Blog post 007/100 #Blogg100 challenge.
The Endurance, by Second Story, 1999, for Kodak Eastman Company.
For the last six years I have participated in the judges panel for the international contest Best of the Web awards, by Museums and the Web. It is the most rewarding job, reviewing the best cultural heritage websites together with peers from all over the world (thank you Internet for making collaboration across borders and time zones possible).
Each year I am amazed by the work of museums and companies that truly sets standards in digital excellence for the museum sector.
In a couple of blog posts I will take a closer look at some websites that I am partcularly fond of and impressed by. Starting with The Endurance, by Second Story, made in 1999 for the Kodak Eastman Company.
This website was produced 14 years ago and it’s still online! It tells the story of Ernest Shackleton and his expedition to Antarctica in 1914.
I am a great fan of Second Story, they are one of the very best companies producing websites for museums. They are very consistent, using great storytelling and design to create online experiences. And they have been able to be true to their own story and brand throughout the years, maintaining high quality standards and still challenging themselves with new and very different productions.
Anyone who works with cultural heritage knows archives, libraries and museums are full of amazing stories that are waiting to be told. Take a look at The Endurance and these few lines, that sum up the entire online experience:
Mountainous South Georgia Island was the last port of call for the Endurance, which next headed south into Antarctica’s ice-packed Weddell Sea. The ship left England on August 8, 1914 and would never return.
Quote from The Endurance website
It is the length of a micro pitch, selling us the adventurous and harsh story of Ernest Shackleton’s unsuccessful expedition.
Try pitching another story to yourself or to your colleagues, see how it fits into the digital channels of today. Is your story fitting into a social media format? Or is it in fact a video? Or a rich media website? Is it something to use in an educational website?
Returning to The Endurance I am reminded that great quality and digital excellence lasts. And I look forward to seeing much more of that in the years to come, both in the Swedish and the international museum sector.
Kajsa Hartig 