A youth-friendly museum network comprising 15 institutions around Taiwan was launched May 3 by Taipei City-based National Palace Museum.
Part of NPM’s strategy for enriching grassroots culture, the initiative aims to foster cooperation among facilities in areas like access and marketing policies, advanced management practices, education programs, new technology adoption and staff training. It involves prestigious institutions such as Shihsanhang Museum of Archaeology in New Taipei City, National Museum of Natural Science in Taichung City, central Taiwan, and Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts in southern Taiwan.
NPM Director Lin Jeng-yi said the network will also strengthen facility-community connections and lay the foundations for more academic-public-private sector tie-ups at home and abroad.
According to Lin, one of the first network-related collaborative events is a two-day forum taking place later this month at NPM. Top topics on the agenda include designing display space and learning projects for children, as well as identifying and implementing future technology trends.
Another worthwhile initiative is a self-evaluation system encompassing 21 indicators like exhibitions, human resources and services. This is particularly important in ensuring the network’s institutions are equipped to meet the increasingly high expectations of consumers, Lin said.
One component of this approach is an eye-catching website providing access to online collections, easily understood facility information and a forum in which visitors are challenged with thought-provoking questions. The platform, which will be released in English, is expected to play a central role in boosting visit numbers by local and foreign museum-goers. (CPY-E)
Write to Taiwan Today at ttonline@mofa.gov.tw