Age and Engagement: elderly participative engagement at the Netherlands Open Air Museum

Abstract

The thesis explores the participatory engagement of elderly individuals at the Netherlands Open Air Museum (NOAM) within the context of the Canon of the Netherlands exhibition (CoN). It points out the lack of thorough research on the engagement of elderly visitors in living history museums and aims to provide valuable insights that can guide future initiatives and strategies for enhancing visitor diversity and inclusion. The ongoing doorzonwoningen project at the NOAM serves as a point of inspiration, about which older individuals have expressed nostalgia and a sense of connection to historical elements from their youth. The thesis examines the stereotypes often associated with elderly museum visitors and seeks to challenge them simultaneously in order to show the multi-faceted nature of the demographic. The author underscores the importance of challenging ageist assumptions and creating inclusive experiences for elderly visitors by studying their participatory experiences in dynamic, immersive recreations of historical settings at the Canon of the Netherlands exhibition. With its focus on this particular exhibition, this thesis aims to illustrate the unique dynamics at play for elderly museum visitors and demonstrate how these insights can enrich the field of museum studies and contemporary museum practices, while also offering the Netherlands Open Air Museum advice on the design of future exhibitions with the elderly visitor more closely in mind.