5 Case Study 1 - Leicester Research Archive - University of Leicester

from people with very diverse backgrounds and from different historical periods,
can be found. Most significantly these statements are not made by museum staff,
but by authors, such as the archbishop of Canterbury and the BBC’s
Meteorologist Michael Fish. So not only, does the presentation focus on ‘the
story behind the objects,’ the presentation also recognizes the importance of
providing text which is not only written by the museums’ own staff but from
people of various backgrounds.
Related to the idea of a story-based museum experience is that of the ‘blended
museum,’ the museum, which blends the online and onsite exhibition, so as to
help the visitor make sense of the objects in a more narrative-based way. The
Natural History Museum London (NHM) serves as a good example to illustrate
this point further. The NHM argues “museums should encourage a ‘virtuous
circle’ between their physical and virtual spaces. Visitors to the museum should
be encouraged to bookmark information to be sent to them via the
Internet/mobile for use at a later date. This extends the relationship with the
visitor beyond the walls of the museum, building on Museum ‘citizenship’, and
allows the visitor to receive and consume complex information in their own time
and in the right environment.” 227
In order to realise the ‘virtuous circle’ the NHM suggests that a variety of
platforms, mobile, handhelds, kiosks, etc. could be explored for developing this
facility. An initial example at the NHM is their Ecology kiosk, “where visitors
can send information on relevant organizations to themselves via email, and the
upcoming PDA pilot to mark the centenary of Waterhouse, which will have the
capacity to bookmark and send links via email.” 228
Other examples, which illustrate the shift from object-centred to story-centred
museum websites were developed by the National Museums of Science and
Industry (NMSI). In 2004 they launched two websites. Referencing them, the
NMSI argued in the consultation ‘Understanding the Future’ that “its experience
with its two award-winning new websites launched in 2004 has shown that the
227 Understanding the Future.
228 Ibid.
122