Museums and the Web 2000

When is the next
Museums and the Web?

Archives & Museum Informatics
158 Lee Avenue
Toronto, Ontario
M4E 2P3 Canada

Outside In: Museums Collaborate with their Audiences

Robin Dowden, Walker Art Center, USA
Scott Sayre, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, USA
Kris Wetterlund, Minnesota Museum of American Art, USA

Session: Two-Way Contributions

This workshop examines four projects which involve their audiences in the creation of online educational experiences. Participants in the workshop will examine case studies from these award winning resources.

Get the Picture: Thinking About Photographs, is an online resource about photography for high school students and teachers using the collection of The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The creation of the web site exemplifies the use of a team of classroom teachers as consulting developers in the content and design of an educational resource.

Through Your Eyes is a Walker Art Center web feature that presents the experiences of five community members as they participate in Walker events and activities. Using audience point of view as an avenue for the exploration of the museum’s resources, this case study focuses on issues that emerge when an institution presents the non-institutional voice.

ArtsNet Minnesota integrates the permanent collections of four participating art institutions into thematic educational units for K - 12 teachers and students. This case study looks at possible methodologies for guiding educators from outside the museums when they submit lesson plans for posting on the site and participate in online discussions hosted by the partnership. The ArtsNetMN partners are the Walker Art Center, The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum and the Minnesota Museum of American Art.

Finally, participants will explore user testing of ArtsConnectEd, a collaborative collections/resource database developed for teachers and students by the Walker Art Center and The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The primary focus of this case study will be a before and after comparison of the site and the institution's response to user testing.