Background:

Presentation at the Emerging Innovators Forum during the 2016 AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo. This presentation respectfully interprets a community of people who are in rest together and implements the concepts and ideals of a museum into the non- traditional outdoor space of a cemetery. Guided by key research questions, this presentation analyzes visitors’ motivations in cemeteries as Remembrance and Honor; Personal Reflection; Exploration and Recreation; Education and Documentation. These motivations are applied to design persona that interpret a posthumous community and facilitates context and connections for both the living and the deceased. This presentation invites visitors to examine motivations behind cemetery visitation and to contribute with their own anecdotes. By combining memorialization, storytelling, and history of those who came before us, cemeteries can create connections and bridge the gap between people both living and memorialized.

Outcomes:

• Attendees will be better able to engage socially to share memories and discuss memorial-related topics.
• Attendees will be better able to understand the economic, environmental, and social effects of cemeteries.
• Attendees will be better able to understand a methodology for proposing interpretive opportunities in cemeteries.

Visitor response board

Visitor response board

Skills:

• Research
• Presentation
• Adobe Suite