Licking Dinosaur Bones: Museums in the Modern Age

By Jemima Huiting Ryan

Jemima Huiting Ryan, one of the three editors of Unwrapped 2026, embraces English and the arts across a variety of forms both spoken and written. This manifests in a tendency to talk and read vociferously, although she insists that neither can be done ‘too much’. Other hobbies include bickering with Samuel and thinking of how to bring up the latest museum she’s visited in conversation, especially now she has graduated from ACJC and has plenty of time on her hands.

In the past, the museum was a private collection, designed for the education and admiration of an elite class that regular people would never even see. The traditional museum is designed for study; for careful examination, for research, and requires social and historical context. And to the average person, this is inaccessible. It is boring.

So how have museums changed? The largest shift came about after Covid-19, when museums were struck by a sudden drop in visitors even after re-opening. However, even before then, museums had been working to become more interesting and accessible – to all.

The first and clearest change that we can observe in the modern museum is the incorporation of technology. Displays unimaginable to a Victorian academic are now commonplace in most major museums, from audio guides to projections and short films. The use of technology has allowed museums to become multisensory experiences, engaging their visitors by providing them with more stimulating ways to understand the information available in their exhibits. Besides that, it gives visitors the context needed to appreciate the works and artifacts in front of them. A piece of shattered armour can just look like a piece of rusty old metal without the story behind it, and these stories can make all the difference in making museums appealing to the average Joe.

This technological revolution isn’t just limited to the audio guides and projections we have come to expect from a museum experience. Increasingly, it is being used to create brand new types of exhibitions that draw in museum-goers with their innovation and creativity. For example, Singapore hosted ‘Monet Inside: An Immersive Exhibition in 2024. This exhibit of Claude Monet’s world-famous Impressionist work uses projections of his paintings to create a 360-degree experience for visitors, overlaid with an audio narration of his life story. It has the dual appeal of being both informative and Instagrammable, and drew far more visitors than a more traditional private art exhibit would be expected to – especially from youths, notoriously uninterested in museums. Technological innovations have made classics brand new again, allowing for the revitalisation of interest in art and culture in our youths.

Technology is a clear example of how museums have changed, but it’s actually a feature of a larger change; the move to make museums more interactive with their visitors. Gone are the ‘Do Not Touch’ signs! We are moving into an era where museums actively encourage their visitors to touch, hear, and even taste their exhibits.

(PSA: This is not the case for all exhibits. Please avoid licking things like dinosaur bones – I’ve heard they have an unpleasant aftertaste.)

A clear, though controversial, example of this is the Museum of Ice Cream. A non-traditional museum in every sense of the word, it is wildly popular because it markets itself as an *‘experium’ – a museum driven by experiences. It contains exciting attractions like a ‘Sprinkle pool’ you can jump into, and several unlimited ice cream stations you can indulge in while learning about the history of ice cream. However, this particular museum has drawn criticism for being a ‘selfie museum’ – one driven more by the goal of being Instagrammable than informative. Still, it shows that it is definitely possible to get the public excited about learning; especially while painted bright pink.

A more classic museum that has embraced this change is Singapore’s Asian Civilisations Museum, which (as of early 2026) is currently holding an exhibit titled ‘Let’s Play! The Art and Design of Asian Games’. As the name implies, the museum quite literally invites visitors to play, with stations that allow visitors to try games from all across Asia as they learn their history. Seeing 150 artefacts is one thing, but when you are able to touch, feel and play with them, your experience becomes enriched. This type of exhibit has been applauded for allowing its visitors to come away having truly experienced and understood the people of the past by playing a game of **Congkak in their shoes.

Another benefit of interactive museums is that they are often far more interesting for children, saving many a disappointed parent from being dragged out of the museum under threat of a tantrum. The Asian Games exhibit has an entire room for children to play in, with new versions of classic games like a 3D reconceptualisation of Snakes and Ladders titled ‘Climbs and Slides’ that draws inspiration from its Indian predecessor, Gyan Chaupar. Other museums choose to have activities like drawing to keep children occupied, although the Art Science Museum takes it one step further by projecting these drawings on the wall in their ArtSketch Exhibit and letting them control where it goes. The Art Science Museum really does live up to their name!

One final way museums are looking to engage the public, and particularly youths, is through community partnerships. In a society like Singapore that is highly science-focused, even those who are interested in arts and culture may struggle to find a way to turn that interest into action. Young artists often struggle to know where to start, and this turns into a stagnation and eventual dissipation of their interest. Museums are starting to seek to bridge that gap, creating programmes like the National Gallery’s Kolektif. Starting in 2020, the programme takes on a new batch of youths every year to create an artistic community, encouraging them to speak and make art about issues that they believe in. The programme itself allows the students to host their own exhibit at the museum in a ‘youth takeover’ that varies in theme, focus, and form every year. This elevation of youth’s voices is one of the key ways that museums are working to engage their demographic, and provides them with a platform to develop into the future of art in Singapore.

So, it seems that museums are doing plenty to become more engaging, and it certainly appears to have been successful to a degree. More people seem to be interested in visiting museums, and perceptions are slowly changing from museums as old, boring, and dusty, to meaningful places to visit and learn. Perhaps it’s time for you to break out that Culture Pass and check one out too.

*An ‘experium’ is a combination of the words ‘experience’ and ‘museum’, meant to describe a non-traditional museum focused more on entertainment than education.

**Congkak is a traditional Malaysian board game