ABSTRACT
As museum collections are extended and distributed by digital means, interactions with artworks and artefacts increasingly take place in museum mediascapes that include mobile devices, social media platforms, beacons, and ubiquitous internet access. However, rapid developments in digital and mobile technologies are part of a long tradition of material experimentation with display and communication in museums in different disciplines. Based on a review of such experiments in the learning sciences, computer sciences, and media studies, a “meaning-making” framework is proposed. I apply the framework in a study of young people in an art museum, engaged in an interactive gallery activity, to analyse how opportunities for visitor learning and engagement are constructed on different levels. The chapter concludes with reflections on the significance of interdisciplinary collaboration and research-practice partnerships in the design of museum mediascapes.
