The Digitization of the Art World

How is the coronavirus changing the museum landscape?

RESTAURO spoke with Professor Dr. Eckart Köhne, director of the Badisches Landesmuseum (Karlsruhe) and president of the German Museum Association, and digital expert Gürsan Acar, managing director of tonwelt GmbH in Berlin, about digital formats, participation, and visions for the future

The COVID-19 pandemic is presenting the museum landscape with an unprecedented challenge: Just as in the spring, art and culture are once again confined to the virtual realm this fall and winter. How is this affecting the institutions? And where are new paths being forged? Prof. Dr. Eckart Köhne, Director of the Badisches Landesmuseum (Karlsruhe) and President of the German Museum Association, expects the pandemic to linger for some time and therefore advises: “We should start focusing now on the coming year and the year after that.”

However, the use of digital offerings has varied widely. “We’re seeing an increase in digital activity among ‘silver surfers.’ In this age group, the focus is primarily on pure information. Films, for example, aren’t consumed quite as much as they are by younger generations.” The Badisches Landesmuseum has received a very positive response to its new podcast format. “Since we were no longer able to host exhibitions in the spring, we shifted the focus to the museum’s day-to-day operations and conducted interviews with colleagues from all departments within the museum.”

We also took a look over the shoulders of the conservators, who are essential pillars of museum operations. “They are the ones who work at the museum every day during the lockdown,” said the museum director. “Since their work lends itself well to online presentation, we’ve shifted formats like interviews with the conservators or project presentations more heavily to the digital space.” In Karlsruhe, an app was also developed: It allows visitors to make videos in the museum and send them right away. “But you still need the in-person museum visit for that,” Köhne emphasizes. “That’s where even an app reaches its limits.”

Gürsan Acar, managing director of tonwelt in Berlin, has been involved for many years in the production of audiovisual content and a wide variety of visitor guidance solutions – whether using custom-developed devices, apps, or a combination across multiple platforms – and has already supplied the world’s major museums, such as the Louvre in Paris. The digital expert agrees with Köhne: “The museum shouldn’t be reinvented. Of course, we need the analog museum visit to advance the digital use or usability of these educational media.”

In his view, it is essential that museums are breaking new ground right now. “However, museums are also realizing just how resource-intensive digital formats are: they require different resources and staff. After all, curators and research associates don’t suddenly become Facebook and Instagram influencers. But in any case, the current wave of digitization is giving them an incentive to further their digital education.”

For the digital expert, one thing is clear: “The museum visit itself must remain the focus even after the lockdown. That means: How can I engage visitors? How can I convey knowledge? Skilled content producers can work out these tasks excellently together with museum staff.”

This interview was originally published in German and was translated using artificial intelligence.