New resource for museum professionals: Nina Simon's book "The Participatory Museum" published in Latvian
The Latvian translation of Nina Simon's book "The Participatory Museum" has been prepared and published – it can be considered a handbook that brings together various ideas and examples of museum collaboration with communities in the creation of exhibitions, displays and public programs, and reinforces the relevance of the idea of participatory engagement. "When staff members don't know what to expect from visitors, it's easy to imagine the worst" writes Nina Simon, encouraging us to get to know our museum audience better and understand the desired model of cooperation.
The Latvian translation of the book is a joint project of the Latvian Academy of Culture and The Promotional Society of Museology in the Baltics. One of the association's most important activities is the preparation and publication of methodological materials and museological publications in the series "Museology Library," including translations of works that are significant to the Latvian museum environment, as well as improving the terminology of museology in the Latvian language. The book was translated from English by Anita Jirgensone, with Dr. philol. Jānis Garjāns as scientific editor and PhD. Elīna Vikmane as scientific consultant.
The author of the book, Nina Simon, was born and lives in California, United States. She is an interesting personality with a diverse professional background – from engineering at NASA to New York Times best-selling author. For several years, she worked as a museum consultant and curator on social technology, gaming, and participatory design issues, and has also been a museum director and exhibition designer. She has been able to bring her ideas to life and communicate them publicly, creating a "practical guide on how to work with community representatives and visitors to make cultural institutions more dynamic, meaningful, and relevant."
In the context of Latvian museums, the book will be useful both for museums taking their first steps in implementing a participatory approach and for experienced professionals in the field. Interestingly, the content and relevance of the book's ideas have not diminished over time, but rather increased. For example, Simon's five-step model "from me to us" encouraged museums almost fifteen years ago to gradually move from content consumption to solutions that promote mutual cooperation.
One of the book's values is also its call for museums to strive to gain a deeper understanding and measure the results of their work and their audiences.
The translation and publication of the book in Latvian was carried out with the financial support of the fundamental and applied research project "Striving Towards Participatory Engagement in Museums: Inquiry into Museum Education Practice in Latvia / MEET” and the State Culture Capital Foundation.
The book is available on the websites of the Latvian Academy of Culture and the Baltic Association for the Promotion of Museology.
LKA website: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZEtlpuwumFxSxBJ_NuuFcSHc5qXXpebe/view?usp=sharing
The Promotional Society of Museology in the Baltics website: https://www.muzeologija.lv/lv/publications
The public launch of the Latvian translation of the book "The Participatory Museum" will take place on November 5, 2025 at the conclusion of the Latvian Academy of Culture's international conference series "Cultural Crossroads" conference "Youth Civic Participation: Decorative or Authentic? Formal or Meaningful?"
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