THE MUSEUM IN AN ERA OF SOCIAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE
The Victoria & Albert Museum is a cutting edge cultural institution with an extensive art and design collection of historical cultural artifacts that is not afraid to ask ‘what is the role of the museum in current culture?’ That being said, the future is a significant focus in their mission to promote excellence in design and manufacturing. With the development of the Digital Programs in 2008, Irini Papadimitiou, the program’s manager, has developed a way for visitors of all ages to engage in a range of free activities and events that promote innovative digital art and design practices and collaborative processes, inspire creativity, and stimulate discussion and exchange among creative industries professionals, students and visitors.
Collaboration is the key word here. Through art, science, invention, education, design, science, and technology, artists and patrons come together to engage and share insights and produce new ideas. For example, one of the Digital Program’s latest projects was Data Visualisation: the space where design and technology collide where a workshop was held in order to create visualizations out of data sets. Through a collaborative process, the workshop participants were able to identify trends and discuss the significance of that information, in this case house prices across London. This is an essential tool for bringing people together and through the access of information, the ability to discover things about their community. As De la Peña McCook (2002) said "Through historic preservation, cultural tourism and civic engagement, culture plays an integral part in economic revitalization, in enlivening neighborhoods, and in community development. Beyond economic significance, culture influences quality of life. Social capital, common values, and important community bonds are reinforced by participating in cultural activities."
Collaboration is the key word here. Through art, science, invention, education, design, science, and technology, artists and patrons come together to engage and share insights and produce new ideas. For example, one of the Digital Program’s latest projects was Data Visualisation: the space where design and technology collide where a workshop was held in order to create visualizations out of data sets. Through a collaborative process, the workshop participants were able to identify trends and discuss the significance of that information, in this case house prices across London. This is an essential tool for bringing people together and through the access of information, the ability to discover things about their community. As De la Peña McCook (2002) said "Through historic preservation, cultural tourism and civic engagement, culture plays an integral part in economic revitalization, in enlivening neighborhoods, and in community development. Beyond economic significance, culture influences quality of life. Social capital, common values, and important community bonds are reinforced by participating in cultural activities."
