Website
Science Museum, London
With its capital lettering and prominent use of images, the Science Museum’s new website follows the design principles already demonstrated by the sites of its sister museums (the Science and Media Museum in Bradford and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester).
But within this template, there is room for individuality. The Science Museum’s site makes the most of the capacity for moving images on the homepage, with colourful material relating to its Illuminating India exhibition.
Elsewhere, there is plenty of video content, ranging from curators introducing key objects and experiences to scientists hunting for bacteria in Iceland. The website is also rich with written material: the page on the Mathematics gallery includes detailed blogs on modelling the ocean and the history of computers.
The structure sensibly prioritises the perspective of visitors over that of the institution. This is most clear in the way that the museum’s varied offer of events, exhibitions and activities has been boiled down to a single “see and do” section, searchable by three categories.
The user-friendly search categories on offer, such as “tomorrow”, “this weekend” or “October half-term”, are a particularly helpful feature.
The site links to a shared collections database for the whole Science Museum Group (SMG), but also has its own “objects and stories” section. By showcasing key areas of the collection and objects in them, this site caters well for those whose level of interest lies somewhere between specialist and casual.
Overall, both the content and design of the website help it serve a range of audiences and underline the relevance and importance of the museum’s work. And the increasingly consistent aesthetic across the SMG should reinforce this impression for all its audiences.
Podcast
Resonance: Museum of Sound
The Museum of Farnham in Surrey is making a series of podcasts, hosted on a local platform, to accompany its current exhibition on sound. The first is an interview with the museum’s assistant curator, which covers the aims and origins of the exhibition, some of the objects in it and the museum itself.
Items in the exhibition include technology (a 1950s television and an iPod), musical instruments (an 18th-century violin and a narsinga, an Indian trumpet that is on loan from the Horniman Museum and Gardens, London), as well as local history material such as theatre programmes and photographs of musical societies.
The podcast provides a preview of what visitors can expect in the exhibition. This includes the chance to play instruments such as a tambourine and bells, and listening to recordings of instruments such as a Jew’s harp (a medieval musical device). The show also offers an engaging insight into the type of issues faced by smaller museums.
The institutional voice of museums can be intimidating or offputting for some people. This show is an excellent example of how podcasts can be used by venues of any size to convey a more personal, approachable face.
Website
Wonders of the Peak
This website accompanies the opening of a new gallery at Buxton Museum and Art Gallery in Derbyshire and aims to put the venue’s collection in the context of the local landscape.
The site contains entries for more than 200 “wonders”. These include museum objects such as photographs and archaeological finds, as well as heritage buildings, landscape features and public art. They are introduced in a range of ways, including text descriptions, audio interviews and creative responses. Visitors can search the wonders or browse through themes or a map.
The site does encourage active exploration of the area by giving the wonders a specific location and pointing out links between these and the museum’s collection. You can save any wonders of interest and plan a trail through the region. If you are in the area, you can use a mobile app to create a trip.
I found the breadth of the site’s offering didn’t always make for the most intuitive user experience. But there is a lot of material that should nurture interest in the region and its heritage.
Science Museum, London
With its capital lettering and prominent use of images, the Science Museum’s new website follows the design principles already demonstrated by the sites of its sister museums (the Science and Media Museum in Bradford and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester).
But within this template, there is room for individuality. The Science Museum’s site makes the most of the capacity for moving images on the homepage, with colourful material relating to its Illuminating India exhibition.
Elsewhere, there is plenty of video content, ranging from curators introducing key objects and experiences to scientists hunting for bacteria in Iceland. The website is also rich with written material: the page on the Mathematics gallery includes detailed blogs on modelling the ocean and the history of computers.
The structure sensibly prioritises the perspective of visitors over that of the institution. This is most clear in the way that the museum’s varied offer of events, exhibitions and activities has been boiled down to a single “see and do” section, searchable by three categories.
The user-friendly search categories on offer, such as “tomorrow”, “this weekend” or “October half-term”, are a particularly helpful feature.
The site links to a shared collections database for the whole Science Museum Group (SMG), but also has its own “objects and stories” section. By showcasing key areas of the collection and objects in them, this site caters well for those whose level of interest lies somewhere between specialist and casual.
Overall, both the content and design of the website help it serve a range of audiences and underline the relevance and importance of the museum’s work. And the increasingly consistent aesthetic across the SMG should reinforce this impression for all its audiences.
Podcast
Resonance: Museum of Sound
The Museum of Farnham in Surrey is making a series of podcasts, hosted on a local platform, to accompany its current exhibition on sound. The first is an interview with the museum’s assistant curator, which covers the aims and origins of the exhibition, some of the objects in it and the museum itself.
Items in the exhibition include technology (a 1950s television and an iPod), musical instruments (an 18th-century violin and a narsinga, an Indian trumpet that is on loan from the Horniman Museum and Gardens, London), as well as local history material such as theatre programmes and photographs of musical societies.
The podcast provides a preview of what visitors can expect in the exhibition. This includes the chance to play instruments such as a tambourine and bells, and listening to recordings of instruments such as a Jew’s harp (a medieval musical device). The show also offers an engaging insight into the type of issues faced by smaller museums.
The institutional voice of museums can be intimidating or offputting for some people. This show is an excellent example of how podcasts can be used by venues of any size to convey a more personal, approachable face.
Website
Wonders of the Peak
This website accompanies the opening of a new gallery at Buxton Museum and Art Gallery in Derbyshire and aims to put the venue’s collection in the context of the local landscape.
The site contains entries for more than 200 “wonders”. These include museum objects such as photographs and archaeological finds, as well as heritage buildings, landscape features and public art. They are introduced in a range of ways, including text descriptions, audio interviews and creative responses. Visitors can search the wonders or browse through themes or a map.
The site does encourage active exploration of the area by giving the wonders a specific location and pointing out links between these and the museum’s collection. You can save any wonders of interest and plan a trail through the region. If you are in the area, you can use a mobile app to create a trip.
I found the breadth of the site’s offering didn’t always make for the most intuitive user experience. But there is a lot of material that should nurture interest in the region and its heritage.