1. Reinventing Het Scheepvaartmuseum /
the National Maritime Museum Amsterdam
Linda Mol MA
Head of Exhibitions and Interpretation

2. The National Maritime Museum Amsterdam: in 350-year-old Naval Depot, the former
arsenal of the Admiralty.

3. Why renovation and refurbishment?
•
Historic building, without climate control
•
Exhibition concept from 70’s, not relevant for
today’s visitors
•
Limited visitors’ capacity and facilities

4. Vision for the new museum
• world class collection
• top quality renovation of building
• outstanding exhibitions
• leading events
• superb hostmanship
• cultural entrepreneurship
• result: from180.000 to 300.000 visitors a year

5. Our objective:
To inspire society with maritime stories
Our promise
STORIES
THAT are
Worth
SHARing
Our brand values
to be stimulating
to be leading in our field
to be inviting
to be accesible
to be reliable

6. Exhibition strategy :
summary
• Different exhibition formats,
• for different target groups,
• in different parts of the museum building,
• designed by different exhibition design teams,
• creating different atmospheres in each of the galleries.

7. Exhibitions: focus on target groups
Target group
Target group
Families
School parties
Traditional museum visitors
Maritime specialists
Maritme experience/
Voyage at Sea
experience and immersion
Object exhibitions
discovery and enjoyment
East Indiaman Amsterdam
experience and immersion
Thematic exhibitions
discovery and experience

8. Location of exhibitions within the building
NORTH (‘Experience’)
Voyage at Sea
Amsterdam
East Indiaman
WEST (‘Stories’)
EAST (‘Objects’)
Thematic exhibitions
Object exhibitions
SOUTH -Entrance

9. The Open Courtyard

10. Inspiration for domed roof: lines on sea charts

11. EAST– Objects – The Navigational Instruments

12. EAST – Objects – The Globes

13. WEST – Stories – Golden Age exhibition

14. WEST –STORIES – The tale of the whale

15. WEST – Stories – Sal & Lori and Circus at Sea

16. NORTH – Experience – Voyage at Sea

17. NORTH –Experience – East Indiaman Amsterdam with Rinus the rat.

18. Possibilities and limitations
Working with top specialists in all disciplines

19. Possibilities and limitations
Raising huge budgets for the project:
Renovation
€ 58.0 mln
- Ministries of Culture and Internal Affairs
Refurbishment
€ 17.5 mln
- Het Scheepvaartmuseum
Commercial investments
€ 1.7 mln
- Het Scheepvaartmuseum Enterprise

20. Impact on the organization of new approach
• Study visits in the Netherlands and abroad for all staff
• Hostmanship training for all staff
• Training in brand values for all departments

21. Impact on the organization of new approach
• New department: Sales & Events

22. Learning in the galleries: school groups

23. Learning in the galleries:
family groups

24. Learning in the galleries:
family groups

25. Programmes for traditional museum visitors and
maritime specialists

26. Museum shop

27. Results?
• Since reopening 1 October 2011: 850.000 visitors,
• during visitor surveys: rating of 8 to 8.5 (out of 10),
• spontaneous brand awareness had doubled,
• many visits from Dutch and foreign colleagues and powerpoint
presentations elsewhere,
• many awards/nominations in the Netherlands and abroad.

28. What different?

29. How to move on from here?
New (temporary) exhibitions on relevant topics: The Dark Chapter

30. How to move on from here?
Production of travelling exhibitions: Lego Maritime Worlds

31. How to move on form here?
Development of master plan for museum extension on former Navy premises next door

32. How to move on from here?
Development of online strategy

33. How to move on from here?
Close cooperation with all departments, especially Development/Sponsoring