Cell phones and PDA’s are slowly replacing the once-revolutionary audio handsets in museums. One good example is the Baltimore Museum of Art which offers visitors the opportunity to explore the museum’s Sculpture Gardens while listening to the a Podcast. In addition, for those without a mp3-player, there is also the possibility to hear the BMA’s curators, conservators and artists talk about the artworks on display by dialing a access number on their cell phones. Among the contributors to this cell phone tour are the director of the museum, sculptor Mark di Suvero, and a BMA trustee who grew up with the sculpture collection prior to its donation to the museum.Cell phones are not only cheaper to use, easier to maintain, more hygienic and far more versatile than other hand-held devices, but they also enable museums to interact with visitors. Another museum in Baltimore, The Walters, offers a phone tour that will allow visitors to “talk back” to the curators and experts who put the show together, and their comments could be added to the tour over time. Considering the fact that over 90 percent of all visitors already uses a cell phone, this could revolutionize the way in which museums inform their audiences and involve them in interpreting the collection.

Read article (The Baltimore Sun, August 15, 2007)
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