Comparison and Contrast of Museum Websites - Essay Sample

Introduction

Major changes in technology witnessed have not left the cultural heritage institutions behind. Nowadays, information regarding cultural heritage is expected to be easily accessible wherever an individual may be. This has presented a challenge for museums to come up with ways of digitizing their information, which includes collections and catalogs (Alelis et al., 1080). Also, cultural heritage institutions have found ways to implement applications and websites for mobile phones so that potential visitors can have a variety of information regarding their institution. Museum websites are a favorable way through which museums can advocate for their art galleries and collection (Bailey et al., 670).

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Presentable and Attractive Website

Visitors to such websites can find information about the museums which helps them decide on whether or not they want to visit such places. The more presentable and attractive website designs are sure to attract more visitors to visit the museum. In this article, emphasis is put on comparing and contrasting two museum websites in terms of their design. From the home pages to other pages within the websites. Each website has its similarity and difference with other websites within the museum field. For this study, contrast and comparison shall be made between the Frist Center for Visual Arts website and the National Gallery Art website. In this study, the websites showcase a variety of content that can keep viewers glued to the websites for a longer period. The backgrounds play a major role in highlighting some of the information in bold, and different attractive colors. When it comes to templates, the First Center for the Visual Arts website contains two templates as compared to the National Gallery Art which has only one single template. Templates contained within the National Gallery Art website contain individual objects. These objects have a zooming effect on their high-resolution photographs. This differs from the templates contained within the First Center for the Visual Arts website. The two templates of the website contain different layouts.

Layout

There is a masonry themed layout in the first template. The masonry themed layout makes it possible for a viewer to comfortably viewed it either in their mobile phones or desktops due to its flexibility. The layout is mainly applied in website aspects such as the multimedia section, home page, and the website calendar. The second layout in the First Center for Visual Arts website is the general interior. The layout is applied in exhibiting the general information like new items and exhibition details. The images contained within are particularly large. This combined with the big white spaces within the website gives a user the feeling of walking through a museum. Nevertheless, there are perfect exhibitions in the National Gallery Art website. The site has various collections that are good for presentation. It has a collection rich in museum photos and includes other presentable features categorized as conservation objects.

Regardless of the single template contained within the National Gallery Art website, the site utilizes exhibit presentations and zooming effects within the photos to capture the attention of the user. This makes the website more exciting and interesting to use. In the Frist Center of the Visual Arts websites, large images are used with no particular zooming effect. There within contain just large images with a white space for background. In the National Gallery of Art Website, there is a digital photo storage area. These photos include the National Gallery of Art. In comparison, the Frist Center of the Visual Art website has open access images. The open-access images are made up of sideshows, with the images having a zooming effect with the addition of extra information such as upload dates and the description of the images. In the top section of the National Gallery of Art website, various options can come in handy for a user visiting the page. They include options for browsing, downloading images, searching, and sharing images.

Assist Section

Also, the website boasts of an assist section with a standard-based benchmark that advises users, especially beginners. The website contains an array of photographs in the open-access photo area. There are more than eighteen thousand photographs, all of high resolution. All the images provided therewithin are free to download and use. The designs of the images emphasize enjoyment, exploration, learning, and enrichment. To search for a particular image on the website, there is a quick box search area where the user can key in a search word. The search box is located at the top right part of the website. The majority of the open-access images contained within the National Gallery of Art website have been digitized making for easier image access for the users.

In the top section of the National Gallery Art website, the following items can be easily found in the guide menu; exhibitions, collections, conservation, research, support, shop, education, and calendar. On the Frist Center of the Visual Art website, some of the listed features include exhibitions, online features, Ellsworth, and the collections. The website contains the top, middle, and bottom parts. The menu part is in the top section, the image section is contained in the middle part and the bottom part has a guide menu. In the menu, the following is available; press, opportunities, notices, newsletters, audio and video, and about.

Conclusion

Art wise, the images in the Frist Center of the Visual Art are more educative as compared to those in the National Gallery of Art. The National Gallery of Art website advocates for a visit more as compared to the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, mainly because of the interesting photographs and images. Users that enjoy photography will find that the first of the two websites have their interests at heart. Notably, some featured photos within the website include what’s new, Kress collection, and frequently requested images.

Works Cited

Alelis, Genevieve, Ania Bobrowicz, and Chee Siang Ang. "Comparison of engagement and emotional responses of older and younger adults interacting with 3D cultural heritage artefacts on personal devices." Behaviour & Information Technology 34.11 (2015): 1064-1078.

Bailey-Ross, Claire, et al. "Engaging the museum space: Mobilizing visitor engagement with digital content creation." Digital Scholarship in the Humanities 32.4 (2017): 689-708.