Museums in the Pandemic

Abstract

Throughout human history, the spread of disease has closed borders, restricted civic movement, and fueled fear of the unknown; yet at the same time, it has helped build cultural resilience. On 11 March 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) classified COVID-19 as a pandemic. The novel zoonotic disease, first reported to the WHO in December 2019, was no longer restricted to Wuhan or to China, as the highly contagious coronavirus had spread to more than 60 countries. The public health message to citizens everywhere was to save lives by staying home; the economic fallout stemming from this sudden rupture of services and the impact on people’s well-being was mindboggling. Around the globe museums, galleries, and popular world heritage sites closed (Associated Press 2020). The Smithsonian Magazine reported that all 19 institutes, including the National Zoo and the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), would be closed to the public on 14 March (Daher 2020). On the same day, New Zealand’s borders closed, and the tourism industry, so reliant on international visitors, choked. Museums previously deemed safe havens of society and culture became petri dishes to avoid; local museums first removed toys from their cafés and children’s spaces, then the museum doors closed and staff worked from home. In some cases, front-of-the-house staff were redeployed to support back-of-the-house staff with cataloguing and digitization projects. You could smell fear everywhere.

Rethinking “Live”: Creative Practice of Art Exhibitions in the Post-Pandemic

“…Another example during the lockdown, perhaps inspired by the game "Pokemon Go", was the release of the project "Prisme 7" by the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 2020, which cannot be essentially classified as an online exhibition or a video game. Online "guests" of "Prisme 7" can walk through the aisle and corridors of the iconic architectural space and connect "face to face" with artwork and related texts while they search for hidden gems and power-ups [12]. While this type of public participation has greatly increased audience interest, there is still a lack of creativity.…”

“…A reason for this may be the archival style of many digital exhibitions, where the public still consumes passively by seeing, listening, and reading. Even game-like exhibitions largely replicate the "real" rather than exploiting the hyper mediation potential of the digital realm as a means of capturing the multidimensional aspects of the exhibition environment [12].…”

“…It was mentioned multiple times that art activities organized by community art institutions or jointly with schools could improve the professionalism of students, reduce the burden on their parents, and contribute to the harmony of family relationships. From this perspective, COVID-19 has expanded the social function of art museums somewhat and redefined the meaning of community engagement during times of extreme coercion [12].…”

Visitor Satisfaction With Museum Management During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of the National Museum of Malaysia

“…In addition, the global cultural heritage sector, including museums, encountered significant hurdles due to closures, impacting visitor engagement and satisfaction. Cobley et al (2020) stresses the importance of cultural resilience, urging institutions to adapt and reinvent services amid uncertainty and prepare for future challenges. Despite the museum's innovative trend to sustain competitiveness during the pandemic, (Agostino et al, 2020;Antara & Sen, 2020), there is scarce effort to evaluate visitor satisfaction towards these paradigm shifts globally.…”

Perspective Chapter: Museums and the Metaverse – Emerging Technologies to Promote Inclusivity and Engagement

“…At first, front-of-house staff were repurposed in other areas, such as helping to catalog and digitize collections [3]. But as the pandemic wore on, there was increased pressure for furloughs and then layoffs among museum staff and educators [4].…”