Hermitage's Digital Transformation: Museums as Spaces of Shared Meaning

The Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg is navigating the digital transformation of museums, which now function as platforms for plural ideas rather than mere object exhibitors. Daria Hook, senior researcher at the Department of Archaeology for Eastern Europe and Siberia, discusses how the museum integrates digital tools to balance cultural production and financial sustainability. The Hermitage has digitized its vast collection but faces data preservation challenges due to software changes. In digital communication, the museum uses platforms like VKontakte, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, with charismatic individuals driving engagement—one photographer's Instagram profile has millions of followers. The museum's Social Studies department, with four staff and volunteers, collects visitor feedback via questionnaires, revealing gender-based preferences: women prefer physical visits, men virtual ones. The annual ADIT conference, organized by an NGO since 1997, supports Russian museums in adopting IT, shifting to a problem-solving format in 2013. Small and medium state museums can collaborate with universities for technology. Hook emphasizes the need to train existing staff, like curators, in virtual space and game design fundamentals, and advocates for hiring augmented reality specialists. The ideal candidate for the Hermitage must have perseverance, as becoming an 'ermitazhnik' takes 25 years.