Developing sustainable museum models

Lille – France

Pillar 1:
Ecological transition in the field of culture

Priority 1:
Reducing the use of resources and using sustainable public procurement

The City of Lille is committed to making its cultural sector sustainable, for its museums, this has translated to staging sustainable exhibitions. Experience Goya is a fitting example, the first intentionally ecologically-minded exhibition of the Museum of Fine Arts in Lille, held from October 2021 to February 2022. Experience Goya, immersing audiences in the world of painter Francisco de Goya, was designed to be environmentally responsible throughout its production chain.

Environmental responsibility in the context of this exhibition involved:

  • Reducing greenhouse gas emissions produced by the transportation of artworks by limiting the number of loans to 60.
  • Designing exhibition scenography following the ‘6 R’s’: Rethink, Reduce, Replace, Reuse, Recycle, Repair.
    Using digital technology to support the project, paying specific attention to energy efficiency and sensible use.
  • Calculating the exhibition’s overall carbon footprint to evaluate the effectiveness of these efforts.

The experience was carefully documented and assessed, and the results of Experience Goya were compiled as a toolkit for museums beyond Lille to refer to.

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