The “MAN app” opens the virtual doors of a completely renovated museum in Madrid

NEWS


2 April, 2014

The “MAN app” opens the virtual doors of a completely renovated museum in Madrid

The National Archaeological Museum opened its doors yesterday after undertaking a complete refurbishment, both physical and digital. Those who can not come to admire the result, may do so from any location using the “MAN, National Archaeological Museum” app, developed by GVAM and freely available for IOS and Android. This “XXI century museum”, so defined by its director, thus opens its virtual doors to everyone. Using a mobile phone the user may browse through the masterpieces of a collection that tells centuries of history, from prehistoric times to the modern age.

Once inside the museum, the app allows the visitor to explore the entire collection, which boasts over 300 audiovisual narratives. This is a tool designed to guide the visitor through the museum using interactive audio and images, in a bid to replace traditional audio guides. The MAN has also switched to multimedia services in their loan guides service, a format which is already being used by the main international museums like the Louvre, the MoMA or the British Museum.

New technologies are now a hallmark of this renovated space, located in the Golden Mile or Art Walk in Madrid, which has three of the most prominent museums in Spain: the Prado Museum, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía.

MULTIMEDIA INFORMATION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

The app includes a subtitling option, so that hearing impaired visitors can also enjoy it. This feature is also available in loan tablets, which have exactly the same content as the app. A specific route for visitors with visual disability will soon be available (only in spanish), in addition to the tactile museum stations: replicas of a selection of works so that all visitors can touch and admire the textures and shapes of the original works of art. This route includes audio descriptions that describe the visual characteristics of each work of art, its origins and its historical and social context.

The museum takes a giant leap forwards regarding compliance, quality and delivery of public services for people with disabilities. These improvements in accessibility have been made possible thanks to the collaboration of Orange, the CNSE Foundation and the ONCE Foundation. Today, MAN becomes a benchmark of universal design in the world of culture.