Annual report 2022

Photo NTM/Lars Opstad

Preface

Full speed again...

Museum director Frode Meinich Museumsdirektør Frode Meinich. Foto: Lars OpstadEtter et par hektiske år, med raske endringer og tilpasninger både i museumsverden og utenfor, håpet vel flere enn oss at samfunnet og det sosiale livet vårt raskt skulle komme tilbake til normalen i 2022. Og det er utrolig hyggelig å kunne slå fast at besøkstallene ved museet virkelig er på vei tilbake. I 2022 har vi hatt mer enn 93% av besøket vi opplevde i 2019, altså før pandemien. Det til tross for at vi hadde restriksjoner på museumsdriften på grunn av smittevern langt inn i februar 2022. Men det lå noen andre overraskelser på lur.

The serious war in Ukraine, increasing inflation and ever-rising electricity prices have become a burden for the whole of Europe. In addition to the after-effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, we therefore see the contours of a new set of challenges that may be more long-lasting and financially tough, also for the museum. The trick is to meet this with courage, good humor and a twinkle in the eye. After all, we still live in peace and in a society that can afford to prioritize culture. Therefore, it has been extra pleasant on several occasions this year to be able to welcome Ukrainian refugees from refugee reception centers to the museum and give them a break with culture and entertainment.

Oslo's own families with children also appreciate visiting the museum, and in January we received the award "Oslo's best experience for children", voted by Aftenposten's readers. It was great since for a few years now we have been working towards the vision of being precisely "The most Engaging, Knowledgeable and Funniest museum". But we are not giving up and in 2022 we have had exciting exhibition collaborations with several players linked to both permanent and changing exhibitions. This attracts new audiences, including visitors who have never been to the museum. We cannot rest on previous laurels. We will continue to focus on renewal to ensure good visitor numbers, good finances and lively communication. Energy is high on the scale of people's interest at the moment, and in collaboration with the Norwegian Directorate of Water Resources and Energy, we were the venue for their jubilee exhibition Balansekunst from June until the end of the year. Until the summer, we had a wonderfully inspiring collaboration with the National Museum, Sand in the Machine, where we together curated an art exhibition with 27 of the National Museum's works, hidden in between our technical objects, with an associated organized treasure hunt for our visitors to find all the works of art.

In April, Crown Prince Haakon opened our new large telecommunications and computer exhibition, I/O. We register enthusiasm for the completely unique audience experience this exhibition provides. The exhibition is based on the idea from the Method of Things, one of the museum's many research projects, where each museum object can tell several different stories and give different meaning to different people, depending on who you are and what point of view you have. What is also unique is that the entire exhibition is driven by artificial intelligence, and that every single day it learns something new about our visitors, the paths they take through the exhibition and their actions and preferences in interaction with the objects. Not only does the exhibition adjust to the audience, but we are gradually sitting on gold in terms of anonymous information and learning about what is most important to us: our visitors and their behaviour. In the coming years, we will be able to create even more new exhibitions, which meet the needs, wishes and demands of an increasingly inquisitive public. The exhibition project is also part of the basis for a new book that will be published in 2023: The method of things – the museums' topography of knowledge.

And speaking of new exhibitions: there has been full speed in our new exhibition project with a new energy exhibition. It has been planned, drawn, demolished and decided. The reconstruction will begin immediately, and we are looking forward to being able to invite you to a brand new energy exhibition and a significant upgrade of large parts of Oslo Science Centre in 2023.

A big thank you also to my wonderful colleagues at the museum, for their incredible adaptability, willingness to work and perseverance in the past year! It will be exciting to see what 2023 will further challenge us with!

Happy reading!

director at The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology

2022

Highlights of the year

Vi kåres til Oslos beste opplevelse for barn av Aftenpostens lesere da avisen testet det beste Oslo har å by på.
Kronprins Haakon åpner I/O, den AI-drevne tele- og datautstillingen som er den største utstillingssatsning siden museets flytting til Kjelsås i 1986. En banebrytende besøksopplevelse med utstillingsdesign av Snøhetta.
Sammen med Equinor, Oslo Science Centres hovedsamarbeidspartner og The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technologys samarbeidspartner, arrangerte vi sommerens happening på museet: en kveld med musikk, koding og konsert med Hkeem for ungdom i Oslo.
For sjette gang arrangeres TENK Tech Camp på museet, campen der vi vekker teknologiinteressen til jenter på ungdomstrinnet.
Mensa Norges pris 2022, går til The Talent Centre for realfag ved leder Safina de Klerk, og hennes brennende engasjement siden senterets oppstart i 2016 med å tilby tilpasset opplæring til elever med stort læringspotensial.

More highlights…

Abid Raja and museum director Frode Meinich who together hold the book, the museum message

Crown Prince Haakon opens the telecommunications and computer exhibition, I/O on 7 April 2022. Here together with museum director Frode Meinich. Photo: Haakon Bergseth

2022

Collaboration partners and contributors

The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology er dels finansiert gjennom bidrag fra Kunnskapsdepartementet, Kultur- og likestillingsdepartementet, Helsedirektoratet, Kommunal- og distriktsdepartementet og Vitensenterutvalget hvorav Kunnskapsdepartementet er den største bidragsyteren.

In 2022, total public contributions amounted to NOK 67,577,580. Of this, NOK 5,499,890 are other public grants as project funds. In addition, a number of gifts and grants are received from private contributors.

Economic partners and contributors

The Association of Friends

The purpose of the Association of Friends of The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology is to contribute to the development of The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology , and to be a forum for enthusiasts, companies and organizations with an interest in the museum's work and in technical and medical history. The association has its origins back to the museum's founders in 1914.

The Friends' Association lost close to half of its members during the pandemic, but still gained 300 new ones during 2022. That means 868 paying members, which is 200 fewer than before the pandemic.

The traditional family days organized by the association in collaboration with Tekna and NITO were again organized in May and November with good attendance. The purpose of the family days is to market the museum in the Norwegian technology environment, and to give our members an expanded offer. The traditional boat trip with the veteran ship DS Børøysund was organized in June for the members. The monthly technology history lectures, which are a collaboration between the Association of Friends, Tekna, NITO and the museum, have once again been able to be arranged physically at the museum.

In 2019, the Venneforeningen began restoration of the Industrial Model from 1954, and the work has continued through 2022. The main emphasis has now been on minor improvements and ongoing operational maintenance of the model. The industrial model is very popular, and since May 2021 the train on the model has been driven 29,002 times, and has covered an impressive 1,508 km!

In 2022, the Venneforeningen has also made operational improvements and maintenance on the large model railway that the association bought for the museum in 2020.

In 2022, the Friends' Association will transfer NOK 304,375 to The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology as compensation for members' free admission to the museum.

The association has its own secretariat and is formally and financially independent from The Norwegian Museum Of Science And Technology . The association is a member of the Norwegian Association of Museum Friends.

Companies and organisations

Equinor is contributing financially, in a three-year agreement signed in 2021, to the renovation and renewal of the museum and science center's exhibitions and installations within the theme of energy. The agreement makes the company the main collaboration partner for Oslo Science Centre and a collaboration partner for The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology .
Norid has supported the development of the new permanent exhibition I/O.
Sparebankstiftelsen DNB has deposited a large collection of photographs, DEXTRA Photo, at the museum and for several years has provided operating support for the work of preserving and disseminating the collection. The foundation has also given support to the discussion arena Reaktor in the exhibition I/O.
Kulturrådet støtter prosjektene Museenes kunnskapstopografi (2018-2023), Bærekraftige energinarrativer. Industrimuseer møter klimakrisen» (2022-2024) og Kjønnets verdi i et museumshierarki. Et prosjekt om representasjon av kvinner, mangfold og kjønn på museum (2022-2024 ledes av Kvinnemuseet ved Anno).
The Research Council of Norway supports the research projects Private Lives (2020-2024, led by the Institute of Social Anthropology, UiO) and Reduce (2021-2025, led by Oslo Met).
The Norwegian Photographers' Association supports the book project Norwegian Photo History 1940 to 2011.
Sparebankstiftelsen DnB has contributed to the establishment of new Talent Center branches at three different upper secondary schools in Oslo. Pupils from nearby secondary schools attend these branches.
Ferd AS supports talent centers in science and finances the two external branches in Kongsberg municipality and Lillehammer municipality
Ferd SE has contributed funding for a fourth talent center branch at Bjerke upper secondary school as an extension of the talent centre 's existing Oslo venture.

Other partners and contributors

Aix-Marseille Université, Aluminiummuseet (Vestfoldmuseene), Anno Museum, Arbeiderbevegelsens arkiv og bibliotek, Arbeidermuseet (Oslo museum), Biogass Oslofjord, Body Cartography Project, Bydel Grorud, Bydel Sagene, Cathrine Bui, Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research (CAIR) v/ Universitetet i Agder, Cinemateket, CISCO, Computas, Datatilsynet, Det kongelige hoff, Det medisinske fakultet, UiO, Elko, Farmasøytisk institutt, UiO, FFI, Foreningen Bergen Kringkaster, Frelsesarmeen, Glomdalsmuseet (Anno), Göteborgs stadsmuseer, Holocaustsenteret, Holger Hartman, IKT Norge, Institutt for filosofi- idé- og kunsthistorie og klassiske språk (UiO), Institutt for helse og samfunn (UiO), Institutt for historiske studier (NTNU), Kjetil Schjander Luhr, Kvinnemuseet (Anno), Kristin Bolstad, Kulturtanken, Kystmuseet (Museet Midt), Lars Risan, Logic Interactive, LPO arkitekter, Malmö Museer, Malmö Universitet, Museene i Akershus MIA, Museumsforlaget, Museum Vest, Møller Mobility Group, Nasjonalbiblioteket, Nasjonalmuseet, NITO, Norges vassdrags- og energidirektorat NVE, Norsk Folkemuseum, Norsk modell- og dampforening, Norsk Oljemuseum, Ole Didrik Lærum, Oslo Byarkiv, Oslo Met, Oslo Museum, Per Børdahl, Press Forlag, Preus Museum, Riksantikvaren, Riksantikvarieämbetet, Ringnes AS, Ruter, Science projects, London, Scenekunstakademiet ved Høgskolen i Østfold, Science Museum London, Snøhetta, Sosialantropologisk institutt (UIO), Tekniska Museet, The Norwegian Museum Of Science And Technology Danmark, Teknologihistorisk Gruppe (THG) i Tekna, Teknologirådet, Tekstilindustrimuseet (Museumssenteret i Hordaland), TENK – Tech Nettverket for kvinner, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Vitensenterforeningen, Østfoldmuseene, og Nasjonalt senter for realfagsrekruttering, Åpne sone for eksperimentell informatikk, IFI, UiO.

Collaboration partners and contributors