CE-HSPA-1034 - Cultural Heritage, Imaging, and Exhibitions
Course Description
Have you ever wondered how museum curators build exhibits that captivate and educate you? In this course, you’ll dive into learning about the tools, skills, and processes that are used in museums such as the Smithsonian, Field Museum, British Museum, and many others. Throughout the week, you’ll work towards creating a digital exhibition with your classmates using images and models you’ll develop yourself.
Is This Course For You?
If you’re a rising high school sophomore, junior, or senior that loves history or anthropology, and you’re interested in learning about the technology behind your favorite museum exhibits, this course is a perfect way to get hands-on experience with what goes on behind the scenes. If you want to learn about how 3D technology is used in museums as well as how cultural heritage influences the development and creation of exhibits, you’ll discover that and more in this five day intensive.
What You’ll Learn
In this course, you’ll learn about what cultural heritage is as well as how that cultural heritage influences the creation of museum exhibitions. Throughout the week, you’ll learn about 3D scanning, what goes into creating exhibits, and how to craft a theme for an exhibition. You’ll use the technology you learn about to create your own 3D scan of an object for a one person exhibit and discuss tangible versus digital exhibits. At the end of the week, you will come together with your classmates to create a larger digital exhibition of your projects with a theme that ties all of your projects together before making your exhibition available to the public.
How You’ll Learn
Hands-on learning is at the heart of this course, and you’ll go beyond theoretical knowledge and create your own digital exhibition. You’ll learn about cultural heritage from a local, national, and global perspective and use those ideas to create an exhibit with items relevant to your own cultural heritage. It’s encouraged but not required to bring in two related items, one 2D such as a letter, map, or other document and one 3D and no larger than a cell phone, to use as your case studies for the week. You’ll use 3D spatial scanning, immersive 3D virtual imaging, and multispectral imaging to create your exhibit using the items you choose. You’ll also work with your classmates to create a cohesive exhibition using all of your items and see what goes into creating a real digital exhibition that will be publicly available at the end of the course.
Skills You Walk Away With
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Describe what cultural heritage is and how it can communicate meaning and knowledge about communities locally, nationally, and worldwide.
- Apply and analyze the role of imaging science and 3D technologies in museum contexts.
- Share a digital exhibit you created with your classmates focused on cultural heritage using materials you’ve imaged and researched throughout the week.