Before answering this question, let me ask you another: ‘Why?’ In fact, this seemingly simple question should be your new best friend. Interpretation seeks to uncover why your experience or product matters to you, your organisation and most importantly, why it matters to your visitors It’s the story of your site, program, or product.
Let’s go back to where interpretation began. Of course, Australia’s First Nations People were this country’s first storytellers. They have been sharing stories for tens of thousands of years and we can learn a lot from working with local First Nations communities. In terms of the practice of interpretation as we refer to it today, it can be traced back to Freeman Tilden, regarded as the grandfather of interpretation His book Interpreting our Heritage was the first of its kind. Published 1957, it outlined a set of principles for the interpretation of natural and cultural heritage in the U.S. National Park Services system. Interpretation was born out of a desire to help translate or ‘interpret’ natural and cultural landscapes in ways people could better understand and appreciate. Interpretation has evolved since Tilden’s work, however the core intent of translating places and events in ways people can better appreciate holds true.
Interpretation Australia, Australia’s peak-body for interpretation, defines Interpretation as “communicating ideas, information and knowledge in a way which helps visitors to make sense of their environment. Good interpretation will create engaging, unique and meaningful experiences for visitors.” As part of their 30th anniversary, Interpretation Australia launched their new strategic plan which recognises ‘interpretation is critical to protecting and sharing our natural and cultural heritage and values.’ Essentially, interpretation helps connect visitors with the natural, cultural, and historical values at cultural sites, historical sites, museums, parks, nature centres, national parks, aquariums and zoos.
Interpretation isn’t about providing information and facts. It is about revealing the significance of a person, place or event, the story. The intent is to help people create more meaningful and emotive connections that information alone can provide.
I’m glad you asked! Heritage can be natural or cultural, tangible, or intangible. Therefore, it makes sense that heritage interpretation shares the natural and cultural values of a place. Essentially ‘heritage interpretation’ is just another term for ‘interpretation’.
Overseas, heritage interpretation is often used to refer to natural and cultural heritage interpretation. Within Australia however, there seems to have been a shift to linking heritage interpretation with built heritage. Of course, built heritage sites benefit enormously from interpretation, the confusion arises from thinking that ‘heritage interpretation’ refers only to the interpretation of built heritage. Most sites will have natural and cultural heritage values, and good interpretation will always consider all of these, including First Nations People perspectives. To combat the confusion around ‘heritage interpretation’ you may see the term ‘interpretation’ become more common in Australia to reinforce that interpretation is about sharing natural and cultural heritage values.
A thematic approach to interpretation is a way of structuring the overall narrative or storytelling. Just like a fable has a moral and a movie has a plot, good interpretation is organised around a central idea or intent You may have been to a themed costume party. A fancy-dress theme is a way helping you narrow down your costume from endless possibilities. An interpretive theme works the same way. It helps you decide what stories are relevant to your program or product, and what are irrelevant and should be left for some other time.
A theme is different to a topic. ‘Tourism’ is a topic - a broad subject area. A theme is the single thread that binds all project elements together into a cohesive experience, a single statement of intent The stories you share help bring the theme to life, exploring different ideas, feelings and actions - just like characters in a play.
Each story or experience offered is linked this an overarching thematic statement. Some people prefer the term key message rather than the term theme which was popularized by Professor Sam Ham. Regardless of your preferred term, good interpretation is organised around a core intent to which the entire experience is anchored - the why.
A thematic approach to interpretation is a way of structuring the overall narrative or storytelling. Just like a fable has a moral and a movie has a plot, good interpretation is organised around a central idea or intent. You may have been to a themed costume party. A fancy-dress theme is a way helping you narrow down your costume from endless possibilities. An interpretive theme works the same way. It helps you decide what stories are relevant to your program or product, and what are irrelevant and should be left for some other time.
A theme is different to a topic. ‘Tourism’ is a topica broad subject area. A theme is the single thread that binds all project elements together into a cohesive experience, a single statement of intent The stories you share help bring the theme to life, exploring different ideas, feelings and actions - just like characters in a play.
Each story or experience offered is linked this an overarching thematic statement. Some people prefer the term key message rather than the term theme which was popularized by Professor Sam Ham. Regardless of your preferred term, good interpretation is organised around a core intent to which the entire experience is anchored - the why.
When planning interpretation for a site, it is often thought of as a layer that is added once master plans are completed, exhibits are constructed, or pathways are laid. Interpretation is often limited to the signs visitors read or the tours they attend. As we’ve discussed, best-practice interpretive planning provides a strong foundation for all visitor experiences. This applies to a single experience or product or site some other time.
The scale of your plan reflects the scale of your experience or product. For small, single experiences or products, a simple plan with an overarching theme, stories and interpretive media may suffice. For larger sites or multiple linked sites, such as trail, a more extensive plan is usually required.
An interpretive plan helps clarify the purpose of your product or experience, how it links to your organisation’s purpose and market need It provides a clear direction for your interpretation, allowing you to focus your efforts, saving time and resources. An interpretive plan can also be a helpful tool when seeking organisational support or external funding for new projects and experiences.
An interpretation plan differs from your marketing plan, though they are linked. Both are concerned about the ‘why’ of your organisation. Whilst an interpretation plan provides the framework for developing your experiences, a marketing plan will typically identify how the organisation will promote the experiences to the target markets.
There are several frameworks and models for interpretive planning. I encourage you to explore options that suits your needs. This diagram depicts my approach to site-wide interpretive planning. It begins by understanding the organisation’s vision, the site’s character, and its visitors. The points at which these three elements intersect are equally important – the site’s narrative, the visitor experiences offered and visitor facilities Each of these six elements work together to craft the site-wide interpretation plan.
Vision – your organisation’s purpose serves as an anchor for all interpretation
Site – explore the natural and cultural stories that could be interpreted.
Visitors – understanding your visitors’ interests and needs is key.
Narrative – provides the storytelling framework and includes the theme, guiding principles, interpretive personality and stories.
Facilities – consider each facility’s role in delivering the narrative. Even going to the toilet can be interpretive.
Visitor experiences - each visitor experience helps deliver the narrative and includes interpretive media such as signage, interactives, soundscapes, sculpture and multimedia, talks and tours, volunteer-led activities, programs, and events.
When people ask me what I do for work, I say that I help organisations design experiences that help share their story. I consider myself an interpreter with a passion for sharing stories through engaging experiences. Here a few tips and tricks I’ve picked up over the years. Think of these as prompts rather than an exhaustive checklist.
Be creative – don’t just rely on the same interpretive media you always use, try new ways to share your stories. Try collaborating with others to create new magic.
Element of surprise - use the unexpected to hook your visitors’ attention.
Build a toolkit – develop your own suite of engagement tools that you can use across a suite of experiences. How many ways can you share the same story?
Be brave – explore all your crazy ideas Even if the original idea doesn’t work, it can often lead to other opportunities you may never have considered.
Ideas ≠ big budgets – not all big ideas require big budgets
By thinking creatively, you can usually find interesting and engaging ways to share stories tailored to your situation and budget.
Interpretation Australia is a great resource for new and experienced interpreters. The ‘find a specialist’ is a great tool to help find a range of interpretive professionals across a range of fields including visitor experience and interpretation planning.
https://interpretationaustralia.asn.au
Scott Killeen
scott@kelpcreative.com.au
Scott’s deep dive into interpretation and experience design began over 30 years ago. Today he’s still driven by a passion for visitor experiences. Scott thrives on helping organisations engage their community through meaningful, engaging, and memorable experiences anchored to purpose.
Prior to establishing Kelp Creative, Scott worked in visitor experiences at Zoos Victoria for 15 years and Museum Victoria for ten years prior. As General Manager Visitor Experience at Melbourne Zoo for none years, Scott led all aspect of onsite experiences including interpretation, visitor services, learning experience and events. Scott established Kelp Creative in 2019 to the help organisations connect with their audience through purpose-rich experiences, spaces, programs and frameworks.
Over his career, Scott has gained experience in interpretive planning, interpretive content management, training and facilitation; play space and interactive development, face-to-face interpretation, interpretive signage and artworks, education and public programs, behaviour change campaigns, stakeholder engagement, and strategic planning
Dedicated to nurturing the practice and practitioners of interpretation, Scott was President of Interpretation Australia for three years and has won several awards for his interpretive work. In 2019 Scott received the Georgie Waterman Award in recognition of his significant contribution to interpretation within Australia.