Containers of Stories: using co-design and digital augmentation to empower the museum community and create novel experiences of heritage at a house museum

This paper presents current research on the design and evaluation of tangible interaction within house museums–a particular type of heritage site. Containers of Stories was an interactive installation co-designed with the volunteers at the Bishops’ House museum, one of the few surviving Tudor buildings in Sheffield, UK. Dating from the 16th century, the house was turned into a museum in the 1970s for its historical and social importance and is now managed by a community of local volunteers who constantly needs to increase both visitors’ interest and awareness of the place for its survival. The experience of co-designing Containers of Stories pushed the volunteers beyond day-to-day management toward more creative and curatorial roles. This paper gives insights on how this hybrid physical-digital installation succeeded in engaging visitors in new ways with heritage that has the potential to strengthen the resilience of the community.