Applying technology to promote museum value

At the end of 2024, the Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts received the National Digital Transformation Award (Vietnam Digital Awards) for the second time from the Vietnam Digital Communications Association and VietTimes Electronic Magazine, with the VAES Online Fine Arts Exhibition Space Solution creating outstanding, excellent, and creative values ​​in digital transformation solutions.

VAES space is the first online exhibition space in Vietnam built by the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum and Vietsoftpro, consisting of two major categories: a stylized lotus-shaped building and beautiful interior exhibition spaces built with a roadmap and design suitable for each content.

This digital space is built using 3D technology, describing a real space, from which artists can find a display solution that suits their needs and creativity, while visitors can access the works anywhere, anytime via the website or mobile application.

By the end of February, the VAES Online Art Exhibition Space had 300,000 visits and is currently hosting 15 online exhibitions that have attracted the attention of the public and art lovers. Previously, the Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts also applied the iMuseum VFA multimedia explanation to bring many interesting experiences to visitors and won the 2021 National Digital Transformation Award.

Ms. Thu Huong, Head of Communications and External Relations Department, Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts

Not only the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum, there are many museums that boldly apply advanced technology to exhibition activities such as virtual reality technology (VR), especially 3D technology. For example, the National History Museum has used 3D technology very early in both exhibition and storage of artifacts.

Now, just by going to the museum's website, visitors can choose topics to explore such as "Prehistoric Vietnam", "Dong Son Culture", "Oc Eo-Phu Nam Culture", "Buddhist Cultural Heritage", "Vietnamese Mascots"...

The Southern Women's Museum is the first museum in Ho Chi Minh City to use 3D Hologram projection technology combined with VR virtual reality technology to attract visitors by creating images of artifacts as if in real space with many different angles.

Ho Chi Minh City Museum of History also soon deployed the 3D/360 Smart Interactive Museum project and recently tested the Sanbot Robot model applying AI artificial intelligence to guide visitors with features such as: Image slideshow, museum introduction video, introducing artifacts, galleries...

The Vietnam Military History Museum applies 3D projection systems, touch screens, and VR virtual reality technology to recreate the space of the 12-day and night Dien Bien Phu Campaign in the air in 1972.

In the space recreating the event of the liberation army's tank crashing into the Independence Palace on April 30, 1975, viewers wearing virtual reality glasses will feel like they are moving with the historic tank during the sacred moment of the country's reunification day.

The Vietnam Museum of Ethnology is currently applying VR technology to create experiential tours connecting heritage. When participating in the VR tour, visitors can explore the culture of Vietnamese ethnic groups in a full and vivid way.

The museum also applies projection technology, automatic audio commentary, and many touch screens... to increase the appeal of the experience.

It can be said that technological applications are contributing to fundamentally changing a cultural institution. Previously, people thought that museums were places to display artifacts in a static state, but now, technological applications have excelled in making artifacts participate in each story in a dynamic state.

The message conveyed from each museum activity thus becomes more specific, bold, and profound. Technology not only helps in displaying artifacts but is also applied to all stages such as collecting, preserving artifacts, communicating, connecting the community, etc.

The application of technology to museum activities has significantly increased the number of visitors who are students. Many schools consider museum experiences as a part of learning about history and culture, because technology-based experiential spaces can help students quickly and deeply understand the necessary knowledge.

Or on the website of the National History Museum, there is a space called “Interact with Historians” - where with just one “click”, viewers can listen to historians explain and introduce the highlights of an event or an artifact as well as interesting stories surrounding the topic they are interested in.

“Renewing” museum work by applying digital technology is an inevitable requirement of the new era. Many museums have truly “transformed” by quickly updating new technologies, attracting visitors. However, the reality is that some museums apply technology to their activities in a limited and uncreative manner. Director of the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum Nguyen Anh Minh said that the biggest difficulty for museums in applying technology today is human resources and finance. Obviously, investing in new technologies requires a large financial source, which requires museums to do a good job of socialization. New technologies always require quality human resources to ensure professional skills for operation, but human resource training in the current museum system is not commensurate.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Huy, former Director of the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, said that museum activities must always be based on three main pillars: Science, art and technology. Technology is an essential element that creates the backbone for museum activities. However, technology can only be effective in bringing unique experiences through modern features on the basis of rich display content with creative storytelling. Therefore, the requirement of harmony between technology and content is necessary, avoiding the situation where some museums are currently investing in applying new technology but are sketchy in display content.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/ung-dung-cong-nghe-phat-huy-gia-tri-bao-tang-post863910.html