Museum Futures

Exploring the current state of museums and what leaders see coming next. What is the future of the museum? Perspectives on the evolution of the museum from the people leading the charge

Museums are evolving to accommodate active, individualistic, and tech‐driven new experiences. But they must do so without sacrificing their core missions and audiences.

WHAT WE DID THE CONTEXT We conducted a yearlong study of the evolving Museums today face both overt and subtle challenges. relationship between museums and their constituencies, Institutional missions must be negotiated with shifting with a focus on strategies to build and reinforce demographics, evolving visitor expectations, funding museums’ relationships with their audiences and realignment, and ever-escalating technologies. Ideally, communities. We held roundtable discussions with this leads to a richer and more memorable visitor influential museum leaders in Chicago, Houston, New experience, and encourages visitors to become museum York, Los Angeles, London, and San José, Costa Rica. advocates. But often, conflicting goals and strategies can These discussions explored innovations in audience make this a challenge to achieve, from how (and how engagement and operational models, and how these much) to embrace new technology as a part of the visitor changes are re-scripting the role of museums in their experience, to whom museums consider to be their core communities. audience and how best to engage them.

Following the roundtables, we conducted a survey of Museums are meeting these challenges in myriad ways. museum leaders to gather more detailed information on Institutions are rethinking and reworking their spaces the topics surfaced during our discussions. The survey to promote deeper understanding of their collections captures the input of 96 cultural leaders from across and missions, greater interactivity, a fuller range of North America, Costa Rica, and London and represents activities, and increased revenue stability. As they meet a wide range of museum types, sizes, and governance these challenges, a perspective on current approaches models. We structured the survey as a tracking study to to engaging visitors and evolving facilities, as well as capture leaders’ current perspectives on the museum a picture of what’s to come, can help guide museums experience, operations, architecture, and role in the as they meet an uncertain future. community, both today and in the future.

2 Gensler Research | Museum Futures The Results The museum experience will become more interactive and self-directed. What is the future As museum leaders look to the future, they see a shift to a greater level of visitor control and new methods of audience engagement. Today’s emphasis on in-person, personal, museum-curated experiences will evolve to accommodate digital engagement (on- and off-site), self-directed of the museum? entry experiences, and visitor curation. As museums seek to expand their reach, a greater focus on youth-oriented programming will also emerge. Perspectives on the evolution of the museum from the people leading the charge 100% Mostly 50/50 Mostly 100%

Museum-curated Visitor-curated experience experience

47.7% (Present) 33.4% (Future)

Museums were already100% communityMostly 50/50 focused;Mostly 100% they’ll become even more so. In an effort to appeal to100% a largerMostly segment50/50 of theMostly population100% and Museum-curatedaccommodate working professionals, roundtable participantsVisitor-curated and survey respondentsexperience prioritized expanded hours and nighttime operation.experience A move towardMission-related greater institutional partnerships for programming andCommunity-focused promotion, programs programs paired with a shift toward community engagement, is also an opportunity for museums47.7% to(Present) expand their influence33.4% and relevance. (Future)

19.5% (Present) 100% Mostly 50/50 54.1%Mostly (Future)100% 100% Mostly 50/50 Mostly 100% Museum-curated Visitor-curated experience experience

Mission-related 100% Mostly 50/50 Mostly 100% Community-focused programs programs 47.7% (Present) 33.4% (Future) Welcoming Iconic architecture architecture 19.5% (Present) 54.1% (Future)

100% Mostly 50/50 Mostly 100% Museum design37.1% (Future) will follow suit, 42.5% (Present) becoming more public, welcoming, and flexible.

WhileMission-related museums are often100% examplesMostly of 50/50 iconic, civicMostly architecture,100% Community-focused the thinking is shifting.programs Tomorrow’s museums will be more welcoming andprograms embrace the public, the temporary, and the flexible in new ways. Leaders also see a shiftWelcoming toward a more equal balance between active and contemplativeIconic architecture architecture spaces.19.5% Accommodating (Present) the active and the public—without54.1% (Future) sacrificing the traditional, quieter museum experience many visitors expect—will be key to museums attaining future success. 37.1% (Future) 42.5% (Present) 100% Mostly 50/50 Mostly 100%

Welcoming Iconic architecture architecture

37.1% (Future) 42.5% (Present)

3 4 Gensler Research | to thevisitorexperience. accordingly, includingacomprehensive andoften district-level approach targetMuseumstailor programming their mustdefine audience(s) and compete for visitors’ attention, alsoplay butcan a their presence intheircommunities. Lifestyle andretail To public andprivate funding. the future, alongwithagreater balancebetween shift towardmore pitfalls of unproductive metrics.They seea philanthropic donors,whilestressing the quantifying valueandsuccessfrom noted anincreasing for expectation metrics are necessary. Participants Clear, mission-aligned success focused programming. iconic architecture andactivity- of be balancedwiththepull contemplative spacesmust of welcoming,importance human interaction. The isdisplacing technology that over-emphasis on museum leadersworry are ontherise,but directed experiences andself-collections balancing act Architecture mustplay a where theyare. younger constituents new strategies tomeet on-site whiledeveloping learning opportunities is toengage adultsinmore strategies. Akey opportunity “least common denominator” and experiences, whileavoiding in thecreation of newprograms of the importance stressed Roundtable participants to blendeducation andrecreation. Museums are uniquely positioned WHAT THIS MEANS Director, Whitworth Gallery Art Maria Balshaw, andus fill beauty, to see us with wonder.” “Museums should enjoyable, be curious, allow attract andretainattract audiences, . Digitized

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e r u t c A e r t c i h Team Participants Research Leaders: Roundtables included attendees from the following Houston: Artpace San Antonio, Contemporary Bevin Savage-Yamazaki, Nina Murrell cultural institutions: Arts Museum Houston, Contemporary Austin, Chicago Team: Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, Design Museum, Fort Bend County Museum Association, Glassell Amelia Tabeling, Brian Vitale, Lindsey Feola, Driehaus Museum, Elmhurst Art Museum, Museum School of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, The Heritage Vanessa Churchill, Melissa Mayer, of Contemporary Art, Museum of Contemporary Society at Sam Houston Park, Holocaust Museum Nina Charnotskaia, Allison Hausladen Photography, Museum of Science and Industry, Houston, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston Center for Photography, Houston Costa Rica Team: Snow City Arts, Sullivan Galleries Maritime Museum, Houston Museum of Christine Durman, Maria Saenz, Ines Mendez, Costa Rica: Museo de Jade, Ministerio de Cultura African American Culture, Lawndale Art Center, Gloriana Arias, Carmen Martinez Fernandez-Barja y Juventud, Museos del Banco Central de Costa Menil Collection, The Printing Museum, Rice Rica, Museo de Arte Costarricense, Museo de Houston Team: University Art Gallery, Rothko Chapel, San Jacinto San Ramón, UCR - Sede de Occidente, Museo Nina Murrell, Hannah Sargent, Alexander Hohman, Battleground–Battleship Texas State Historic Site, Comunidad Judia de Costa Rica Suzan Ozcelik, Stephen Klimas, Iona Bruckner, Space Center Houston Ellyn Wulfe, Ashley Claussen, Amanda MacDonald, London: 19 Greek Street, British Museum, Central Los Angeles: Art in the Public Realm, The Fowler Kristie Alexander, Traci Garner Saint Martins School of Art and Design, Design Museum at UCLA, LACMA – Los Angeles County Museum, Event Communications, Gazelli Art London Team: Museum of Art, MAK Foundation LA, Pomona House, Guerilla Galleries, Imperial War Museum, Sarah Lawrence, Namrata Krishna, Diana Lee, College Museum of Art, University Art Museum Royal Museums Greenwich, Science Gallery Louise Burnett, Richard Jacob, Maria Nesdale, at California State University Long Beach, Vincent London at KCL, Sound and Music Jane Clay, James Lawrence Price Art Museum at East Los Angeles College New York Team: New York: Bronx Museum of Art, Brooklyn Bevin Savage-Yamazaki, Maddy Burke-Vigeland, Museum of Art, The Clark, Guggenheim Museum Ellen Hudson, Hannah Dewhirst, Caroline LeFevre, of Art, International Center of Photography, Heather Pfister Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met), Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New Museum, Noguchi Los Angeles Team: Museum, Rubin Museum of Art, Socrates Sculpture David Pakshong, Kimbro Frutiger, Aaron Gensler, Park, Storefront for Art and Architecture Heidi Hampton, Jessica Tracey, Megan Moran, Image Credits Rob Jernigan, David Lam, Joe Tarr All images credited to Gensler Firmwide Team: unless otherwise noted. Christine Barber, Tim Pittman, Meng Sung, Nick Bryan Graphic Design: Wesley Meyer, Thomas Oesterhus

6 Gensler Research | Museum Futures About Gensler As architects, designers, planners, and consultants, we partner with our clients on some 3,000 projects every year. These projects can be as small as a wine label or as large as a new urban district. With more than 5,000 professionals networked across 46 locations, we serve our clients as trusted advisors, combining localized expertise with global perspective wherever new opportunities arise. Our work reflects an enduring commitment to sustainability and the belief that design is one of the most powerful strategic tools for securing lasting competitive advantage.

Gensler’s Research Program supports research investigations important to our firm, our clients, and to the ongoing learning and development of Gensler professionals. Research projects are practitioner-led with involvement across the globe. Our teams bring thought leadership to the table as we seek to solve our clients’ and the world’s most pressing challenges by creating high-performance solutions that embrace the business and world context in which we work, enhance the human experience, and deliver game-changing innovation.

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