The Overall Approach to Digitalisation in Die Neue Sammlung

Die Neue Sammlung – The Design Museum aimes to actively shape the digital transformation and integrating it into all of the museum’s core tasks. Since its foundation in 1925, the museum has followed the guiding principle of making good design accessible to everyone. While design objects were shown under this premise at the time, regardless of price and origin, today the oldest design museum in the world has set itself the task of creating barrier-free information and mediation services for the exhibits.

Die Neue Sammlung – The Design Museum has set itself the goal of making design a digital and analogue experience for everyone. The aim is to appeal to several senses and enable visitors to explore design as independently as possible. In this way, digitality and inclusion are understood as equally important social tasks and are sustainably considered in all tasks that arise. The museum in the Pinakothek der Moderne is intended to be a place of exchange and learning about design history and new design developments where everyone is welcome. This is how Die Neue Sammlung – The Design Museum shapes the future and remains true to its mission statement.


Digital and Analogue Space

Digital offerings enable the museum to be present beyond the actual analogue space, conveying interesting information in new ways as well as adapting the content to current situations. The analogue and digital spaces are intended to be independent areas that can mutually stimulate one another. The digital offerings of Die Neue Sammlung cannot compare to an actual visit, but they do provide new methods of accessing the collection’s objects and exhibitions. They afford individual and inclusive ways of researching, presenting, narrating and communicating design.

Information can be saved beyond the exhibition period, used flexibly for research and updated at any time in line with the latest scientific findings. In the exhibition space itself, information cannot only be accessed on the respective original objects, but is also made available by means of further interactive and participatory offerings. In this way, digital and analogue methods of presentation complement each other and can be used individually by everyone according to their own personal needs. This means that Die Neue Sammlung can continue to be explored autonomously in the future and plays a pioneering role in the field of digital and barrier-free cultural mediation.


Available offers

In order to make good design accessible to everyone, various measures have already been taken.

• WiFi access throughout the museum building
• QR code on the exhibition walls for access from Apple devices
• An inclusive touch station with object information that can be accessed digitally via sliding screens
• Launch of an inclusive website in March 2024
• Information on the website in German sign language and easy-to-read language (German and English)
• Exhibition texts in German and English easy-to-read language, also available as audios accessible via QR codes on the exhibition walls
• Object texts in German and English easy-to-read language, also available as audios
• App „Sound of Design“
• App for the X-D-E-P-O-T
• App of the Pinakothek der Moderne incl. Audioguide
• Blog “Design in Dialogue“
• Interviews, exhibition films and insights into museum work on Youtube
• Online guided tours and online lectures
• Robot driving licence (for the exhibition “KI.Robotik.Design”, 16.07.2021 – 10.04.2023)
• Conference series „Future Talks. The Conservation of the Modern“ (since 2021 online and at the museum)
• Online research project “GDR Plastics in Design. A research project on materials, technology and restoration.”


Offers currently under development and planned for the future

Die Neue Sammlung is constantly working on expanding its digital and barrier-free offerings.

Since the beginning of 2022, information on selected objects has been produced in easy-to-read language, as audio descriptions and as videos in sign language as part of the project “An inclusive Design Experience”. Twenty objects in the X-D-E-P-O-T were made accessible to visitors with special needs in this way.

By the beginning of 2025, a further 100 objects from the collection will be made accessible in easy-to-read language (German and English). As part of this project, an online collection will be set up as well as “learning through play” modules, which will be developed in cooperation with teachers, and made available to schools from 2026 onwards.


Parallel Internal Digitalisation

Die Neue Sammlung is also modernising the employees’ digital workplaces parallel to updating its educational and information services. The focus here is on equipping staff with contemporary, collaborative tools and programmes that facilitate teamwork and operating from different locations. These are:

• Equipping the workstations with laptops and docking stations (October 2022) allowing work from the office as well as from home or in the depot, exhibition rooms, etc.
• Share systems and group work modules facilitate collaboration
• The switch to the MuseumPlus software (realised in 2022) enables all departments to carry out and link their object-related work via a shared online tool. Interfaces to standard databases and digital services are also made possible.
• The photo studio standardised and updated both visual recording and image processing as well as long-term storage in 2021.

The continuous improvement of technical and digital equipment is important to Die Neue Sammlung.