There is no doubt that the Covid-19 pandemic has pushed digital technologies to the fore and accelerated museums’ growth into the digital space. After two challenging years in which many institutions have faced long closures and lost revenue, the potential for online engagement and digital accessibility has been one of the few shining lights and sources of comfort for museums and heritage organisations.
Now, a new partnership between immersive technology specialist Perception and consulting firm GT Advisory Services is set to help museums to grow further into the world of digital exhibitions with the launch of Holo-Museum into the African continent.
Already being used by the Imperial War Museums and Science Museums in the UK to develop holographic exhibitions for schools and universities, Perception’s unique Desktop AR technology – the innovation behind the Holo-Museum – represents an exciting and cost effective solution for museums and heritage organisations.
Once digitised, artworks and artefacts can be converted into 3D representations that leap from the screen, requiring nothing more than the Desktop AR app and a pair of cheap 3D glasses. The ease of accessibility offered by Holo-Museum provides a stark contrast to costly Virtual Reality headsets and other 3D immersive platforms.
Other notable museums to have already showcased exhibitions on Holo-Museum include The Hunt Museum, EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, the Anglo-Boer War Museum and Museum of Mineralogy and Petrography. It is now estimated that more than 7,000 students across more than 150 schools in 24 countries have now explored Holo-Museum.
In addition to the benefits of having a dedicated digital space for immersive exhibitions on Holo-Museum, Perception’s 3D representations are also created as Holo-NFTs – stored on the blockchain in The Morpheus Project Metaverse and with the ability to be sold or licensed. This, as Perception’s CEO, Dr Sirisilp Kongsilp explains, represents a valuable revenue stream during a difficult financial period for cultural institutions:
“We have already seen phenomenal interest in our Holo-Museum platform since its launch, with museums able to exhibit works holographically and reach engaged audiences around the world. But the ability to create Holo-NFTs has also gained real interest from cultural organisations because it allows them to raise funds from their assets.
“One of the many benefits of the NFT format is that it is so easy to manage rights and intellectual property on the blockchain, which is an important consideration for museums and heritage sites concerned about their assets being reproduced illegally.
“Holo-Museum and Holo-NFTs also enable museums to take their first steps into the Metaverse and grow a digital footprint that will serve them long into the future. Not only that but the ability to generate revenue from NFTs makes it possible to make this digitisation financially sustainable.”
The launch of Holo-Museum into the African market began in January 2022, with a webinar hosted jointly by Perception and GT Advisory Services to introduce the platform to educators and organisations. Attended by museum professionals, government representatives and financial institutions, the successful webinar represents the first step in a process which will see GT Advisory Services attract further cultural organisations onto the platform with the aim of appealing to students of all ages in a creative digital space.
Speaking on the launch, GT Advisory Services’ Abdul Moutie Abrahams, said,
“We are passionate about supporting organisations in the arts and culture to navigate their digital transformations. Museums, galleries and heritage institutions have so much to offer in the metaverse and we believe that, in partnership with Perception, we can help tell their stories through immersive experiences, reaching a diverse audience of people who may not be able to reach a physical museum space.”
Artists, museums and heritage organisations can explore Holo-Museum here. Or to find out more about showcasing exhibits on the platform, contact Perception at partners@perception.codes.
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Media Contact
Claud Fletcher/ communication@perception.codes/ +66 (0) 95 313 4044
Abdul Moutie Abrahams/ moutie.abrahams@gtras.co.za / +27 (0) 82 777 8688
Links
The Morpheus Project Metaverse website: https://www.morpheus.art/
GTRAS website: https://gtras.co.za/
The Morpheus Project Metaverse Twitter (@MorpheusSociety): https://twitter.com/MorpheusSociety
The Morpheus Project Metaverse Telegram (@MorpheusMetaverse): https://t.me/morpheusmetaverse
The Morpheus Project Metaverse Discord (The Morpheus Project Metaverse): https://discord.com/invite/Vd4kfm7PPM
About Perception
Perception Holo-SDK is a deep-tech company which is revolutionising the Augmented Reality sector by making it widely available across the globe, bringing objects to life through Desktop AR technology. Founded in Thailand in 2019, Perception is expanding into the UK with their immersive technology, to produce a creative desktop experience for individuals. Perception is set to revolutionise the arts and culture sector through partnerships with museums, galleries and artists which aim to preserve human history.
About GT Advisory Services
GT Advisory provides industry-leading consulting and risk and financial advisory services to both the Public and Private Sectors. Our people work across the industry sectors that drive and shape today’s marketplace, delivering measurable and lasting results that help inspire clients to see challenges as opportunities to transform and thrive and help lead the way toward a stronger economy and a healthy society.
About Science Museum Group
The Science Museum Group is the world’s leading group of science museums, welcoming over five million visitors each year to five sites: the Science Museum in London; the National Railway Museum in York; the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester; the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford; and Locomotion in Shildon. We share the stories of innovations and people that shaped our world and are transforming the future, constantly reinterpreting our astonishingly diverse collection of 7.3 million items spanning science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine. More information can be found at sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk.
About Imperial War Museum
IWM (Imperial War Museums) tells the story of people who have lived, fought and died in conflicts involving Britain and the Commonwealth since the First World War. Our unique collections, made up of the everyday and the exceptional, reveal stories of people, places, ideas and events. Using these, we tell vivid personal stories and create powerful physical experiences across our five museums that reflect the realities of war as both a destructive and creative force. IWM’s five branches attract over 2.5 million visitors each year in London, Northern England, Duxford, Churchill War Rooms, and HMS Belfast.
About EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum
EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum is an interactive journey about how a small island made a big impact on the world. It explores how every person is connected and how the Irish influence has shaped the world in the last fifteen centuries. Featuring personal stories of love, triumph, adventure and adversity, it highlights and celebrates the positive impact and influence of Irish emigrants around the world.
About The Hunt Museum
The Hunt Museum holds one of Ireland’s greatest private collections of Art and Antiquities from the Neolithic period to the 20th century. Donated by John and Gertrude Hunt to the people of Ireland, this diverse collection is housed in The Custom House, a 18th Century Palladian style building in Limerick. The Hunt Museum is a centre of learning and civic life that preserves and uses its world class collections to support a greater understanding of our past and to deliver new collaborations and innovation. Public engagement is key to our approach with a full education programme and wide community participation in all our work.
About Anglo-Boer War Museum
In modern society suffering caused by war is still a reality of international importance. South Africa experienced this suffering during the Anglo-Boer War, also referred to as the South African War of 1899-1902. The War Museum not only provides the visitor with an insight into the course and development of the war through its unique collection and exhibitions, but it also brings the visitor closer to understanding the background against which the war took place and the universal suffering it caused. The War Museum is an Agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture with a collection of approximately 40 000 items of historic and cultural heritage value that are directly or indirectly related to the Anglo-Boer / South African War of 1899-1902. The War Museum is an institution of excellence whereby the inclusivity and suffering of all communities during the Anglo-Boer / South African War are depicted, thus propagating the message that negotiation is preferable to war.
About Grigore Cobălcescu Museum of Mineralogy and Petrography
Grigore Cobălcescu Museum of Mineralogy and Petrography has more than 25,000 samples of minerals, gemstones, and rocks from all over the world. Most of them come from the territory of Romania and cover all the mineral classes and common igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks.
About Department for International Trade, GEP
The Global Entrepreneur Programme (GEP) offers mentoring and business support to non-UK based founders to help them set up and scale their business from a UK global headquarters. Support is free and includes mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs, help to develop business plans, assistance with relocating to the UK, providing introductions to key networks including investors, guidance on how to grow internationally, and continued help from DIT once located in the UK, especially around exporting.
