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MuseumNext European conference in Dublin, Ireland / ALL PHOTOS: MUSEUMNEXT
Drawing museum delegates and officials from all over the world since 2009, the MuseumNext event shines a light on the future of museums and how today’s museums are adapting to an ever-changing climate.
One of the highlights of this year’s event in Dublin was a talk by James Davis from the Google Cultural Institute. When the Institute opened its doors in 2001, its goal was to make important cultural material available and accessible to everyone and to digitally preserve it to educate and inspire future generations.
Davis addressed a packed Mansion House to talk about the Institute’s growth, the new products it has launched, such as Google Cardboard, and offered a glimpse at what they have in store next.
Following his talk, Davis told Attractions Management that the Institute is just at the start of its journey. As accessibility increases, he says, so will interest in arts and culture.
“I think digital culture is heading to much bigger audiences,” Davis says. “One of the compelling reasons to have digital cultural experiences is that if you’re interested in something the other side of the world, that might be an obstacle for you going to see it. However if it’s available directly from your pocket, then it’s extremely accessible to you.
“We’re absolutely convinced that the global audience for culture will increase because of people having access to cultural organisations all around the world and as a result I think and hope that physical attendance will increase,” he says.
“It’s something we’ve begun to see anecdotally. If you get a larger audience interested in this topic – for example, introducing people to a particular museum for the very first time – some of them are going to go to that museum when they weren’t beforehand simply because they hadn’t heard of it. That’s the direction that the Google Cultural Institute is going.”
Second Livestock Google has developed many interesting technologies, but it has never created anything as outlandish as VR for chickens. It’s a concept that Michael John Gorman believes can spark interest in science and start a debate within a museum setting.
Speaking at MuseumNext on his last day as CEO of Science Gallery International, Gorman detailed several unique concepts from the institution, which he says can open up conversation at the boundaries between science and art. The VR chicken project, known as Second Livestock, was the most intriguing.
“I think it’s a wonderful example of a project that provokes you and makes you think about what kind of future we want to live in,” says Gorman. “The idea is that battery chickens or battery hens could feel like free range chickens in VR. It’s great because it brings you into that space of conversation about what kind of world and what kind of industry we want to have. It’s a conversation provocation.”
Non-museums The conference concluded with a roundtable discussion about issues that affect the museum sector today. One topic was non-museums – brand houses such as the new Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris, for example – moving into the museum space.
The panel – made up of National Museums Directors’ Council policy and projects manager Katie Childs; Fiona Ross, founding director EPIC Ireland; Ngaire Blankenberg, who acts as European director and principal consultant at Lord Cultural Resources; and Shannon Darrough, who leads the Department of Digital Media at New York’s Museum of Modern Art – discussed how the sector should react to brand homes effectively stepping on its territory.
“We’re all competing for people’s attention on that Saturday afternoon,” says Darrough. “As more and more people enter this field there’s more and more stuff to take up our time. I think it’s something we all have to learn, support and embrace. It will be challenging though. At MoMA, we’re lucky enough to be a museum that has such a great collection and reputation, but for other places it could be tough.”
MuseumNext returns later this year when the event comes to New York on 14-15 November with two days of curated presentations on the theme of Transformation. The event then goes to Australia for the first time in February 2017, with museums and galleries from around the world coming together to highlight best practice, discuss the latest trends and think about what’s next for museums.
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Promotional feature: IDEATTACK
IDEATTACK’s new project in Hainan, China,
introduces the storytelling elements of a
theme park to the oceanarium concept
Science Museums: Shaping Tomorrow
Brazil’s Museum of Tomorrow uses
constantly updating, real-time digital
collection to communicate with visitors.
We met members of the team
Promotional feature: EAS
This year, the Euro Attractions Show is
coming to the Spanish city of Barcelona
Disney Special: Shanghai Disney: The Best Yet?
As Disney opens its first resort in mainland
China, our special feature examines its
business model, its potential impact and
the modernisation of the Disney castle park
New Openings: Space Inversion
A new contemporary museum district
in the Netherlands – Museumplein
Limburg – features a science centre,
a design museum and an inverted
planetarium. We take a closer look
Promotional feature: Polin
Polin’s patented technologies, extensive R&D and creative flair have made it one of the world’s leading waterpark design and manufacturing companies
Waterparks: Taking the Plunge
Waterpark suppliers constantly develop
their product offers. We dive into the
world of waterpark R&D to find out more
Zoos & Aquariums: The Long Game
UK safari park Longleat is undertaking a
decade-long upgrade that starts by going
back to its roots. As the attraction turns
50, CEO Bob Montgomery explains how
he’s bridging the past and the future
In the fast-paced world of fitness and wellness, where high-intensity workouts push us to
our limits and the sweat pours, the importance of efficient recovery cannot be overstated. [more...]
MuseumNext European conference in Dublin, Ireland / ALL PHOTOS: MUSEUMNEXT
Drawing museum delegates and officials from all over the world since 2009, the MuseumNext event shines a light on the future of museums and how today’s museums are adapting to an ever-changing climate.
One of the highlights of this year’s event in Dublin was a talk by James Davis from the Google Cultural Institute. When the Institute opened its doors in 2001, its goal was to make important cultural material available and accessible to everyone and to digitally preserve it to educate and inspire future generations.
Davis addressed a packed Mansion House to talk about the Institute’s growth, the new products it has launched, such as Google Cardboard, and offered a glimpse at what they have in store next.
Following his talk, Davis told Attractions Management that the Institute is just at the start of its journey. As accessibility increases, he says, so will interest in arts and culture.
“I think digital culture is heading to much bigger audiences,” Davis says. “One of the compelling reasons to have digital cultural experiences is that if you’re interested in something the other side of the world, that might be an obstacle for you going to see it. However if it’s available directly from your pocket, then it’s extremely accessible to you.
“We’re absolutely convinced that the global audience for culture will increase because of people having access to cultural organisations all around the world and as a result I think and hope that physical attendance will increase,” he says.
“It’s something we’ve begun to see anecdotally. If you get a larger audience interested in this topic – for example, introducing people to a particular museum for the very first time – some of them are going to go to that museum when they weren’t beforehand simply because they hadn’t heard of it. That’s the direction that the Google Cultural Institute is going.”
Second Livestock Google has developed many interesting technologies, but it has never created anything as outlandish as VR for chickens. It’s a concept that Michael John Gorman believes can spark interest in science and start a debate within a museum setting.
Speaking at MuseumNext on his last day as CEO of Science Gallery International, Gorman detailed several unique concepts from the institution, which he says can open up conversation at the boundaries between science and art. The VR chicken project, known as Second Livestock, was the most intriguing.
“I think it’s a wonderful example of a project that provokes you and makes you think about what kind of future we want to live in,” says Gorman. “The idea is that battery chickens or battery hens could feel like free range chickens in VR. It’s great because it brings you into that space of conversation about what kind of world and what kind of industry we want to have. It’s a conversation provocation.”
Non-museums The conference concluded with a roundtable discussion about issues that affect the museum sector today. One topic was non-museums – brand houses such as the new Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris, for example – moving into the museum space.
The panel – made up of National Museums Directors’ Council policy and projects manager Katie Childs; Fiona Ross, founding director EPIC Ireland; Ngaire Blankenberg, who acts as European director and principal consultant at Lord Cultural Resources; and Shannon Darrough, who leads the Department of Digital Media at New York’s Museum of Modern Art – discussed how the sector should react to brand homes effectively stepping on its territory.
“We’re all competing for people’s attention on that Saturday afternoon,” says Darrough. “As more and more people enter this field there’s more and more stuff to take up our time. I think it’s something we all have to learn, support and embrace. It will be challenging though. At MoMA, we’re lucky enough to be a museum that has such a great collection and reputation, but for other places it could be tough.”
MuseumNext returns later this year when the event comes to New York on 14-15 November with two days of curated presentations on the theme of Transformation. The event then goes to Australia for the first time in February 2017, with museums and galleries from around the world coming together to highlight best practice, discuss the latest trends and think about what’s next for museums.
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Promotional feature: IDEATTACK
IDEATTACK’s new project in Hainan, China,
introduces the storytelling elements of a
theme park to the oceanarium concept
Science Museums: Shaping Tomorrow
Brazil’s Museum of Tomorrow uses
constantly updating, real-time digital
collection to communicate with visitors.
We met members of the team
Promotional feature: EAS
This year, the Euro Attractions Show is
coming to the Spanish city of Barcelona
Disney Special: Shanghai Disney: The Best Yet?
As Disney opens its first resort in mainland
China, our special feature examines its
business model, its potential impact and
the modernisation of the Disney castle park
New Openings: Space Inversion
A new contemporary museum district
in the Netherlands – Museumplein
Limburg – features a science centre,
a design museum and an inverted
planetarium. We take a closer look
Promotional feature: Polin
Polin’s patented technologies, extensive R&D and creative flair have made it one of the world’s leading waterpark design and manufacturing companies
Waterparks: Taking the Plunge
Waterpark suppliers constantly develop
their product offers. We dive into the
world of waterpark R&D to find out more
Zoos & Aquariums: The Long Game
UK safari park Longleat is undertaking a
decade-long upgrade that starts by going
back to its roots. As the attraction turns
50, CEO Bob Montgomery explains how
he’s bridging the past and the future
Jessica Sloyan, a wellness operations and training expert, has established an independent
private training academy to provide professional qualifications for practitioners looking to offer
immersive wellness experiences.
The International Spa Association (ISPA) has published its full 2026 US Spa Industry Study,
providing further insights into the region’s total US$1 billion (€855 million, £780 million)
industry revenue increase from 2024 to 2025.
Ameyalli, the 78-acre wellbeing resort and residential community in Midway in Utah, US, has
broken ground on phase two of the hot spring development – the Ameyalli Resort and Spa –
which is due to open in 2028.
TLee Spas and Wellness has revealed the design concept for a high-tech spa with body
mapping scanners to improve public health, for AI company Midjourney.
Gran Hotel Taoro in northern Tenerife, Spain, has completed the final phase of its three-year
renovation with the debut of its Sandára Wellness Centre.
Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa, the spa business with more than 650 locations across
the US and Canada, has appointed franchise expert Carrie Walsh as CEO as the company plans
to expand.
Synergy – The Retreat Show, the global trade show for retreats, has launched a global research
initiative that will provide insights into the retreat sector from both consumer and industry
perspectives.
The Wellness Tourism Association (WTA) has published a non-regulatory global industry
framework designed to ensure the retreat market offers responsible experiences.
A new survey of UK and international spa practitioners shows that stress, burnout and
wellbeing concerns have caused one in three respondents to consider leaving the industry.
In the fast-paced world of fitness and wellness, where high-intensity workouts push us to
our limits and the sweat pours, the importance of efficient recovery cannot be overstated. [more...]
