A Trip to the Museum From Home
Updated July 2022
The current state of our communities would have been unimaginable just a few months (years!) ago. With widespread health concerns still disrupting the lives of many, public institutions have quickly adapted to changing needs of those who we serve. So just how have museums responded? I took the time to explore how some institutions are continuing to engage the public as cultural resources - even when the public is "visiting" from home.
Cable Natural History Museum
We at the Cable Natural History Museum do our best to provide enriching experiences for those who can't visit our physical spaces. Virtual visitors may view photos and information about specimens in our collection while navigating our online database, which we began providing in 2015. With potential grant support, we hope to overhaul our online portal in the next year to make the experience more readily updated and more user-friendly. We have also generated a number of digital resources related to our collections and programming, including virtual displays, recorded lectures, and heightened social media content.
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
I've been seeing a lot about virtual tours of museums lately. To try out this new experience, I explored the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, located in Washington, D.C. This giant institution houses the Hope Diamond, Deep Time exhibit, and Q?rius science education center, among an abundance of other attractions. The Smithsonian provides a large list of permanent and temporary exhibits and spaces to tour from your computer. Of the available tours of current exhibits, I quite enjoyed Objects of Wonder, and found Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World to be appropriate for the times. Have you already experienced an exhaustive visit to the Smithsonian? If so, I would recommend touring behind-the-scenes spaces within the Museum Support Centers section, which includes wet specimen, antler, and whale bone storage.
Museums and more on Google Arts & Culture
I am continuously impressed by the ability of Google Arts & Culture to provide relevant resources for those craving cultural experiences from home. This website (also available as a mobile app) is a great jumping off point to to explore digital collections of the world's most beloved art, discover historical figures and events through an assortment of digitized documents, and visit locations around the world through Street View. I particularly enjoyed 360 degree views of Machu Picchu in Peru (and am still hoping to host a trip there through the Museum's Nature-Based Travel program one day!), and revisiting the halls of Chicago's Field Museum.
Natural History Museum - South Kensington
In addition to a robust YouTube video portfolio, the Natural History Museum provides a great selection of "13 ways to explore from home," organized nicely on a single page of their website. You can choose from an augmented reality view of Hope the blue whale, listen to carefully-selected natural history podcasts or to the familiar voice of Sir David Attenborough as he guides you around Hintze Hall, and enjoy visuals of anything from 3D skull models to library and archive digital scans.
Many of you may have had to adjust your visits to museums, nature centers, or similar institutions over the past couple years. What new or digital resources were you impressed with? I'm curious to hear about your experiences!