Identifying Engagement @ieengage-blog - Tumblr Blog

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Adolescence and the teenage years can be riddled with anxiety. But the fantastic brain development during that period makes it a prime time to nurture a love of learning.

I found this article via NPR and thought it was an interesting read. Working in museums, I do see how the adolescent age group sometimes gets a bad wrap - they don't seem interested, they're sullen, it takes more to get a response from them, etc. However, museums are a great place to challenge adolescents to do something different: think outside of their comfort zone, create something they don't think they can, share ideas no matter how different (or brilliant) they might be. How can we, as museums, engage adolescents in a way that utilizes and strengthens their unique developmental stage?

#engagementresource #npr

Prior to our new exhibits program launching, the library organized exhibits that were more like displays than formal exhibits. As part of the annual Banned Books Week exhibit, one year we tried hosting a photo booth as part of the display. We provided fun accessories and a visually interesting backdrop for students to engage with. Unfortunately, the students were not inspired and did not take any selfies. Unlike students, library staff was less timid and happy to show off their love of books and participate in our Banned Books mug shot series.

#ucr #books #library #bannedbooks

In celebration of LGBT History Month and in partnership with the UCR LGBT Resource Center, the UCR Library presented the exhibition “The History of the LGBTQ Civil Rights Movement.” This exhibition, which is the first in our newly established exhibits program, has been positively received throughout campus. This success is partly due to the collaboration of the two campus organizations. The well-attended opening (over 75) can be attributed to the support of the LGBT Resource Center members. In addition, this type of engagement is outside the usual manner in which the academic library engages its community (reference, instruction, study space, and research materials). The Exhibits Committee hopes to continue the success of the first exhibition with additional campus collaborations.

#LGBT #ucr #library

Outside the Institution

Community Engagement doesn’t just happen inside the museum environment. The Ontario Museum of History & Art helped to facilitate public art in a new, conservation-themed park adjacent to our city hall. The sculpture had to be made of recycled materials and to reflect a conservation related theme. “The Moment is made of Corten recycled steel that rusts naturally, with stainless steel bird shapes that are balanced on a fulcrum. The slightest breeze moves the birds up and down, and it is most enjoyable to not only look at this interaction with a natural force, but also to observe other people enjoying the sculpture. In a lot of ways, the art is not about itself, it is about a moment, unexpected, in a small slice of urban peacefulness.

#art #engagement #community #ontario #submission

New public art sculpture in Ontario, “The Moment.”

Checking it Out at Ontario Museum of History & Art

The I.E. Engagement group visited the Ontario Museum of History & Art as the chosen institution for a case study. The group shared insights on how we were doing with our community engagement efforts. Many of the observations mirrored our own:

The exhibition content was good, but suggested minor updates be made. The front line staff was friendly. A more user friendly website. Printed marketing material were nice. Suggested volunteer guides for exhibitions, to help with visitor interaction.

This helped to buttress our own awareness as we go through a marketing study and approach for the museum. As I listened to the conversation, I realized we were practicing community engagement at that moment - and the engagement was peer to peer within the museum community, something we don’t do often enough.

#art #history #ontario #submission

For 2014 and 2015, the Tomás Rivera Library at the University of California, Riverside has collaborated with the The Paranormal Research Society (PRS) at UCR to host a Halloween Ghost Tour of the library. PRS student members conduct the tours of the library highlighting paranormal hot spots throughout the building and discussing evidence gathered during their 2012 paranormal investigation of the library.

Breaking from the serious nature of campus libraries and hosting activities such as the Ghost Tour, provides students an opportunity to learn and inquire in a safe and inviting environment. In addition, the collaboration with the PRS allowed the library to provide a fun, intriguing, and educational event to celebrate the Halloween holiday by encouraging patrons to interact with the library space while learning about its’ history and folklore.

The photo is from a page of our just-completed publication, “Faces of the Community: Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, Ontario, CA.“ The project paired a local artist, Andrea Benitez, with members of the community who attend the church, which is located just a few blocks from our museum. Andrea sketched twenty people and asked them to share their life stories. The neighborhood and parish are proudly of Mexican-American heritage, and also their stories are very much of our community’s heritage. Before the publication, we had an exhibition, and each subject received a framed print of their sketch. Andrea also did children workshops at the grant. None of the church participants had visited the museum, and the project brought our two institutions together. The project was funded, appropriately, by grants from the Community Foundation, supporting community engagement projects. We just submitted a much larger grant application to the Institute of Museum & Library Services based on the success of this project, to involve the community with a team of artists, historians, oral historians, planners, architects, and educators, to document and explore past, present and envisioned future of Euclid Avenue, a National Register historic landmark that is a defining feature of Ontario. The project, if funded, would mesh with a City of Ontario Initiative that is focused on revitalizing Euclid Avenue and the downtown core. "Explore Euclid Avenue” would result in two years of public programs developed with community input, a culminating exhibit, publication, and a strong online presence. We get to wait a full 9 months to hear whether or not we are funded, but just getting the letters of commitment and support from different city departments, school districts, and architectural firms, was a big step in community engagement! Our CAM Learning Collaborative group helped to give us hope and strength as we shared stories and challenges. Sometimes coming up with these kinds of efforts can be a lonely road, full of doubt (and doubters), uncertain results, and a straining of resources. The sense of community and connection that can happen, though, is, well, it’s hard to come up with anything sweeter!

For 2 years the Riverside Art Make engaged Riverside residents in art making in a variety of neighborhoods and in numerous venues. The Riverside Art Make worked with numerous artists to create the activities and to bring them to the community.

Throughout Summer & Fall of 2015 an exhibit was created to highlight the artists and their work. Happenings: Selections from the Riverside Art Make included art making in the exhibit and invited the community to participate in Free Summer Saturdays.

For one of the Free Summer Saturdays, artist Danielle Giudici Wallis lead visitors through the process of making paper. Visitors mixed roses, flower petals, grass leave and more to create the material for their paper. Then pressed their materials into a shape of a page. Once dried the paper can be used to write on, or as Danielle hoped to create art with.

The Free Summer Saturdays became so popular that visitors would arrive an hour and half earlier than the event start time. Difficulties with artists arrival times and set-up, visitors, unfortunately, would wait sometimes a half-hour past event time to begin their art making. One unforeseen issue arisen during the Riverside Art Make and the Free Summer Saturdays, artists didn’t like being recognized as a “Community Artist.” In conversation, some felt that it didn’t connect with their intentions as an artist or that it was some sort of step down from being a “Fine Art Artist.” Overall, the Riverside Art Make & the Free Summer Saturdays were successful and will be repeated for the year to come.

#riversideartmuseum #engagement #papermaking #riversideartmake

Historical Glass Museum seeks to bring families to the Museum

One of the goals of the Historical Glass Museum (HGM) is to engage families and young collectors in the activities of the museum. We held our first “Family Day” this June (2015). Wonderful free entertainment was provided by music groups from Redlands. There are groups of performers who are willing to come and share their skills for the asking. At the end of their performances, they shared why they perform and how they became members of such a group. A talented face-painter volunteered her skills to engage our young visitors. The museum provided a “nibbles” buffet for our attendees. There were contests for our young visitors--most notably they were asked to go through the museum and find their favorite piece of glass. They were then to draw it. The judges were the adult attendees of the activity.

It was a really fun event. Our only frustration was that we had a very limited number of attendees. We need to develop strategies to bring visitors to our activities at the museum. The performance groups were expecting a large audience which we did not have. It was advertised in the Redlands newspaper but the announcement did not come until almost the day of the event. Some of our attendees brought a copy of the announcement from the paper with them.

Family Day at the Historical Glass Museum.

Historical Glass Museum reaches out to glass collectors

Engaging glass collectors through informational workshops is a part of the Mission Statement of the Historical Glass Museum (HGM). It is our goal to be a “go-to” place for glass collectors by providing the opportunity to discuss their glass and provide information to make the glass more meaningful. One strategy that the HGM uses is to offer free workshops on glass makers for which our visitors express interest. One of these makers is Fenton glass. We offer an experienced and knowledgeable collector to deliver the workshop using a combination of our museum glass and their own collections.

We have offered two workshops in the past six months on various facets of Fenton glass. It is a slow-starting endeavor. The first workshop had two attendees but the second workshop had 15! Our goal is to have a group of Fenton collectors who view the museum as a home source for information on Fenton glass. Collectors love to come together and share their knowledge and personal “finds” with other collectors. Sometimes it is just a matter of finding a place where they can connect with other collectors--and we want to be that place!

We are beginnng to compile a list of other glass makers for which our visitors have asked about.

#historicalglassmuseum #glass

Fenton Hobnail Workshop at the HGM.

#glass #historicalglassmuseum #art

Historical Glass Museum reaches out to the community

One engagement strategy that the Historical Glass Museum (HGM), Redlands, CA, employs is to share its resources with the local community. A recent example is the agreement to decorate one of the rooms of a Redlands historical mansion for Christmas. Kimberly Crest is a local treasure that was built in 1897 for the Kimberly family of the Kimberly-Clark paper company. The HGM was given the responsibility of designing the Christmas decorations for the library. Following the high quality decoration of the house, we used American Brilliant Cut Glass from the Museum’s collection to match the era of the house and yet bring a new feel to the room.

Kimberly Crest has well-attended events throughout the Christmas season, including the Holiday Open House on November 29 and the tree lighting on December 6. Being a part of these community events gave us an opportunity to connect and engage the city of Redlands with the work of the HGM.

#glass #artmuseum #redlands #historicalglassmuseum

With more than 40,000 people attending the switch-on ceremony for Riverside Festival of Lights, the Riverside Art Museum has become an annual partner by offering free art making activities and exhibits to the public. For 2015, a museum board member shared their idea of installing a light/video projection on to the facade of the building. The museum took this as a challenge and began the process of making this idea a reality. With the help of individual donors, new partnerships, approval from 9 separate public agencies, and numerous late nights full of worry and hope the installation became a reality.

This is the first year the Riverside Art Museum has been creatively innovative with our participation. The installation has created new partnerships, and has instilled new recognition in the downtown community. The installation has tested our ability to dream big, given us new knowledge about electrical engineering, and ultimately presented us a new opportunity to engage audiences outside the galleries of the museum.

The museum is located at a heavy traffic intersection, and are the gateway to Festival of Lights. Each person or car that goes by the museum will see the installation. Hopefully, each person walking by will stop and watch the entire installation and be amazed by what the museum is capable of doing. Realistically, some people will stop and point at our, Julia Morgan designed, building, and say “How Cool!”

#riversideartmuseum #art #folriverside #2015 #engagement #iloveriverside

This story map was created with the Story Map Tour application in ArcGIS Online.

Our current exhibition at RAFFMA (Robert and Frances Fullerton Museum of Art) features landscape panoramas by Lewis deSoto. To accompany the exhibition, we created a story map, utilizing software by ESRI. The map allows visitors to go on a sort of virtual tour to the sites where the photographs were taken, to experience “where the photographer stood”. We utilized the Kiosk Pro app to display the story map, as well as links to artist websites and digital copies of the book that accompanies the exhibition on iPads through the museum. This has been much more successful than our past use of QR codes on exhibition labels. The software is free and easy to use, allowing any museum or cultural enter to create interactive exhibition kiosks.

#RAFFMA #Technology #Engagement #ArtMuseum #ESRI

a resource for creative engagement in museums and cultural centers

Know Your Own Bone is a fantastic resource for museum and cultural center leaders.

#colleendilen #Engagement #Museum #culture

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