HEWLET-PACKARD | THE NATIONAL GALLERY GRAND TOUR | 2008
The Day a Museum Stopped Waiting for Visitors / HP "THE NATIONAL GALLERY GRAND TOUR"
Instead of waiting for people to come to it, the museum sent its paintings out into the city. It's a simple idea, but nobody had done it before HP and the National Gallery did.
The problem
Founded in 1824, home to more than 2,300 works, and free to enter. Even so, getting people to actually make the trip to Trafalgar Square is hard. The idea started by flipping the old "Grand Tour," where aristocrats once spent months traveling to see great paintings, on its head.
The insight
Instead of people searching for the art, the art goes out to find the people. The whole campaign turns on this one reversal: a museum doesn't have to be a place that waits.
The idea
For twelve weeks only, gallery displays appeared at 44 locations across central London. Using HP's printing technology, the size and texture of the original paintings were faithfully reproduced, complete with information plates. Curators' commentary could be heard by phone or podcast, and the website offered themed routes to follow, like a "lovers' tour."
What happened
The campaign was created by The Partners. It won a Gold at D&AD 2008, and the National Gallery has continued putting on exhibitions outside its walls ever since.
Afterthought
Not "please come visit us" but "we're coming to you." I was struck by how much effort and technology went into making that simple shift happen. Start by questioning the assumption that culture is something people have to come looking for. That's what this kind of advertising work is really about.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2008
