MuseIT

MuseIT is a research project that aims to co-design, develop, and co-evaluate a multisensory, user-centred platform for enriched engagement with cultural assets with inclusion and equal opportunity for all as core principles

The MuseIT innovation is rooted in multisensory representations of cultural heritage which extend beyond the visual and auditory senses. The MuseIT platform will enable creation of alternative expressions and modes of representations (including digitization, translations, interpretations, and/or transmediation for enriched aesthetic experiences) of a set of pre-defined cultural assets (objects, architectural sites, intangible assets) as proofs of concept, through different means, by different actors, and for different audiences. Multisensory representations afforded by the MuseIT platform will take into account variations in perceptual modalities and functional and cognitive abilities of audiences, while catering for different needs and preferences in order to create equal opportunities for all. Therefore, multi-layered representations including visual, auditory, and haptic cues will be central in the project.

The scientific and technical innovation proposed in the project is aimed at enriching the accessibility for, and inclusion of all while interacting with cultural heritage assets and historical archives. The proposed innovation will be validated within the project through a stakeholder consultation systematically achieved using participatory approaches and the adoption of co-design principles. Such community interactions will by design involve people living with disabilities. Formal user requirements aggregated from stakeholders will be leveraged to formalise the specification of the MuseIT scientific innovations.

Addressing the three main challenges set for the project, the research activities of MuseIT are categorised into four building blocks:

Multisensory, multi-layered cultural heritage representations;
User centric design and delivery of immersive and accessible experience to cultural heritage for all;
Co-creation platform services, allowing citizens to collaboratively perform and generate musical content from distance;
A knowledge repository capable of preserving the multisensory, representations generated within the project for interoperability and interfacing with external systems.

Start date:2022-10-01

End date:2025-09-30

Funded by Horizon 2020, grant agreement ID: 101061441

MuseIT consortium

Högskolan i Borås (HB) - Coordinator, Sweden

CataLink Limited (CTL), Cyprus

Information Technologies Institute, Centre for Research & Technology Hellas (CERTH), Greece

EXUS Software Monoprosopi Etairi Periorismenis Evthinis (EXUS), Greece

ShareMusic & Performing Arts (ShMu), Sweden

Michael Culture Association (MCA), Belgium

Actronika SAS (ACTRO), France

Ministero Della Cultura (MIC) ICCU, Italy

Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen/ Ddept. DANS (KNAW-DANS), Netherlands

Stanford University (SU) - associated partner, United States of America

King's College London (KCL) - associated partner, United Kingdom

Project leader

Nasrine Olson - Associate professor, senior lecturer at Högskolan i Borås, Sweden