87,027 visitors to the Ars Electronica Center in the first 6 months of 2016:
Attendance Rose by 8.2%; Visitor Satisfaction at 96%
press release “Attendance Rose by 8.2%; Visitor Satisfaction at 96% / PDF“
(Linz, July 19, 2016) Attendance at the Ars Electronica Center remained in an uptrend during the first half of 2016, when 87,027 visitors toured the Museum of the Future. This represents an 8.2% increase over the same period last year. “Even though we were open two fewer days, attendance showed an increase of 6,624 in comparison to 2015,” reported Diethard Schwarzmair and Gerfried Stocker, CEOs of Ars Electronica Linz GmbH. “Admission per day of operation averaged 588, which is up by 9.7% versus the prior year.” And gross revenues generated by the Ars Electronica Center rose even more: €495,000 topped the 2015 first half number by a whopping 15.9%. “We are quite pleased with both the attendance figures and the revenue picture at the Ars Electronica Center,” stated Linz Deputy Mayor Bernhard Baier, chairman of the board of directors of Ars Electronica Linz GmbH.
Visitor Like to Spend Time at the Ars Electronica Center
Not only do lots of folks visit the Ars Electronica Center; they’re also happy with what they find there and prolong their stay accordingly. An ongoing visitor survey indicates that approximately 90% spend more than 1½ hours in the museum, slightly more than half stay longer than 2½ hours, and 13% are our guests for over 4 hours. This correlates with the very high level of visitor satisfaction: 96% are very satisfied or satisfied with the offerings, and 97% of visitors plan to recommend the Ars Electronica Center to others.
Ars Electronica Center as a Factor for Linz Tourism: +48% among Guests from the Czech Republic
62% of visitors during the first half of 2016 were from Upper Austria. Of the remaining 38%, more than one-third came from 89 foreign countries. As always, the largest group of visitors from abroad was from Germany (45%). Coming in at #2 is the Czech Republic, whereby a remarkable 48% increase here is undoubtedly attributable to the targeted marketing campaign conducted by Linz’s Tourism Association.
1st Place on Guests’ Favorites List: Deep Space 8K
Ever since its debut, Deep Space has consistently topped our visitors’ hit parade. But in the wake of a complete technical makeover that this presentation & experience venue underwent last year, audience enthusiasm has absolutely gone off the charts. Whether in 2-D, 3-D or interactive mode, the breathtakingly brilliant, ultra high-definition, jumbo-format visuals on display in Deep Space 8K just blow visitors away! Once a week, the impressive imagery is accompanied by expert commentary, and this weekday evening series entitled Deep Space LIVE has become a popular fixture on the regional cultural calendar. During the first half of 2016, 20 Deep Space LIVE events were staged; attendance totaled 1,722. And 1,824 individuals attended special speeches delivered in Deep Space.
Booked Up: School Program for All Age Groups
Giving free rein to youngsters’ curiosity, enabling them to discover the world and have a say about their future—these items top the agenda of the Ars Electronica Center’s school program. The offerings are conceived as supplements to classroom instruction; the content is designed and go to further into depth where school curriculum leaves off by taking full advantage of the Museum of the Future’s exhibitions and infrastructure. During the six months ending June 30, 2016, 24,122 pupils attending schools throughout Austria took part in a total of 1,650 tours and workshops designed especially for school classes.
From Undeletable Data to an LED Lightstorm: TIME OUT .05 and .06 Showcased Works by Young Media Artists in Linz
A series of exhibitions produced jointly by Linz Art University and the Ars Electronica Center since early 2014 has featured outstanding projects by students. Two installments in this series, TIME OUT.05 and .06, were staged this past year. Each included a cross-section of artistic forms of expression—interactive media art installations—and thereby showcased the extraordinary creativity of the work being done by students enrolled in Linz Art University’s Time-based and Interactive Media program, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.
Highlights Tours in Farsi and Arabic for Asylum-Seekers
The Ars Electronica Center has offered highlights tours especially for asylum-seekers since the beginning of the year. These guided tours are conducted every two weeks—alternately in Farsi (Persian) and Arabic. 738 people have taken part so far.
Since June, Austria’s Official European Space Education Resource Office is Ars Electronica Center Linz
The Ars Electronica Center was officially named Austria’s European Space Education Resource Office (ESERO) in late June. The Linz-based institution was selected on the basis of its many years of experience developing a wide range of educational material for pupils as well as teachers, the strong response to and demand for the content, as well as the facility’s good working relationships with officials and organizations throughout the Austrian educational system. “ESERO fits perfectly into these structures,” the European Space Agency (ESA) noted in its announcement. The primary mission of Austria’s new ESERO branch is to get young people interested in outer space as well as the scientific and technological fields associated with the cosmos. ESERO Austria also offers students the opportunity to meet space experts from the private sector and academia, and thereby obtain insights into the fascinating R&D work being done in this field.
Career Choice Questions? The FutureWorkshop Has Answers!
Imparting motivation and inspiration, and, above all, demonstrating that a straight-as-an-arrow path through the educational system isn’t the only road to success—that openness, curiosity, passion and resolve are what count in the end. That’s the message My FutureWorkshop aims to get across. Young people in training programs are the target group of this joint initiative of the Province of Upper Austria, AMS (Austrian labor market service) and Ars Electronica Center. A total of 63 youngsters took part in four such workshops held in 2016. The girls and boys spent a whole week at the Museum of the Future getting acquainted with new technologies—recording songs, shooting photos and films, and composing blog postings. And a few of them demonstrated such adeptness as they went about it that they’re now employed on a full-time basis at the Ars Electronica Center.
Summer Vacation Lineup and Deep Space Weekends: What’s Next at the AEC
“There’ll be no let-up in the highlights during the second half of 2016 either,” Diethard Schwarzmair and Gerfried Stocker exclaimed in their preview of the diverse array of fascinating and informative events the museum has scheduled over the upcoming weeks and months. In the immediate wake of Family Night, a big visitor magnet that attracted no fewer than 1,476 visitors last Friday, the Museum of the Future now segues into its summer recess program for kids and young people (and which is already just about booked up). A series of Deep Space Weekends, another perennial audience favorite, leads off the fall lineup.
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Ars Electronica Center / Lois Lammerhuber, Nicolas Ferrando / Printversion
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Deep Space 8K / Florian Voggeneder / Printversion
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Deep Space 8K / Florian Voggeneder / Printversion
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Kinderforschungslabor / Ars Electronica – Martin Hieslmair / Printversion
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Meine Zukunftswerkstatt / Florian Voggeneder / Printversion
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TIME OUT .06 / Ars Electronica – Martin Hieslmair / Printversion
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Kreative Robotik / Ars Electronica – Robert Bauernhansl / Printversion
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Raumschiff Erde / Ars Electronica – Robert Bauernhansl / Printversion
