Italian students design ideal digital museum in lockdown project

During the November-December 2020 lockdown, high school students at Liceo Classico di Barga in Lucca, Italy, were tasked by their art history teacher Riccarda Bernacchi to research and propose their ideal virtual museum. Over two months, 16 students from classes 3F, 4F, and 5F explored existing museum websites, used Google Arts & Culture, and studied documents including the Piano triennale per la digitalizzazione e l'innovazione dei musei and an interview with Minister Franceschini. They produced a 20+ page document with proposals. Key ideas include: immersive 3D walkthroughs (like Google Maps) with architectural context (Giulio Ceccarelli); four differentiated paths for adults, children, teenagers, and experts with inclusive sensory areas (Susanna Fantoni); Instagram Stories-style slides with minimal information and curiosity-driven navigation (Gioele Simonini); interactive features like artwork enlargement, personal reinterpretation tools, and feedback systems (Danny Lanzallotta); use of music, videos, memes, and celebrity endorsements (e.g., Emma Marrone, Chiara Ferragni) to attract young audiences (Serena Bernardi, Irene Casci, Laura Suffredini; Alessia Giorgi). The project highlights the potential of digital innovation in museums during the pandemic.