From the deposit to the exhibit floor: an exploration on giving museum objects personality and social life

Museum objects have fascinating stories but are often presented in a detached, objective way that tends to keep visitors at a distance. In a collaborative research we have explored a different way to present museum objects: fifteen exhibits from the museum deposit compete for one of the four display cases on the exhibit floor. Objects are given a personal voice and a character and they talk directly to the visitor: those that capture visitors' interest as physical presence or Twitter conversation stay on display; the lower scorer is replaced. We report the co-design and preliminary evaluation carried out in the museum with both museum professionals and casual visitors.