MCN2015

Where is the line between out-of-the-box and off-mission? From memes to Buzzfeed lists, a debate has emerged over what constitutes acceptable use of museum collections.

This session features panelists who have experienced the ups and downs of projects that embrace pop culture, internet memes, and other trappings of viral content. In doing so, they insert their museums into current events, model unconventional approaches to viewing art, and open up space for visitor voices in the galleries and online. This one hour panel will include the staff behind the Blanton Museum’s Snapchat and the Portland Art Museum’s Museum Makeover Project, as well as the multi-institutional projects #ArtMadness and #MuseumBowl.

Each presenter will speak candidly about not only their project’s goals, successes, and failures, but also the hurdles they encountered, both internally and externally, in the process. The presenters’ institutions range widely in size, location, and mission and the panelists themselves come from the diverse perspectives of Education, Marketing, Public Relations, and Publications.

These case studies will be a jumping off point for a Q&A and open discussion of four larger issues: Are these kinds of ventures useful and creative forms of engagement, or distracting and even disrespectful? How can museums structure digital projects in order to put forth educational or outreach missions—and can those goals coexist with simply trying to go viral? How are we teaching visitors to see art through digital efforts and how does that translate to how they behave in the galleries? Does our digital presence match in the in-gallery experience—or is it a bait and switch experience for visitors?