For Immediate Release
July 8, 2020 – Twenty-six organizations have gained accolades in the 21st annual Media & Technology MUSE Awards, presented by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM’s) Media & Technology Professional Network. Awardees include:
AR/VR/Mixed Reality
Gold
Back to the City of the Sun via Augmented Reality
Cahokia Mounds Museum Society, Schwartz & Associates
“The reviewers were particularly impressed with the design and implementation of the AR experience over such an expansive physical environment.”
Silver
NASCAR Hall of Fame Engine AR
NASCAR Hall of Fame, Cortina Productions
Bronze
Apollo Landing Site Panoramas in VR
Fort Worth Museum of Science and History
Digital Campaign
Gold
Urban Archive
Museum of the City of New York, Urban Archive
“This project is simply superb in its design, implementation, innovation and ingenuity. It has imbued an ongoing, ever-changing awareness of nearby history in a way that is subtle and magical. The platform is easy to find and use, with so much added value that is relevant to the public. The mapping + matching technology of Urban Active is great and can be used in more ways with regard to street art, personal history, crowd sourcing and much more.”
Silver
Getty of Thrones
J. Paul Getty Trust
Bronze
NYBG
The New York Botanical Garden
Enterprise Technology
Gold
Trams and Tech: A Data Journey with the Museum of Transport and Technology
Museum of Transport & Technology, Dexibit
“This implementation is an effective use of a data analytics platform empowering the business units to make data driven decisions without dedicating resources to achieve similar results.”
Mobile App
Gold
Walking Cinema: Museum of the Hidden City Mobil App
National Endowment for the Humanities, Walking Cinema
“This is a really effective use of AR, exploring the everyday world and seeing the echoes of the past brought to life with a compelling and interesting narrative. It’s a good use of the technology and the content is well-considered and delivered.”
Silver
Message Máximo
Field Museum
Bronze
iCoBo
National Museum of Natural Science
The Jewish Museum Mobile App
The Jewish Museum
Online Experience
Gold
Bauhaus: Building the New Artist
Getty Research Institute
“This project includes unique online components that create deeper understandings of the content through text, images, and interactives. The reviewers applauded the project’s clear connection to visitor outcomes and the choice to focus on a linear pathway. The project took a unique approach to audience participation with simple and fun interactive games that help visitors understand theories, philosophies, and perspectives.”
Silver
Smart Museum – The Allure of Matter
Smart Museum of Art
Onsite Digital Experience
Gold
The Epitome of Aesthetics – New Media Art Exhibition
National Palace Museum
“The installation displays a wide range of technological applications that support collection presentation and provide context for these works of art. The diversity of skill, and range of original engagement make the installation rich and unique in its presentation. The submission spoke to a wide range of educational applications taking into account inclusive learning styles before, during and after a visitor’s experience in the gallery.”
Silver
Climate Converter
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, DOTDOT
Bronze
Red Team at the International Spy Museum
International Spy Museum
Honorable Mention
ENERGYM
Taiwan Power Company, 23Design
Podcasts
Gold
Vietnam on Tape
Bullock Texas State History Museum
“The podcast uses a truly unique object, a 19-minute audiotape recorded in the Vietnam war to unlock a personal, intimate story about and by the man who lived and recorded it, Texas native and historian Jim Kearny. During this beautiful five-episode story, we grow close to Jim and his story, which is both uniquely Texan, American, and universal. The reviewers felt that this story couldn’t have been better brought to life than through the intimate and personal medium of a podcast and its potential to reach both a local and worldwide audience.”
Silver
On the Record at the National Archives
The National Archives, Better Lemon Creative Audio
Bronze
Q & Abe: A Podcast at President Lincoln’s Cottage
President Lincoln’s Cottage
Research & Innovation
Gold
The UniDescription Project: Increasing Empirical Understanding of Audio Description with People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired
University of Hawaii at Manoa
“This proof-of-concept project shows the possibilities for museums to make their stories accessible. By including free and open source tools for audio description, it has the potential to be a game changer for accessibility of heritage content.”
Silver
Virtual Fashion Archive
The Museum at FIT
Bronze
Wandering at Ancient Sazum
National Palace Museum
Video, Film, Animation, & Live Media Or Digital Performance
Gold
Spit Spreads Death: The Parade
Mütter Museum, Blast Theory
“This was an extremely innovative use of the medium given its defined purpose, audience and context. The organizational effort around community involvement was exemplary and inspiring. Its impact on the museum field could be significant as it demonstrates new ways to access or reuse information and resources to make an impact in the local community. Documenting the live event and providing the background information with images/rigorous research and interviews was excellent.”
Silver
Apollo 50: Go for the Moon
Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum
Bronze
Rotunda Film at the Atlanta History Center
Atlanta History Center, Cortina Productions
“This year’s MUSE Awards are unique in being our first digital celebration, fitting after the past few months which have demonstrated the importance of digital and technology initiatives in connecting museums and their visitors, even when the doors are closed” said Corey Timpson, Co-chair of the Media & Technology Network. “Congratulations to all our 2020 MuseAwards finalists and to all who celebrated the outcomes of successful projects with their entries.”
MUSE awards recognize outstanding achievement in Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums (GLAM) media. The Media & Technology Professional Network’s annual awards are presented to institutions that enhance the GLAM experience and engage audiences with useful and innovative digital programs and services. The MUSE awards celebrate scholarship, community, innovation, creativity, education, accessibility, and inclusiveness.
About the American Alliance of Museums
The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. Representing more than 35,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community. For more information, visit www.aam-us.org.
Categories:Archive, Media Coverage
Tags:American Alliance of Museums, Media and Technology MUSE Awards, MUSE award, Q & Abe
