Engage the World from Diorama to Digital – Evolving the Way We Tell our Stories
On Wednesday, April 29, the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) will showcase how its current, innovative digital technology enhances a visitor’s experience as well as highlight new, leading-edge initiatives that will further enrich a ROM visit in coming years.
The ROM is among the world’s leading museums actively incorporating the latest digital technology in galleries and on websites. On-line and on-site digital tools present new opportunities for visitors to learn more about objects in a personalized, self-directed way, with exhibitions becoming at once more accessible, educational and entertaining.
“Rather than technology diluting the importance of real objects, onsite technology and the web effectively accentuate the enjoyment of coming to an artifact-rich museum such as the ROM,” says ROM Director and CEO William Thorsell. “More than ever, people value the authentic experience of the extraordinary artifacts and specimens displayed at the ROM. Their experience gains in depth, before and after a visit via the Museum’s website, and during a visit through the galleries’ remarkable new information technology. We will demonstrate where the ROM is heading as it introduces new levels of digital media into its galleries and programs and how it serves both education and enjoyment.”
Background
“Over the past decade, the ROM has taken significant steps to effectively incorporate digital media to expand learning opportunities provided in the galleries, making a visit to the museum more enjoyable for the entire family. Recent developments in the James and Louise Temerty Galleries of the Age of Dinosaurs, Schad Gallery of Biodiversity, and Digital Galleries, as well as the ROM’s Iconic Objects program, demonstrate the vast potential of this digital technology at the ROM.
“Much of our use of digital technology to date has focused on expanding access to our collections,” further states William Thorsell. “In the future, our technological tool kit will be crucial to helping diverse audiences appreciate and benefit from our collections.”
ROM visitors can now encounter examples of digital technology reflecting the ROM’s vision of the modern museum experience - e-labelling, video, broadcast, touch screens, projections and enhanced web content - enabling a far richer understanding of the rare objects conveying our collective global stories.
Demonstrating the Future
“On Wednesday, April 29, the ROM will highlight a number of its recent initiatives such as e-labelling and live remote broadcast capability in the Schad Gallery of Biodiversity’s Earth Rangers Studio. The event features a “Virtual Visit” to the ROM’s seldom seen Vertebrae and Paleontology Collection. Both the Schad Gallery of Biodiversity and the Earth Rangers Studio open to the public on Saturday, May 16.
Increased use of detailed e-labelling throughout the museum is also planned at the ROM, taking the viewer closer to the object than ever before. This technology alone can revolutionize the museum experience by deepening the context in which the visitor sees the object. In the Teck Suite of Galleries: Earth's Treasures, visitors are able to zoom in using touch screens for additional information and to see visual close ups of specimens.
The ROM plans to develop themed tours in several languages, allowing visitors to create their own customized Museum experience by downloading information tailored to their area and level of interest. Plans also include the addition of more video kiosks, video screens, and projections, which provide the ability to regularly update information for the visitor and make exhibitions even more engaging for all ages.
Before visiting the Museum, the experience begins in the home or school with ticket purchase and booking options as well as teaching capability. Video segments on the ROM website take the visitor inside the vaults or into the field. After visiting, people of all ages can extend their experience through microsites, podcasts and connection to social media applications such as YouTube, Facebook and video blogs.
Funding
“The ROM’s Digital Access Initiative is the logical evolution of a process that began with the Museum’s new buildings and galleries plan, through Renaissance ROM - addressing the Museum’s public purpose and sustaining its economic base. A fundraising initiative will be launched to support the ROM's goal of increasing public digital access.
The ROM is committed to further revolutionizing the way the public experiences and connects with the rare objects that represent our world’s cultures and natural history – both now and in the future.