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PRISM

The MMFA’s Digital Mediation Innovation Lab

Digital Lab. Photo Elias Touil
Credit

In 2019, a new space made its appearance on Level S2 of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace.

Both a place for reflection and a catalyst for collaboration, this lab brings people together to tackle the challenges of digital mediation and explore, co-create and imagine new tools and digital experiences for museums.

Context

As technological innovation continues to evolve at lightning speed, the digital realm has become an extension of human cognition, transforming the way we think and relate to our world. In the museum space, digital technology holds the promise of a new dialogue with “plugged-in” visitors.

To this end, PRISM – the MMFA’s Digital Mediation Innovation Lab – has taken on the challenge of reinventing the museum-digital relationship by involving visitors at the centre of the innovation process. It has mobilized a vast network of partners to foster collaborations aimed at imagining and co-creating new forms of digital museum mediation and enriching the visitor experience.

Digital Lab. Photo Frédéric Faddoul
Credit
Digital Lab
Credit

Digital Committee

PRISM’s activities are overseen by the MMFA’s Digital Committee composed of 15 experts in various fields in Quebec who have a particular interest in digital museum mediation. They keep abreast of the latest developments in order to define and recommend priority areas for the lab’s activities. The committee also evaluates and selects the projects to be carried out.

Committee members

Brigitte Belleville

Digital project manager and coordinator of MLab Creaform, Musée de la civilisation

Ilias Benjelloun

Strategic Advisor in Open Innovation, Montreal New Tech & Desjardins Lab

Maxime Durand

Worlds Design Director, Ubisoft Montréal

Anne-Josée Lacombe

Educational project manager, Musée de la civilisation

Marie-Claude Larouche (President)

Professor, Science of Education Department, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières

Martin Lessard

Managing Director MTLab

Katia Macias-Valades

Director of Communications and InfoMuse, Société des musées du Québec

Stéphanie Marchand

Vice President Production and Board Member of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Behaviour Interactive

Valérie Therrien

Director, Musée Pop de Trois-Rivières

Vivek Venkatesh

Full Professor, Inclusive Practices in Visual Arts, Musician, Filmmaker, Multimedia Artist, Applied Learning Scientist UNESCO co-Chair in Prevention of Radicalisation and Violent Extreme, Concordia University

Values and mission

Collaboration

PRISM’s actions are grounded in interaction, dialogue, sharing and co-creation.

Digital Lab

Innovation

PRISM encourages the co-creation of new knowledge that supports technological innovation and the evolution of museum practices.

Digital Lab. Photo Frédéric Faddoul

Experience

PRISM prioritizes the interests of visitors seeking rich, meaningful experiences that can enhance their well-being.

Digital Lab. Photo Frédéric Faddoul

PRISM supports the development of digital museum mediation in Quebec.

PRISM leads research on digital interactions among different museum audiences, facilitates collaborative innovation projects, offers digital explorations to visitors, serves as a catalyst for intersectoral collaboration and fosters the sharing of expertise and experiences between professionals. In short, it aims to be a pillar of the Montreal and Quebec museum ecosystem in the area of technological innovation.

Facts about the PRISM Digital Lab

Over 300 hours

of brainstorming and consultation

Over 199 visitors

involved in digital projects and explorations

22 projects
9 collaborative innovation projects
2 studies on museum audiences
8 digital explorations
3 consultative committees
100 museum professionals
41 technology creators or incubators
16 researchers
24 government agents

PRISM is funded by the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications as part of the implementation of measure 115 of Quebec’s Plan culturel numérique.

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