Interview with Dave Patten by Scott Anthony
Name
2025-05-04_InterviewDavePatten_Transcript_FINAL.pdf
Description
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Size
186.39 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (CRC64NVME)
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Resource type
GenericWork Other
Creator (person)
Patten, Dave
Anthony, Scott
Date published
May 4, 2025
Abstract
Dave Patten was Head of New Media at the Science Museum until retirement in 2024. Having joined the museum in 1986, for nearly forty years Patten played a foundational role in developing public-facing AV, IT, and digital media at the museum. The interview covers Patten’s career, from an apprenticeship working in medical electronics in hospitals to developing interactives for Launchpad, the creation of the Wellcome Wing, and the development of the museum’s digital presence. He recalls what it was like to develop experimental museum projects with large companies such as Cable & Wireless and Google, as well as the gradual move to more ‘bought-in’ technical expertise. There’s also a discussion of where organisational leadership of technological innovation comes from, and how changes in management culture and curatorial preferences affect the application of technology in the museum, as well as the connection between the use of interactives in the Science Museum and the rise of audience research.
Project(s)
Museums and Industry: Long Histories of Collaboration
Funder
| Funder name | Awards |
Joint Programming Initiative on Cultural Heritage | |
Publisher
Science Museum Group
Official URL
Rights statement
In Copyright