Bemused by Museums

[dr_gn]

Took the boy (6) to London today, briefly visited the Natural History Museum (1.5 hour queue to get in) and the Science Museum (no queue).

Last time I visited them was in about 1987, and I thought they were awesome places - loads of stuff in glass cases to look at and read about. Brilliant.

Today, I thought I'd walked into the wrong buildings: The experience has been so dumbed down and made so pointlessly 'interactive' that I might as well have stayed at home and done an online search for stuff.

And the fricking lighting: It's so dark in the Dinosaur hall and Aerospace halls that you literally can't see many of the exhibits. Who the fk thinks this st up? How on earth such amazing artefacts can be displayed so poorly is beyond me, but they've sure managed it.

I've never visited the RAF museum, but someone told me that it's like walking around during a power cut. Are the same fkwits in charge of all these museums these days?

[Eric Mc]

The RAF Museum varies. On the whole, the lighting is adequate. The main problem is in the Battle of Britain Hall where they turn the lights down every 30 minutes or so to run an audio video show. Matters have been improved in recent years by adding a new glass front to the Battle of Britain Hall.

[Moonhawk]

dr_gn said:

Today, I thought I'd walked into the wrong buildings: The experience has been so dumbed down and made so pointlessly 'interactive' that I might as well have stayed at home and done an online search for stuff.

The same thing has been done to Liverpool museum. I used to go often as a kid and loved the atmosphere. I'd spend hours looking at all the little trinkets in glass cases.

Now they have moved it into an adjacent building and its all gone minimalist and hi-tec. There is far less on display and it seems very much geared towards children (or at least somebody's assumption of what children like - it wouldn't have done it for me as a kid).

IMO - it has lost the sense of wonder.