Peter Samis discusses the evolving role of museums, emphasizing the need to dismantle traditional boundaries between departments and engage audiences through digital and analog formats. He highlights the integration of educational technologies to enhance visitor experiences at SFMOMA, particularly through mobile tours and multimedia content. The talk raises questions about the future of museum practices, visitor engagement, and the blending of community voices in the interpretation of modern art.

1. Peter Samis Associate Curator Interpretation SFMOMA Mixing It Up with Media @ SFMOMA Museum Educators of Southern California Summer Institute Los Angeles June 26, 2010

2. Today we are at… the Epicenter of Confusion!

3. Opportunity comes fraught with peril: Old structures are dissolving… © Nathan Johansen, Wachovia Implosion, Atlanta

4. Ask John Seely Brown, prof at USC…

5. No wonder he calls himself “The Chief of Confusion!”

6. For example, at SFMOMA

7. even as we prepare to design & build… we’re breaking down boundaries

8. Between departments… Between galleries and social spaces Between social spaces & knowledge spaces Between exhibitions… & Live Culture Between professional & public spaces Between what has been hidden and what will be visible

9. And that’s just talking about the Physical Building.

10. There’s a whole other kind of dissolution going on…

11. lands between departments. At the Boun dary

12. Marketing/PR Media Arts Interactive Educational Technologies Web Publications Architecture & Design

13. For instance, take our blog…

14. Which department publishes what? Is our blog a community voice or a PR Voice? (Could it be both without betraying our existing community? One blog or two… why not four?) Who produces video? Anyone? Everyone? How long will the scholarly catalog survive? Will new forms supplement or supplant it? We’ve been asking questions like:

15. Curatorial walltexts, extended labels, catalogs — > Education public programs with guest speakers —> Mktg & PR placements —> IET mobile multimedia, kiosks & Web features, YouTube or ArtBabble videos Ed/Web invited blog corps Twitter, Facebook, flickr groups Right now the digital grows out of— and augments—the analog, across museum functions: Analog Digital

16. Does a new central structure emerge, encompassing all things digital? Was there a department of pencils in the old museum? … or is it small parts loosely joined?

17. [That said, there are economies of scale: think digital infrastructure.]

18. lands Boun dary We’re in the .

19. How did we get here? Once, not so long ago…

20. Educational technologies were there to supplement the White Cube of the gallery.

21. Physical aspects Process of its making Relationships (to its maker, to ideas, to other works) Documents (journals, letters, sketches) Media Methods of approach and understanding Modern art—like all the objects we exhibit —exists in a framework of meanings.

22. Of these, art museums typically strip away all but one or two. Process of its making Relationships (to its maker, its time) Documents Media Methods of approach and understanding Physical aspects

23. Somewhere along the line that left us to restore the context. Experts … … … … …… Novices

24. Enter docents, & digitally speaking, the kiosk or Web feature

25. The ability of an image or object to grab you, stop you in your tracks, reach down into you, and stay with you. Visual Velcro

27. Some things have velcro even though they look clean and polished… Mirrors, for instance. Olafur Eliasson show, MoMA

28. Or even moreso, “The Bean.” 36,961 images on flickr. [These 5 by Ken Ilio.]

29. Different objects have different hooks suited to them… urbanmkr , ...in our borrowed tackle box

30. When there’s no velcro, we supply the hooks. [used by Wayne Gretzky as a child]

31. And interpretive resources make a real difference: (Statistics courtesy Randi Korn & Associates)

32. So that is one clear vocation we have as educator-interpreters. Next question: when & how to deliver?

33. When do visitors want to know most about a work on exhibit? [my hypothetical view]

34. Enter: the mobile tour.

35. 2010: A rare opportunity to focus on the permanent collection

36. Bringing it all back home. Developed more than 135 add’l stops & 75 sub-levels Purchased and adapted previous Antenna content Totals well over six hours of content on all 5 floors Mix of voices & perspectives Publish on demand NOUSguide CMS software Offered FREE to our visitors

37. Drawing on the Audio-Video archive Ansel Adams * Robert Arneson * Matthew Barney * Vija Celmins * Chuck Close * Bruce Conner * Imogen Cunningham * Jay DeFeo * Richard Diebenkorn * Marcel Duchamp * Felix Gonzalez-Torres * Dan Graham * Philip Guston * David Ireland * Chris Johanson * Frida Kahlo * Ellsworth Kelly * Jeff Koons * Dorothea Lange * Sol LeWitt * René Magritte * Brice Marden * Barry McGee * Nicholas Nixon * Robert Rauschenberg * Ed Ruscha * Robert Ryman * Doris Salcedo * Richard Serra * Kiki Smith * Kara Walker * Andy Warhol * Edward Weston * * Stop contains audio or video of the artist

38. [Also online for your use at www.sfmoma.org/explore]

39. Videos, yes…

40. But first & foremost, audio… Crafting commentary for just-in-time use, when visitors need it most, in the gallery.

41. Sub-levels allow you to Go Deeper.

43. Followed by a Guest Take in the tradition of SFMOMA Artcasts: Cellist Zoe Keating

45. Create our content when we want to … and own the rights to it when we do Choose which exhibitions to cover—with visitor experience trumping profitability Engage Guest Take commentaries & creative responses from the community And in the future: Potential for download or streaming to personal devices Potential for 2-way dialogue with visitors Transition to Making Sense of Modern Art M obile

46. Research Scripting Design Production Deployment Distribution Upkeep Evaluation WARNING: Bootstrapping in the Mobile space may be harder than it appears! with a little help from our friends… Substantial added responsibilities…

47. 2 primary creative partners/collaborators: NOUSguide, Vienna Earprint, San Francisco

48. In-house buy-in: changes & adjustments CURATORIAL: Recording conversations among colleagues in the galleries IT: Reconfiguring the Wi-fi network for updates DESIGN: New object label templates VISITOR SERVICES: Adding distribution duties & staffing MARKETING & COMM: Promoting to our visitors FINANCE: Renouncing revenue from tour sales… at least for starters DEVELOPMENT: Fundraising for sustainability

49. Takeaways from the Team: People love the “ go deeper ” option—especially after a short top level. Casual & conversational is a good tone… 1st person, too Focus groups say they don’t want to hear from “ any Joe Schmoe ”

50. Next Steps/Some options to explore: Analyze logs & do thorough visitor evaluation Add navigation options including wayfinding & bookmarking Add Family Tour , more music, & Guest Takes Offer channels through this rich content mix

51. Robert Rauschenberg, Trophy IV (For John Cage) , 1961 Some things a visitor can’t do… or see:

52. So we’ve brought the audio tour function in-house and made it multimedia.

53. How do these authority voices tie in with visitor construction of meaning? How are they tied in fruitfully with blogs & social media? How do community voices come back to us? Who’s curating whom? But that still leaves questions:

54. And does all this have to happen at once?

55. Capability - Maturity Model Initial phase: “heroic” Managed phase: “1-deep” Defined phase: Processes in place Quantitatively managed: metrics Optimizing: metrics feed back into system Don’t skip the steps. Just set your sights on the step you’re at, and the next.

56. “ I’m gonna learn about Technology and he’s gonna learn about Education .” The Two Jasons

57. That’s enough for now. Let’s talk.

58. www.sfmoma.org/explore Peter Samis San Francisco Museum of Modern Art [email_address]