The city of Guiyang is surrounded by green mountains and clear waters. The Tianhai Art Museum is hidden in this lush greenery, like a meticulously polished raw stone of art. Over 300 contemporary oil paintings are hung on the warm wooden walls, and more than 150 groups of silver sculptures of the Miao ethnic group from Guizhou emit a soft glow under the headlights. Even the rattan exhibits from Southeast Asia carry natural patterns. Among the tourists who come here every year, 30% are art lovers who have come all the way from Europe, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia. But a few years ago, these guests who came from afar always left with regrets: frowning at the Chinese display boards, wanting to ask about the “wet painting method” of oil paintings but unable to find anyone who could speak English. When they finally met a guide, they were drowned out by the voices of other tourists… It was not until Yingmi Technology, which had been deeply involved in the tour guide industry for 15 years, brought self-service tour guides into art galleries with its experience of providing tour guide services for the British Museum and the National Museum of Nationalities of China, that the troubles of “not understanding and not hearing clearly” gradually disappeared.
I. The “Art Transmission Dilemma” of Guiyang Tianhai Art Museum: Beautiful Exhibits “Speechless”
Director Li of Tianhai Art Museum can’t help shaking his head whenever he talks about his past tour guiding experiences: “The painting ‘Morning Mist of Qianshan’ in our museum was created by an old painter from Guizhou. He spent three months in the mountains to capture the light and shadow of the morning mist. The ‘wet painting technique’ he used has even been praised by artists in the province.” But when foreign tourists gather in front of the display board, they only recognize the words “oil painting”. They have no idea who the author is or whether the painting is of Qianling Mountain or Fanjing Mountain. These are not occasional troubles; they are problems that the art gallery has been holding back for several years:
1.Multilingual gap: Overseas tourists “can’t understand” art
Among the overseas guests visiting the art gallery, there are German scholars holding notebooks to record intangible cultural heritage, Japanese students carrying art folders to copy oil paintings, and Thai artisans who want to learn silverware craftsmanship. Previously, what the museum could offer was only Chinese and half English – the English explanations only covered about 20 key exhibits. For minor languages like French and German, it was all up to the staff to use their mobile phones to translate through software in emergencies.
Last autumn, a group of French art students followed Teacher Mark and headed straight for the Miao silver ornaments area. Pointing at the butterfly patterns on the silver ornaments, they asked, “What does this represent?” Three staff members were found, but none of them knew French. In the end, they could only translate sentence by sentence into their mobile phones: “butterfly pattern is ancestor worship of the Miao ethnic group” was translated as “Butterfly pattern is ancestor worship”. The students stared around the screen for a long time, but still couldn’t understand what “ancestor worship” was all about. Teacher Mark spread out his hands and said to Director Li, “The filigree craftsmanship of these silver ornaments is so exquisite, but it’s like watching a pantomime. We can’t figure out any tricks. What a pity!”
2. Insufficient depth of explanation: The artistic details are “hidden too deeply”
Each exhibit in the art museum has its own “secret” – the pigments in “Morning Mist of Qianshan” need to be applied in layers before they dry, the “filaments technique” of silver ornaments requires 0.2-millimeter silver wires to be wound to create patterns, and the patterns of Southeast Asian rattan weaving are old techniques passed down from the 19th century. But these details either have to be written as “Traditional Craftsmanship” in the paper manual or have to be mentioned orally by the guide when they have time. On weekends, when there are many tourists and the tour guides are too busy, guests can only look at the exhibits for novelty.
A Japanese collector had been staring at the silver jewelry piece “Butterfly Dance” for nearly an hour. He pulled Xiao Chen, who was in charge of the explanation, and asked, “Why can’t I see the welding points of this silver jewelry?” Xiao Chen could only say, “It’s an old skill,” and couldn’t answer any more details. Later, he wrote in the guestbook, “I want to know how it was welded. No one can explain it clearly.” Looking at that line of words, my face turned red. Xiao Chen still feels embarrassed when he brings it up now.
3. Environmental interference: Soft explanations can’t cover up the noise
Although the art gallery is not as noisy as the scenic area, the soft chatting of tourists and the clicking of cameras can still drown out the voices of the tour guides. I had tried using a small megaphone before. As soon as the guide opened his mouth, the tourists who were quietly looking at the paintings beside him frowned. There’s no need for a megaphone, right? People standing at the back can’t hear clearly. Once, an elderly German gentleman wanted to hear about the background of the oil painting’s creation. The guide could only lean close to his ear and say that the two were too close, and some tourists thought they were quarrelling and secretly took pictures.” Director Li thought of this matter, feeling both amused and helpless.
4. Free visiting needs: “Group Tours” lack an artistic atmosphere
Overseas tourists visiting art galleries all like to “polish slowly” – standing in front of a painting for 20 minutes to figure out how the light and shadow are laid out. If you are interested in silver jewelry, head straight to the intangible cultural heritage area. You can jump to the oil painting area whenever you want. However, in traditional group Tours, you have to follow the route. The tour guide says, “Stop here for five minutes.” As soon as you understand a little, you are urged to keep going. An American old lady told me, “Joining a tour group is like catching a train. You just get the hang of it and are pulled away.” How could that be the feeling you should have when visiting an art gallery? Xiao Chen said.
Ii. Yingmi?Self-service Tour Guide: The “Art Guide” Tailored for Art Museums
After learning about the troubles of the art museum, Yingmi didn’t casually bring a “universal” device. The team stayed in the museum for 12 days, following Xiao Chen to record the routes of the tourists every day: Seeing that everyone stayed the longest in the oil painting section and the silver jewelry section, and hearing the overseas guests ask the most questions about “techniques”, “backgrounds” and “implications”, even the intangible cultural heritage section was clearly touched because of the weak signal of the wooden display cabinets. The self-service tour guide machine plan finally presented was all modified according to the needs of the art museum
1. 7 language coverage: Ensuring every artistic interpretation is “precisely implemented”
The self-service tour guide machines of Yingmi support seven languages: Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean and Thai – which can precisely meet the needs of 90% of overseas visitors to the art museum. More importantly, the content of the explanation was not randomly translated. It was meticulously extracted sentence by sentence by Yingmi in collaboration with teachers from the Art College of Guizhou University and a team that has been engaged in translation for over a decade.
This spring, Teacher Mark brought French students here again. The students held the audio guide devices and listened in French, nodding their heads from time to time to take notes. “Last time I could only make wild guesses. This time, I even understood that ‘filigree craftsmanship requires 12 detours’. It’s even better than our experience at the Petit Musee in Paris!” ” Mark pulled Director Li and said.
2. Centimeter-level position sensing: “Automatically opens” when approaching an exhibit
Knowing that tourists prefer to wander freely, the tour guide machines have been specially designed with position sensing – invisible tags are attached beside each exhibit. When guests walk within one meter with the device, they don’t need to press any buttons; the device will sound by itself. When approaching “Morning Mist over Qian Mountains”, first say softly, “Now you’re looking at ‘Morning Mist over Qian Mountains'”, and then slowly explain how the painter waited for the morning mist in the mountains. When I reached the silver jewelry section, I automatically switched to the story of intangible cultural heritage.
In the past, people always asked, “How do I choose a guide?” But now that’s not necessary. There was an old Japanese grandma who was strolling around slowly with a tour guide, talking to me wherever she went. Before leaving, she said to me, “It’s like having a personal guide following you. It’s so comfortable.” Xiao Chen said that the most surprising thing during the test was the “no crossover of sounds” – even if the oil painting and the sketch were close to each other and the guest didn’t stop steadily, the equipment wouldn’t make random noises. He had to wait until he stood still before starting to speak.
3. High-fidelity noise reduction: “Hear Details clearly even in the noisiest environment”
Although the art gallery is quiet, the soft voices of tourists and the sound of cameras can still disturb people. The audio guide machine of Yingmi is equipped with a custom noise-cancelling chip, and the headphones it comes with are also high-fidelity – they can “filter out” these noises, leaving only the explanation sound. One weekend, there were many tourists. Xiao Chen was trying in the oil painting area. There was a guest whispering beside him, “How did you mix this color?” The voice of the “wet painting method” in the guide machine was still very clear and undisturbed.
A German guest said that the equipment he used in other art galleries before was always interrupted by the sounds from the side. This time, with ours, after listening to it, he said to me, “Finally, I can listen to art stories in peace.” ” Director Li said that elderly guests especially like this feature. “Their hearing is not that good. After noise reduction, they can hear clearly without turning up the volume very high.”
4. Lightweight battery life: Enjoy a hassle-free tour throughout the entire museum
The tour guide device weighs only 85 grams, which is even lighter than a mobile phone. Guests can wear it around their necks or put it in their pockets without any problem. The battery uses cells that can withstand low temperatures. Even though it’s a bit chilly inside the museum in winter in Guiyang, it can still last for 10 hours. From 9 a.m. when the museum opens to 5 p.m. when it closes, there is more than enough power.
Xiao Zhang, who is in charge of the equipment, is most satisfied with that batch charging box: “Before, I used other devices. Every day when I got them back, I had to plug in the wires one by one to charge them. I was so exhausted that my back ached.” Now, just put the tour guide machine into the charging box. It can charge 50 units at a time. You can tell which one is fully charged by looking at the LED light, which saves you a lot of trouble. Once, an American guest visited the museum from opening to closing, which lasted for six hours. The battery of his device was still 30%. He held the machine and said to Xiao Zhang, “Such a small thing has such a long battery life. It’s so surprising.”
Iii. The “Visible Upgrade” of Artistic Experience: Data and Word-of-Mouth Speak
The self-guided tour machines of Yingmi have been in use in the art gallery for five months. The changes are not just empty talk; they are tangible and visible.
1.The “stay time” of overseas tourists has doubled
In the past, overseas visitors would spend an average of one hour and then leave. Now, they can spend two hours – 40% of them will repeatedly listen to the same exhibits, for instance, first listening to the English to understand the background and then to the Chinese to experience the cultural details. Director Li was flipping through the statistics book and said, “There was a British guest who stayed for an extra two hours just to listen to the explanation of silver jewelry. Before leaving, he said, ‘Next time, I’ll bring my friends here so they can also listen to these stories.'”
2.The satisfaction rate soared to 95% and complaints almost dropped to zero
On the guestbook, the reviews from overseas guests are brimming with praise: Mr. Sato from Japan wrote, “Even the craftsmanship details of the silver jewelry are described in great detail.” Miss Emma from France painted a small oil painting with the words “this guide helps me get Chinese art like never before” beside it. Previously, we could receive four or five complaints each month about “not understanding” or “not hearing clearly”, but now there is at most one, which is 80% less than before.
3. The “cultural dissemination” of art museums opens up new doors
What surprised Director Li the most was that a German curator, after listening to the explanation of the silver jewelry, specially sent an email, hoping to co-organize the “Sino-German Silver Jewelry Art Exhibition” with the art museum. There is also an art school in Southeast Asia that wants to turn the explanations in the audio guide devices into teaching materials for “Oriental Art classes”. In the past, our art could only be “seen” by people. Now, it can be “understood” by people. This is exactly what an art gallery should do. When Director Li said this, his eyes shone.
Iv. Yingmi’s “Globalization Confidence” : Allowing Overseas Users to “Use with Confidence”
Many overseas guests asked Xiao Chen, “Why is your tour guide machine even better than those in our country?” The answer lies in Yingmi’s 15-year accumulation, in those solid qualifications and cases:
1. International certification “No Pitfalls”
Yingmi passed the European CE and ROHS certifications as early as 2010. It can meet the electronic equipment standards of Europe, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia. A Dutch guest asked, “Can I use this machine if I bring it back to the Netherlands?” We showed him the certification documents, and he immediately felt relieved and said, “With these certificates, there will definitely be no problem.” ” Xiao Zhang said.
2. Chinese and English after-sales services are “not absent”
For overseas users, Yingmi offers 7×24-hour technical support in both Chinese and English. Whether it’s sending an email at 2 a.m. to ask about operations or encountering minor issues on-site, you can always find someone to help. Once, a Korean customer didn’t know how to switch to the Korean mode and sent an English message. The customer service replied with an operation video within half an hour and specially marked the location of the Korean button. The customer got it done very quickly.
3. International cases are “backed”
Yingmi has long had experience in international venues – places like the British Museum and the Suzhou Museum all use their guided tour services. They have a clear understanding of how to conduct guided Tours in art galleries. Many guests, upon hearing that we have served the British Museum, would say, “That must be reliable.” After all, we can meet the requirements of the museum, and the demands of the art gallery are even more manageable. Xiao Chen said.
Conclusion: Let art transcend language and let beauty “be heard”
One evening before the museum closed, Xiao Chen saw a French guest wearing an Yingmi audio guide, listening to “Morning Mist of Qianshan” over and over again. The setting sun filtered through the glass and fell on the painting, and the English explanation on the audio guide gently floated out: “The artist stayed in Guizhou mountains for three months, just to catch the morning mist…” ?The guest held a small notebook in his hand, listening and drawing at the same time, his face full of satisfaction.
The self-service tour guide machine of Yingmi at Tianhai Art Museum is not merely a “talking machine”, but more like an “art bridge” built between languages – allowing European guests to understand the ancestral stories in Miao silver ornaments, Japanese guests to appreciate the landscapes of Guizhou in oil paintings, and Southeast Asian guests to master the old techniques in rattan weaving.
In the future, Yingmi will continue to optimize – just like the AR and VR technologies they are currently exploring (previously, they have made explorations in the direction of metaverse explanations). In the future, when tourists wear the tour guide devices, they might be able to “see” how silversmiths wind silver wires into butterfly patterns. More minor languages will be added to enable Arabic and Russian guests to understand these artistic stories as well. After all, good art should not be shut out by language. What Yingmi wants to do is to remove this threshold, so that everyone who enters the art gallery can hear the voice of “beauty”.