The Google Cultural Institute and Arts Accessibility: Where Is It All Going?

December 10, 2014; VentureBeat

Google has been making strides with a variety of different arts and cultural organizations, bringing relatively inaccessible work to the public through digital means. The Google Cultural Institute archives and makes available to the online world images and documents relating to the history of film, artwork, preservation, and more. Soon, the Institute will expand to more than just an archive of history and art; it will serve as a platform for museums and galleries to create and manage their own mobile apps.

The Institute will be an extension of Google Open Gallery, which has provided nonprofit cultural organizations with tools to create their own online gallery exhibits. Currently in the pilot phase, Google is working with eleven organizations from four different countries (France, Italy, Netherlands, and Nigeria) to modify and find best practices for the platform.

Those who take advantage of this new program will be able to lean on familiar Google technology like YouTube and Google Maps Street View, whose functionality they can include in their apps. Unfortunately, only Android users can download and use these apps (via the Google Play store) but it’s still a step toward increased accessibility for museums and galleries that may not otherwise have the funds or the know-how to produce a mobile app and for the general public, who can now access artworks and exhibits digitally. Organizations must be vetted and apply at the Institute’s website before they can access the platform’s resources.

Of course, in this day and age, we witness many organizations transferring services and opportunities into the digital realm. Organizations have been doing this for years; an example of a current large-scale digital cultural program is the Smithsonian’s Access American Stories app, which is a part of the Smithsonian’s Accessibility Program. Even a massive enterprise of knowledge, like the Library of Congress, makes a wide range of topics available online through its website’s Digital Collections and Services section, which spans many artistic and cultural forms.

In 2013, the Pew Internet and American Life Project released a study that identified patterns of technology integration into the strategic planning and day-to-day operations of many arts organizations. The Arts Organizations and Digital Technologies report focused heavily on technologies such as websites, social media, and online sales. However, the report demonstrates that 24 percent of the respondents used mobile apps to disseminate information to the public, 17 percent used apps to facilitate work within their organization; 15 percent used apps for online sales or tickets, and 5 percent used apps for employee training purposes.

Based on the Pew American Life statistics, it seems arts and cultural organizations have not yet reached the threshold for maximizing their use of mobile apps. It will be interesting to see how this trend grows within the next few years.—Jennifer Swan

About the author

Jennifer Swan

Jennifer Swan is currently the Associate Director for Arts Services Initiative of WNY (ASI). In this role Ms. Swan assists in positioning ASI as the link between the arts and cultural community and other sectors of the region. She provides outreach and administrative support to ASI’s partner networks including the Greater Buffalo Cultural Alliance (GBCA), Cultural Alliance of Niagara (CAN), and serves on the Arts Partners for Learning (APL) Leadership Team. Ms. Swan is the New York State Council on the Arts Decentralization (DEC) Grant Program Coordinator for Erie and Niagara Counties. Previously Ms. Swan was the Business Manager for the Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus where she was responsible for the day–to-day operations, working alongside the Board of Directors and committees. Major projects included the involvement of the Chorus in the Music Culture 716 collaborative and extending the Chorus’ regular season to include special performances at community events such as the National Historic Preservation Conference held in Buffalo in October 2011. Ms. Swan currently serves on the Chorus’ Concert, Marketing, and Nominating Committees. From 2009-2011 she managed and maintained the box office and front of house at the Lancaster Opera House, and orchestrated and organized an annual fundraiser for two years. Here she solicited donations and managed all aspects of the event from preparation to day-of activities. Her other arts and cultural work includes judging Congressman Higgins’ Congressional Student Art Competition in 2012, 2013, and 2014; past work includes Music is Art’s The Big Easy in Buffalo Committee, Volunteer Coordinator for Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center’s Artists and Models: Nocturminal fundraiser, Marketing/Concert Crew for Slee Hall at Lippes Concert Hall at the University at Buffalo, and Music Librarian and Marketing for the Amherst Chamber Ensembles. Additional work in the for-profit sector includes Promotions for Citadel Broadcasting and Righteous Babe Records, and management and marketing for several individual music projects. Ms. Swan has presented at a variety of community-wide engagements including to Leadership Buffalo’s Arts, Culture, and Tourism Day (June 2014), Daemen College’s Art and Community Class (April 2014), University at Buffalo’s Management Career Development Class (November 2013), and the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Evening with the Professionals at Buffalo State College (October 2012). Ms. Swan has a MA in Arts Management from the University at Buffalo and a BA in Communications/Broadcasting with a minor in music from Buffalo State College. While at the University at Buffalo she traveled abroad with NUROPE (Nomadic University for Art, Philosophy, and Enterprise in Europe) to Sweden and Finland, completing an intensive scholarly program entitled Beyond Bergman and Nobel: Scandinavian Cultural Policy and Performing Arts. As a result of that academic excursion, Ms. Swan co-wrote an article forUB International titled “Summer School in Arts Management Held in Finland and Sweden.”

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