Assignment 1: NGA, MoMA and Melbourne Museum

In an age of unprecedented digital technology, not only is it ‘to the minute’ news being sought on the web, but a large section of the global community shops, corresponds, researches and entertains themselves online. The Internet is now responsible for providing a service to the public by allowing as much access to information as possible. In 2005 Rupert Murdoch gave a speech to the American Society of Newspaper Editors expressing his concerns, apprehensions and inevitable excitement about the advancement of online technologies and the effect they will have on news publishing. ‘Consumers between the ages of 18-34 are increasingly using the web as their medium of choice for news consumption’. In his discussion he emphasises the importance of realising that the next generation of people accessing news and information have a different set of expectations. ‘The challenge is to deliver the news in ways consumers want to receive it – what do we need to do to be relevant to digital natives?’1 In a society where over 1 billion people use the Internet it would be a mistake for newsvendors and most other industries to ignore the changing tide. Whilst Murdoch was speaking specifically about the global news his audience could have easily been replaced with museum and gallery directors. Arts organisations have been in constant argument about the threat the Internet poses to the museum tradition. Despite the current embrace of online collections and social networking such as facebook and twitter, it is vital to look at the road it has taken to get there in order to determine the journey that still lies ahead.

Adding to the already extensive list of resources and applications available to online users, mega empire Google launched the most groundbreaking addition to art online to date. In January 2009 Google Earth added The Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain to their list of maps allowing art lovers the chance to view works from an entirely new perspective. This according to some critics is the death of the museum as we know it while others recognise that online ‘galleries simultaneously reaffirm traditional definitions of museums and suggest critical challenges to them’ 2. In spite of this great departure from museum traditions, the digital era is certainly upon us and it is vital for creative organizations to listen to what their developing audience wants. Whilst some organisations and institutions have been reluctant to develop online, the National Gallery of Australia, Museum of Modern Art and the Melbourne Museum are the focus of this analysis and are three examples of how public information can be communicated in an online environment. Museums typically embody object-oriented collections whilst using text insight to enhance the experience, however when this experience changes mediums a host of new necessities arise. Visual display, audience base, content and navigation all need to be considered in order to create a successful resource. For many years the Tate online has been a font runner in the development of museums online, winning numerous awards and implementing highly successful digital programs such as ARTmap a tool to physically map the museums collection and a highly successful games section designed for children. As a result of these programs it seems the Tate has been an inspiration to many local and international institutions. As previously mentioned this paper will explore the developments in online technology with regards to the National Gallery of Australia’s online essay resource, the Melbourne Museums’ discovery centre and the Museum of Modern Arts online collection.

In 1994 Leonard Will wrote the online resources version of the Murdoch speech in which he outlined how ‘information centres’ such as libraries and museums will excel in a digital future 3. Though Will did predict that the tradition of the printed word would resist digitisation, enter Google books and Kindle, his call to standardise electronic access to catalogue data has resulted in a much more user friendly resource system. One of the leaders in both the physical and virtual art world is the Museum of Modern Art whose online collection is one of the most successful. Visual information can be expanded on in a digital collection and museums can provide in depth analysis about the artist, technique and historical context. MoMA has developed an immensely engaging and informative resource for students and the general public. The catalogue section of their website is divided into categories including Prints and Illustrations, Architecture and Design, Media and Performance Art, Drawings, Painting and Sculpture, Photography and Film as well as a link to an index of art terms for those who need a bit more help understanding post modernism. Each section is alphabetised by artist, each artist is represented by an image of their work, and each work includes links to predominantly internal information as well as related items that may be purchased at the online MoMA gift store. Aside from obtaining the perfect teakettle to compliment a constructivist propaganda poster, the museum has managed to combine e-commerce with art history. The site is enjoyable, moderate to navigate around and is visually well designed however there does not seem to be enough text based information to compliment the visuals. This issue seems to be one of the most apparent hurdles of online museums; how do institutions combine the necessity of art theory with such a visual, fast paced medium?

As an extension of the valuable resources these online catalogues have become Leonard Will’s article also emphasise how vital it is to recognise the broader community, the need to encourage virtual interaction in the form of questions and answers and the ongoing development of user defined websites, in short public information for the public. When the importance of web writing became apparent a set of unofficial rules were conceived to make readability more convenient for users, however when compared to the traditions of art theory the difference is extreme. Countless analyses of web writing 4 stress the importance of simplicity. In articles such as ‘Editing for the Web’ short ‘skimmable’ content is preferred because, according to these experts, readers do not like long scrolling pages and they tend to lose patience when reading online material5 . According to this analysis by Dorothy Bowles, graphics, animation and multimedia applications will attract the most attention however in reality most websites, in particular museums, still heavily rely on written information.

The work of visionary Australian artist Imants Tillers are appropriations of imagery taken from various creative inspirations which to a degree is the basis of a successful museum website. Text based or visual imagery is paramount to the makeup of a good online resource and must be an extension of rather then replacement for a traditional museums experience. As museums change and more attention is payed to gift stores, cafes and opening nights, the digital medium has become the new mode for traditional viewing and reading with just a few added extras. Museums and galleries have copious amounts of information to provide their visitors with and careful presentation of this is crucial to a comfortable website experience. In ‘Design insights and inspiration from the Tate: What museum websites an offer us’, the importance of content organisation, navigation, style and presentation are emphasised. According to author Debra Riley-Huff these elements need to compliment the text based information provided and it is imperative for these sites to understand the importance of writing for the web 6. However when referring back to Imants Tillers and the extensive information available on the National Gallery of Australia website it seems the traditions of critical theory writing have triumphed. Judging from their list of essays, one would assume academics or postgraduate students are the target audience. The essays listed on Tillers are more similar to dissertations and they are definitely not simple and certainly not skimmable. Whilst the information is extensive it assumes that visitors have the patience to read 8 000 words on the artists’ ‘work in progress’ and if that is not adequate, there are 6 other titles of similar length to chose from. In spite of the lack of attention to short, clear and ‘internet friendly’ writing, the NGA is designed to inform and cater to art lovers who, generally speaking, may relish the opportunity to read in depth analysis on their favourite artists. However, in order for a museum to truly reach a broad audience, provide meaningful information and still remain true to traditions, a happy medium needs to be reached.


Rich, insightful and pleasantly surprising is the experience had when visiting the Melbourne Museum Website. The institution has achieved a multi-layered resource that combines text based and image based information. A clean and simple home page greets the visitor when first exploring the site with just enough visual and text material to navigate through the options. One of the most in depth sections is the Discovery Centre that divides the museum collection into active learning tools. Not only are students and adults able to choose between information on Frogs, Dinosaurs and Indigenous Cultures, they are also provided external links to relevant websites and downloadable information sheets. Each section has it’s own specially designed website that links back to the Museum Victoria and Melbourne Museums homepages. The cleverly designed website manages to provide a wealth of information in a simple and clear manner while taking into consideration the key criteria for successful web publishing.

The three websites profiled have three different agendas, visual style, audience base and online gift shops however they still represent the new age in public information. Though there is still some development needed, they continue to function as vital online resources. While some critics may be reluctant to acknowledge the advantages of virtual visitation and online resources, the benefits to public education is indisputable and future prospects are endless.


Rupert Murdoch, Speech to the American Society of Newspaper Editors, newscorp.com
L. Mctavish, ‘Visiting the Virtual Museum: Art and Experience Online’ in J. Marstine (ed), New Museum Theory and Practice, Oxford, 2006 p.235
Leonard Will, “Museums as Information Centers.” Museum International 46, 1 (1994): 20–5.
Jonathon Dube, ‘Writing news online’, Poynter.org: Much like other ‘unofficial’ rules to web writing, Dube outlines 12 basic steps to follow in order to create easy, short and tailored material.
Dorothy A Bowels and Diane L Borden, ‘Editing for the Web’, Creative Editing, Belmont:Wadsworth, 2000 p115
Deborah Riley-Huff, ‘Design Insights and Inspiration from the Tate: What Museum Web Sites Can Offer Us’ in Libraries and the Academy, Vol. 9, No. 1 (2009), pp. 79–98




Links (in order):

Newscorp: http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html

Internet World Statistics: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/museumofmodernart

Twitter: http://twitter.com/melbournemuseum

Google Earth: The Prado: http://www.google.com/intl/en/landing/prado/

National Gallery of Australia: www.nga.gov.au

Museum of Modern Art: www.moma.org

Melbourne Museum: www.museumvictoria.com.au

The Tate Online: www.tate.org.uk

Google Books: www.books.google.com.au

Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/kindle-store-ebooks-newspapers-blogs

PAY ATTENTION!!!

Since this class began I have been trying to get through all the bookmarks I saved to Delicious and Reader – The Daily Beast (probably got through a quarter of the email update, 4 more waiting to be opened), The Content Makers (never viewed), Jay Rosen Twitter (247 updates since I last checked) are amongst the 50 odd subscriptions I now have, not to mention doing the readings for 3 subjects, checking my personal, work and uni email address whilst texting my friend and updating my facebook status (Eleni says yes to Mad Men action figures).

BUT……..it’s not just me, according to Sam Anderson in an article written for New York Magazine (a subscription I have both in print and digital format) we live in a culture of Distraction. In In Defence of Distraction, he quotes economist Herbert Simon who states “…a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention.” But this isn’t really true is it?!

My primary school and high school reports were riddles with the same statements year after year. “Eleni is lacking Attention” “if Eleni focussed she would retain more information’. I went to school in the early 90s when the Internet was still being integrated into education programming. We did things one at a time and according to my teachers, I was still distracted. The irony for me is that whilst ‘power browsing’ grows, I feel I have become more accustom to this type of reading or research, and If I have, the kids who have grown up as ‘digital natives’ will have definitely acclimatised to the many distractions they are presented with.

One of Andersons key points is to embrace the so called poverty of attention because this time isn’t being wasted in fact we are learning to accommodate.

My question to you is, how much of what you read actually sticks?

This has nothing to do with writing and editing but......

Image part of AMC season 3 promotion

One of the best TV shows with the best dressed cast............thoughts?

You really think that’s what we want?

4 years ago Rupert Murdoch's plea to his fellow news makers emphasied the importance of refashioning their industry to include a greater web presence and the attention of 'digital natives'. His main emphasis was to give readers what they want, news on demand and a certain amount of control over the media.

The first time Murdoch 'challenged media orthodoxies' we were given the Fox Broadcast Network which, according to him, objectively and fairly delivers fast paced news.
Now, after a number of years deciding on an appropriate strategy, Fairfax has invited News Limited to give audiences what they want. According to an article i spotted on ninemsn, in order to cover profit loss, Fairfax are in talks with News Limited to introduce a fee for readers to view online content. Looks like despite the inspirational speech to the American Society of Newspaper Editors back in 2005, Murdoch has yet to come up with a better option.

My sister works at Penguin books and apparently one of the key source tools for new titles is blogging.

The Sartorialist,

Stuff White people Like,













and now 1000 Awesome Things (sorry, no image yet) have all been or are about to become books. To me this is one example of integration instead of replacement. There is no reason why digital publishing needs to ‘take over’ print or why they can’t work to compliment each other.
Most of my experience with blogging or social media is the Technology Vs Tradition argument that is constantly discussed in the art world. Most institutions are reluctant to acknowledge the Internet or digital publishing as a valid part of their operation because it is far too removed from the traditions of a museum/gallery. The major question however is, how do you provide online and digital programming that won't remove the desire to visit a museum or gallery? In the case of Tate Modern online, I would quite happily stay on this site all day!

I guess my question is to any of you museum/gallery visitors out there, what is your opinion of Museums online and what would you like to see of digital resources?

PS: My pick for the next blog to book title is Awkward Family Photos, it’s a best seller!!

E

My letter to The Age Online

Dear The Age Online,
After our rather heated encounter a few weeks back in which I berated your in print cousin for making me dumb on a Sunday morning (no I don't particularly care where a bunch of Melbourne 'Celebrities' go to get drunk and forget their trivial lives), I have officially had enough. Today at approximately 3:57pm I unsubscribe from your email updates.
Though I appreciate the information regarding the untimely death of one John Hughes, 80s hero (R.I.P JH, my childhood dies with you), you give me nothing!
Each hour I spend trawling through the Internet trying to pass the time has increasingly been an hour less spent with you because, actually, I don't care about AFL players, who is set to replace Kyle whatshisface or how dining with men is good for my diet (no shit, here).
The Age Online, our friendship ends now - I will continue onto greener pastures (best site ever) and you no doubt will continue getting shit!

Sincerely yours,

Most Intelligent Australians