Member Article

Technology boosts museum's virtual visitor numbers

A merger between high-tech expertise and a North East collection of European fine and decorative arts means visitors and researchers can now use a new interactive website to browse the treasures of The Bowes Museum from the comfort of their armchair.

The museum’s collection includes paintings, ceramics and glass through to toys, furniture, fashion and fabrics, and experts from Newcastle-based web design and development company SBsquared created a site that allows users to take a virtual tour of the building, search and browse the collection, check out forthcoming exhibitions and events, and use the online shop to order books, DVDs, jewellery and other gifts. People can also now register as Friends of The Bowes Museum online.

Kathryn Watson, managing director of SBsquared, said: “The functionality and navigation capabilities of The Bowes Museum’s previous website didn’t really reflect its branding or its fascinating and extensive collection, and we were delighted to be invited to use our expertise to help bring this much loved museum and its events even closer to the public.

“While viewing artifacts on a website can’t replace standing a few feet in front of the real thing, it can be a useful way of providing a flavour of what visitors can expect to see and do, and allowing them to plan their visit to maximum effect.”

Rachael Metcalfe, marketing assistant at The Bowes Museum said: “We are very pleased with the new site. The search facility has proved particularly popular, allowing virtual visitors to view detailed information alongside each exhibit and search by name, collection, artist or date - not just for pieces on current display but for those held in the archives too.”

For more information and to see the new site, visit www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .