Summer School LEARN-SMA 2023. Branding and Storytelling. Visual and textual communication in museums

The one-week intensive course is hosted by the museums of art, technology, and the natural sciences of the University of Pisa (Sistema Museale di Ateneo – SMA).

The course addresses communication inside a museum and explores the creation of brands and the strategies behind textual and visual storytelling, focusing on digital and innovative methods for in-person and online learning. How to balance information and simplicity? What information should a logo encapsulate? When is storytelling effective? How can we construct lengthier historical or geographical narratives? What may immersive and synaesthetic technologies offer in order to provide a rich/individual experience, tailored to diverse audiences and types of visits? These and related questions will be discussed by experienced instructors from a variety of backgrounds, including archaeologists, art historians, curators, exhibition designers, developers of digital/virtual educational tools, experts of communication for children, the neurodiverse public, and visitors with limited vision or hearing abilities.

The school will be entirely held online, via Microsoft Teams.

Aim

The aim of the course is to provide participants with the main notions about brand design and digital storytelling in museums, as well as an overview of the most up-to-date research in museum communication and technologies.

Classes engage participants both at the theoretical and empirical level, so that participants may develop broader awareness of the topic, as well as practical skills and competencies.

The course include experiences from collections in a variety of fields: art history, science and technology, and the natural sciences.

Museum professionals, advanced students of all disciplines interested in a career as a curator