ELENA MONTANARI
Politecnico di Milano, Department of Architecture and Urban Studies
Milano, Italy
Elena Montanari, architect and Ph.D. in Interior Architecture and Exhibition Design, is Assistant Professor at the Department of Architecture and Urban Studies at Politecnico di Milano, where since 2011 she carries out didactic and research activities and participates in international research projects – e.g. European Museums in an Age of Migrations (funded within European Commission’s FP7, 2011-15), Transmitting Contentious Cultural Heritages with the Arts (funded within European Commission’s Horizon2020, 2016-19), Open Atelier (funded within European Commission’s Horizon Europe, 2022-25). Since 2016, she is responsible for numerous dissemination and research activities included in the programme of the UNESCO Chair in Architectural Preservation and Planning in World Heritage Cities, managed at the Mantova Campus. Her research work revolves around the evolution of cultural and spatial practices related to the enhancement of museums and heritage sites within the contemporary scenario.
Museums and Health: Advancing Spatial and Museographic Strategies at the Service of Contemporary Societies
In a world where health (especially mental) has become a pivotal matter, also in virtue of its implications and links with many different realms, in the last decade museums have strengthened their commitment in developing strategies and tools capable to impact on the health and wellbeing of their communities – as highlighted by a growing body of research and experimental practices. For several years, the integration of health-related tasks into these institutions’ programs primarily focused on the development of innovative ways of using collections to offer therapeutic experiences to specific types of audience (e.g. those with special needs related to disabilities, cognitive difficulties or degenerative diseases). Nevertheless, in recent years the interest for the “caring”, “healing”, “mindful” or “brain-friendly” role of museums has expanded to include a wider range of targets and programs – some of which are based on the development of pioneering spatial and museographic projects. These experimentations range from the arrangement of special displays purposedly designed to modify the interaction with the collection to enable a therapeutic impact, to the design of new spaces accommodating various functions related to the enhancement of visitors’ psycho-physical conditions. The paper aims at outlining the design themes and strategies around which these experimentations revolve, hence exploring one of the areas in which museums are challenging their traditional spatial and museographic programs and reshaping their tasks in response to the evolution of their communities’ needs.
museums and health, spatial and museographic practices, societal tasks, interdisciplinary field