More visitors, longer opening hours, new rooms
Press release from 04/09/2019
The five institutions of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation will offer more service at all levels in future
In future, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation will present itself in its museums in an even more visitor-friendly and service-orientated way. For example, the foyer of the Kulturforum of the National Museums in Berlin has been remodelled and equipped with a new guidance and information system as well as four large LED walls. In future, there will be more space for educational and mediation programmes and free Wi-Fi. The architectural space can also be experienced again. This summer, the James-Simon-Galerie and Haus Bastian will open on Museum Island, two buildings that stand for service and hospitality on the one hand and cultural education on the other.
On 1 October 2019, the Berlin State Library and the Ibero-American Institute will abolish the fees for their library cards and extend their opening hours, initially for a period of two years: The General Reading Rooms will be open Monday to Saturday from 8am to 10pm.
Open access to archives is paving the way at the Privy State Archives of Prussian Cultural Heritage with the new user regulations. Archive material can now be used more easily. Digital reproductions can be created quickly and unbureaucratically, without a complicated authorisation procedure. WLAN has also been installed in the research rooms.
Last year, the State Institute for Music Research introduced a digital museum guide in its Musical Instrument Museum, the content of which is available via data streaming. Visitors can not only call up the most comprehensive information on objects, but can also contact the museum's scientists directly. From May, the multimedia children's and family tour "Magical musical instruments (and where to find them)" will also be available in five languages. The Institute also refers to the international, interactive and free-to-use bibliography of music literature, which registered 573,000 user enquiries last year and is filled with a lot of input, especially from the German side.
Foundation President Hermann Parzinger said: "No one can ignore the fact that a paradigm shift has taken place in recent decades and that cultural institutions have to fulfil many demands. It is not uncommon for visitors to cultural institutions to want to have an identity-forming experience. We have now analysed and evaluated visitor and user behaviour in detail. This additional service, this focus on our visitors and users, is a first step. We are endeavouring to expand this and are planning further improvements at all locations."
The SPK Annual Report 2018, published at the beginning of April, also focuses on the topic of "visitor friendliness": in the interview section, the Deputy Director General of the National Museums in Berlin, Christina Haak, the Director of the Secret State Archives - PK, Ulrike Höroldt, cultural scientist Wolfgang Ullrich and service designer Nancy Birkhölzer discuss how and to what extent cultural institutions can and should adapt to the needs of the public. The photo essay by Katja Strempel deals with everyday life in cultural institutions and captures the moment when people and art meet in a museum.
Correction: The Institute also refers to the international, interactive and free-to-use bibliography of music literature, which registered 573,000 user enquiries last year. With 6350 data records in 2017/18, it is the largest supplier to the RILM (International Repertory of Music Literature) in New York, ahead of China.