Patron Experience

No longer does a museum visit mean quietly observing and reading the labels, the technology used at the Blanton ensures that each visitor has the opportunity to have a truly interactive experience. In the museum, patrons have the option of using the original audio guide while walking around. Both experts and non-experts have a voice in the award-winning guide, where a visitor can hear a wide range of perspectives, from art historians to hairstylists. The guide not only helps orient the visitor with the Blanton space, but also gives a unique curatorial perspective.

For those who want to learn about the art before coming to the Blanton, podcasts are available to download through the museum’s Web site. The podcasts have enabled the museum to collaborate with UT students in adding context to the art.

“The ArtRemix podcast was a pilot program to see if students were interested in hearing other students’ take on the works of art in the collection as opposed to a curator’s voice or a scholar’s voice,” said Garner.

Another innovation created for the visitor experience is the Blanton’s iTour. Started as a research project in 2004, the iTour allows visitors to pick up handheld devices containing relevant content and interact and respond to the artwork; subsequently observing and understanding the work in a more meaningful way.

“You could create a poem in response to an artwork, or there is a piece about skin color that uses different people on the UT campus as subjects so you could pick what you thought your skin color is and then create a contemporary art portrait. The patrons spent a lot more time looking at the artwork with the PDA and had a deeper experience with the artwork,” said Garner.

Patrons walk through the Classical galleries of the Blanton Museum on Third Thursday.

Looking Towards the Future

Although the Blanton has used technology in many of their past projects, they continually look for new ways to connect technology with the visitor experience. They look to other museums, industry blogs and Web sites for inspiration on what they can improve upon. Two blogs that are on the leading edge of these innovations are Museums Now and Museum 2.0. They both offer news and promote sharing of ideas that other museums can implement. One example of technology the Blanton has expressed interest in are touch tables, which are appearing in museums around the world.

The Blanton also works closely with the New Media Consortium (NMC). “They are really at the forefront of leading technology into higher education and museums,” said Suzanne Moore, the university programs coordinator. They support the pachyderm projects that the Blanton hosts on their Web site. The NMC has myriad innovations they have developed for other museums and institutions. The NMC is a non-profit organization dedicated to the use of new technologies in academic purposes.

Another road that the Blanton has considered taking is using cell phones as an audio tool for the visitor in addition to the audio guides and podcasts. “So many visitors have [a cell phone] on them all the time. You would just call into a particular phone number and get the content,” said Garner.

In addition to programs that the Blanton facilitates, the Internet is a tool that many have taken into their own hands. Dyer said, “We don’t use YouTube or Flickr but you can go and look up the Blanton on those sites and people that have come to visit will just do it on their own. It is another way to measure how people are experiencing the Blanton.” There is even a YouTube video that one patron created about the elevator in the Blanton. This shows that many people are interacting with the museum in their own way and on their own terms.

“Institutions are trying to implement programs where visitors and users can tell you what they think rather than us putting out that information,” Dyer said.

Technology is constantly changing in our digital culture and the Blanton’s staff will continue to work to stay up-to-date in this fast-paced industry.

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