The Impact of Using New Technology in Art Exhibitions - Assignment Example

?The Impact of using New Technology in Art Exhibitions Results and Discussion Exhibition business has expanded its horizon in the last decade due to certain technological advancements. Minsheng Art Museum in Beijing is a good subject to study the outcome of these technological advancements. The museum has adapted the modern methods of exhibition. This paper will present exactly what and how the management of the Minsheng Art Museum aims to implement these modern methods. Furthermore, the paper will analyze the impact of this unity of exhibition and technology. The traditional exhibition industry has been altered with the addition of technological dynamics. Technology in this field has not only enhanced the emotional expression of art but also made networking more efficient. It has affected the way viewers observe and appreciate art and exhibitions. It has even widened the spectrum of viewers by creating the interest of more and more people. Advancements in technology offer many benefits to the museum industry but these benefits are accompanied by challenges as well. The plans of Minsheng Art Museum can shed some light on the impact of modern technology on its business. This impact may not necessarily be for the best and this will be analyzed later in the paper. Technology has greatly influenced our lifestyle and will continue to do so in the future; therefore, its impact cannot be ignored. Minsheng Art Museum has introduced several innovative methods in its business of exhibitions. These technological methods involve the use of Ipad, Itouch and Iphone and their relevant applications. Moreover, the museum’s management has initiated contact with Apple to promote its business and Apple has orally assured its support. This cooperation will give birth to a fully digital art gallery that will include guidance system, app client software, on-line exhibitions and virtual exhibitions. This plan is still in the early stages therefore the precise details are unavailable. However, the museum has already started using official micro-blogging. The idea of using the cellular technology springs from the growing interactive relationship between the audience and their high-tech cell phones. The experience of art galleries and exhibitions can be encompassed in this user-phone interaction and that it how it will be promoted among cellular users. Cell phones have become more personal in nature in this modern day and age. Moreover, they do not just serve the purpose of establishing contact with fellow humans. Cell phones have now entered a whole new era where they have become high-tech machines. These machines hold great importance to their holders as they represent their personalities. Cell phones have become so advanced that they can even serve the purpose of a mini computer. All of these attributes make cell phones the ideal candidate to promote art and history. Museums have the opportunity to use this technology to provide their audience with a virtual experience of what they have to offer. Apple products have become extremely popular among the youth as it offers a wide range of applications. These applications present a great opportunity to exhibition curators. Museums can use these applications to spread their message. This message in turn promotes the museum and attracts more people. The museum has resorted to the use of online social media for marketing as well. Facebook and twitter could not be used in China so that is why the museum uses Weibo which is an online social media website like Facebook. The museum promotes its exhibitions through Weibo. This is similar to the use “What’s app” in Iphone. Iphone or Ipod applications can be used as navigator for the exhibition. This technology is already available in Iphone but the key is to know how to use it to promote this business. These applications can serve their purpose by helping the audience make up their opinion about the exhibition. The museum can provide information on the content of the exhibition on such Iphone applications. This was the audience can gain relevant knowledge about the exhibition before coming to the exhibition. Once the audience visits the exhibition, they can use their Iphone to navigate around the exhibition. The app would provide the viewers with directions and information on every single artwork presented in the exhibition. Through the use of modern technology, museums are trying to effectively communicate the message of art. This communication primarily depends on the multimedia that can properly communicate the message. The management of Minsheng Art Museum is trying to impart knowledge to the viewers and in order to do so, the museum is not just going to use new technology rather the museum will choose mature technology that can get the job done. This will attract more and more people to visit the museum as it will make it more convenient for people to visit. People are attracted to new things that appear in the market. If the museum holds online exhibitions then it will attract more people. Young viewers will be an interesting subject for the museum. Although, the section of viewers most attracted by this new mode of exhibitions will probably be the elderly as they will have greater ease of access. However, this generalization is relative as this ease of access depends on the elderly getting acquainted with the new technology. Some may feel comfortable with it and others may not. So it varies from person to person. National Art Museum of China has had its navigators replaced by Iphone. Viewers can walk around the museum receiving guidance from their Iphones. Since the museum has a contract with Apple, this application is provided free of cost. Another feature that can add excitement to one’s experience is the use of interactive technology such as computers that let people create and print their own artworks. Museum of Fine Arts is a non-profit institution; therefore its cost is very important. If the museum goes online, it could greatly help in reducing costs. It would not only save energy but also paper. Leaflets and brochures will be digitalized and publicized electronically. Moreover, electronic version of pieces of art can keep them alive forever while in reality those pieces of artworks may need to regular repair and maintenance. Apart from that, online versions of museums can also reduce the cost of human resource. This virtual world may not be two dimensional only, it would provide a three dimensional experience. So a crucial question that arises here is that if the whole museum experience is available online then what the point of the museum is. Online exhibitions cannot be compared to an actual museum. The communication is man to machine online. Its analogy can be drawn from a telephonic conversation. Even though it is close to a real man to man conversation but it is not quite the same. Similarly, observing a piece of art in the environment of a museum is a completely new thing. It is more interactive and hence the viewers are open to a whole new dimension of interpretation. So both the options can actually be weighed according to their pros and cons. Each entails some additional benefit. However, it is not that traditional exhibitions and online exhibitions cannot co-exist. Both of them perform specific duties that make the museum experience more realistic so as to live the experience. The modern Minsheng Art Museum’s exhibitions that employ these technological techniques will not replace the traditional exhibitions of the Museum. It will in fact be the elegant combination of traditional and modern exhibitions. Perhaps the museum would have gone obsolete if they had not considered undertaking such measures of implementing applications of digital technology to compete in the modern world. Still the conservative methods of holding exhibitions cannot be completely replaced. Owing to the modern application of digital technology, viewers can appreciate art while sitting at home. It has greatly increased the ease of access by enabling the viewers to visit online galleries. Viewers are no longer bound by geographical limitations to nurture their passion for art. Moreover, the viewers are not alone in this virtual world. Technology can cater to the needs of each individual based on their age, level of interest and educational background. This way the museums can enable the viewers to interpret the depths of artworks by educating them. Adding more observational dimensions to art by imparting knowledge, the museums can provide an enriched experience to the public of their exhibitions. Modern technology has allowed museums to arrange online exhibitions and galleries. These exhibitions and galleries offer numerous advantages to not just the viewers but also to the management of the museum. Management is able to cut its cost as lesser funds are spent on arranging online exhibitions. A real exhibition entails the cost of management, human resource, repair, and maintenance and paper advertisements. On the other hand, online exhibitions can cut down most of these costs. Human resource is automatically minimized in online exhibitions so its cost is minimized. Moreover, the cost of energy, repair and maintenance can be avoided as the exhibition does not physically take place. Another advantage of online exhibitions is that it involves electronic versions of flyers and brochures which save printing cost, paper and circulation cost. It is relatively easier to spread the electronic versions of these flyers as it involves the use of email. These flyers and brochures can be posted on various social media websites. This type of advertisement is very popular these days because more and more people are joining such websites every day. Apart from that, it helps to create a network of people with similar interests so it is easier for the management to target the appropriate population. In maintaining an online version of the museum, several digital tools are required such as computers, software, websites and database. Database contains all the digital representations of tangible pieces of arts. These digital representations may be in the form of video or photographs. The results from the interview suggested that holding online exhibitions is a far easier task than holding real exhibitions but actually digital representations need constant maintenance as well. This maintenance is required for their preservation since they are digital assets, people cannot afford to lose them. This maintenance requires time, money and human resource as well. Moreover, making a museum available online means a constant supply of electricity to keep the server running. Experts have pondered over the costs and benefits of this method and found out that eventually its cost outweigh its benefits, so it is important to draw a fine line to mark its feasibility. Preservation of these digitalized assets involves management as well. Before moving to the preservation process, it is important to understand how virtual assets can require repair and maintenance. Digital assets need their hardware protected and magnetic content preserved; otherwise the data can be lost. In art, it is all about details so it is important to keep the details as they are. For instance a voice tape recording of over fifty years ago needs its magnetic content preserved otherwise it could falter. Along with maintaining the hardware, software maintenance is also necessary. Files should be stored in a way that would allow them to be accessed by authorized personal at any time. They should meet the required criteria so that they do not become outdated. Moreover, the files should be updated to modern formats in order to keep their compatibility as the technology advances. However, it may not be feasible to store the files in their original formats as well as the updated formats because of higher maintenance cost. Therefore it is important to do a cost benefit analysis in this situation. The methods and modes of preservation of digital assets would vary from asset to an asset. It will depend on the nature of the asset and the time period for which it needs to be stored. Once the right type of preservation method has been identified for a particular asset, the asset should be thoroughly documented because unlike the physical asset, digitalized assets need to capture all the aspects of their existence and that is why their preservation needs to be done an elegant and specific manner which requires professional guidance. The next step in preserving the assets is to make sure that users can access the files and data any time in the future. For this the data needs to be compatible with the modern formats otherwise there is a risk that the data may become obsolete. Two methods of dealing with this issue are used which are emulation and migration. These methods have their own pros and cons so it is up to the management to choose the ideal method. Digital media requires additional preservation techniques such as reformatting and authenticity. All in all, handling and maintaining virtual form of data is a pretty sensitive procedure which requires money and professional expertise. There is no extent to which modern technology has and will impact the museum industry. Overall, technology has affected administration, publishing and information technology. Various areas of administration such as management, marketing and fundraising have been widely affected by the modern trends of technology. Softwares help the management in event management and planning. These softwares gather information about the visitors. This way the museum-visitor relationship gets stronger which eventually helps in improving the relationships with donors. Apart from these softwares, many museums use have resorted to online social media marketing to build stronger relationships with donors. Improving relations with the donors is very important as a museum is a non-profit organization and it needs constant source of funding to preserve its assets. For advertisements and marketing, museums manage websites that provide the viewers with information about the museum. Websites are primarily a museums contact with the people. This network is serves well for promotion and advertisements. Through websites such as Twitter and Facebook, museums can keep in touch with their members in a casual non-conservative manner which helps in building a durable relationship. Museums need to pay attention to what their members have to say and therefore blogs and social websites are very important in this business. Websites such as YouTube allow these museums to post promotional videos of their upcoming events, which helps in creating a hype of the event. Such applications are effective means of promoting the events. Moreover, members can contact the museum through these websites as they are the most immediate portal to establish contact with the curators. Members can provide feedback to the management which may or may not be entertained but in either case it is important for the management of the museum to listen to the members as the benefits of this technology are not supposed to be one sided. For sale or promotional purposes, museums have to design flyers and brochures either in print or non-print form. In either case, the designing process involves software expertise. These designs are mostly high quality images which are supposed to convey the abstract nature of the museums to the viewers. Museums need to spend money on appropriate technology because otherwise the money would go to waste and the technology would be useless so before extracting the maximum utility out of the modern technology, the management needs to be aware which particular technology is necessary to get the job done. Modern day technology has enabled the museums to introduce their environment into the lives of people. They do so by giving the visitors an online tour of the museum. This is done through 3D modeling softwares which can provide in-depth detail. These softwares are also helpful in planning exhibitions (Wendy Duff 2011). Curators can visualize the exhibitions before arranging them. Museums are trying to add more and more interactive features into their websites and online tours to attract more people. Moreover, the museums now have the privilege of offering these facilities on the cell phones of the visitors. This technology can provide the visitors an audio or visual tour of the museum and the museum can reduce its cost of audio/visual tour equipment. Technology has enabled the museums to store data in digital imagery. This involves the use of 2D and 3D images. This technology allows creating 3D image of the actual specimen based on a given model. Having a soft form of a specimen greatly enhances its accessibility without giving exposure to the actual specimen. These two benefits have remarkably affected the museum industry as geographical limits do not matter in viewing a museum. Moreover, the actual specimen need not be handled which means that it can be kept preserved for a longer period of time (Wendy Duff 2011). However, the virtual world of museums cannot offer the real physical experience. These online tours do offer a great deal of interactive features which recreates the actual museum environment but an actual tour of an exhibition or a museum involves being face to face with the specimen. Passionate people understand the importance of standing in the presence of museum specimen. The advancements in information technology have rendered many formats obsolete. To deal with this problem, museums have employed digital asset management software which involves cataloguing, storage and retrieval of sound, animation, video and image data. Technology has no doubt established its grass roots in exhibition business but its applications have pros and cons. Cost is a big factor here that cannot be ignored. In order to employ and maintain the technological application, a lot of money can be spent. In some situation, the application may even cut the costs. Holding online exhibitions may reduce the cost of arrangement but it may increase the cost of data management and preservations. Therefore it is very important for the management to understand which technology suits them the most. They should weigh the pros and cons; perform a cost-benefit analysis of the technology to check its feasibility. The new softwares may assist the administration of the museum but the administration should be familiar with the software so as to reduce the human resource and not increase it. Electronic versions of pamphlets and brochures are used for promoting online exhibitions and this method can eliminate the cost of printing and distribution. Future developments in this science and technology will alter our lifestyle a lot. Current technology may become obsolete or perhaps it will serve a greater purpose. Bottom line is that if our lifestyles will change than so will our experiences. Museums will give us a completely new environment. The technology will make the experience of historical museums life like. Virtual reality will change the way museums interact with visitors. Moreover, in the future, viewers may not only view 3D images but they may also be able to touch them. Virtual depictions of sculptures and pieces of art will recreate all the details of the original work. There have been many debates on the challenges that future technology may bring. One of them is public expectation. People will keep expecting more and more and meeting their expectations will not be an easy task. Technology will become more and more intelligent day by day. It is important for the exhibition business to not leap ahead of the appropriate advancement of technology. Museums should be able to maintain and handle the technology that they employ otherwise the tables can easily be turned. One practical example of such a case would be the fact that there are certain museums that have not been able to update their digitalized data according to the modern formats. Works Cited Wendy Duff. 2011. The Impact of Technology on Museum Work By Function. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.pro.rcip-chin.gc.ca/carrefour-du-savoir-knowledge-exchange/travailleurs_savoir-knowledge_workers/2_3-eng.jsp. [Accessed 04 August 12]. Read More