare out to the people rather than waiting for them to seek it out has a seductive logic. But the hoards who flock to shopping centres often have little time to spare; they are bombarded with lots of other glossier enticements and they tend to be more in the mood to consume than contemplate.
As museums have increasingly discovered, the context in which exhibitions are presented is almost as important as their content. In shopping centres, rather than working with the environment, effort is wasted on screening it off.
The amount of 'passing trade' logged in evaluation statistics can be impressive, especially compared with visitor numbers to an average local museum. But taking into account the quality of audience experience, based on pounds spent per meaningful experience rather than merely body-count, I doubt if such projects make financial sense.
A display about shopping could work in a mall, but otherwise I recommend refocusing the energy and creativity poured into these projects either on other outreach projects or, better still, on museums and galleries, still the best places for exhibitions.
