As the cultural sector navigates shifting societal expectations, changing audience behaviors, and an increasingly networked world, one design principle has begun to gain traction across disciplines: participatory design.
Originally developed in the context of Scandinavian labor rights movements in the 1970s, participatory design emphasized the idea that people affected by a system should be involved in shaping it. Over time, this principle expanded into fields such as urban planning, education, technology, and healthcare. Today, its implications for the cultural sector—across museums, theaters, libraries, and festivals, are both timely and urgent.
At its core, participatory design is a deliberate shift from producing programs for audiences to developing experiences with them. It signals a move from cultural authority to cultural collaboration, which many organizations are only beginning to explore fully.
From Spectators to Co-Creators
In traditional models of cultural delivery, institutions curate, and the public receives. However, this approach increasingly feels misaligned with contemporary forms of engagement. Audiences—particularly younger generations—expect to be active participants, not passive consumers. Participation is no longer seen as a bonus feature, but as a baseline for relevance and legitimacy.
The most compelling examples of participatory design are not limited to museums. In fact, they span nearly every type of cultural organization.
In theater, the Berlin-based collective Rimini Protokoll is redefining performance by casting ordinary citizens to play themselves on stage. They develop their stage-works, interventions, performative installations and audio plays together with experts who have gained their knowledge and skills beyond the theatre. They like to transpose rooms or social structures into theatrical formats. Many of their works feature interactivity and a playful use of technology.
Libraries have also embraced participatory frameworks. Dokk1 in Aarhus, Denmark, one of Europe’s most innovative public libraries—was co-designed through public workshops involving thousands of citizens. Everything from spatial layout to programming priorities was shaped by community input, transforming the library into a multifunctional civic hub.
Festivals, too, are reimagining their design processes. In Zanzibar, Sauti za Busara integrates local communities into the selection of performers, logistics planning, and governance structures. Rather than importing a top-down festival model, it amplifies cultural sovereignty through stakeholder participation.
And of course, museums remain critical players in this shift. The Museum of Broken Relationships in Zagreb and Los Angeles is a poignant case in point. Built entirely on public submissions, the museum invites individuals to donate objects and stories from past relationships. The collection is not only deeply personal, but entirely participatory, reshaped with every new contribution. It’s a reminder that some of the most meaningful cultural experiences are those that allow people to author the narrative.
Participation as a Pathway to Financial Sustainability
Beyond its social and cultural value, participatory design may hold untapped potential for strengthening the financial resilience of cultural institutions. By fostering a deeper sense of ownership among participants, these models often generate more consistent and long-term engagement—translating into increased attendance, repeat visitation, and diversified income streams.
When audiences become co-creators, their investment isn’t just emotional or symbolic—it becomes material. Co-produced exhibitions, community-curated performances, or publicly shaped programming can open new channels for crowdfunding, micro-philanthropy, and membership models grounded in shared authorship. Participatory initiatives also often attract funding from sources outside traditional arts philanthropy, including public health, civic engagement, or education sectors, because of their cross-sector appeal.
Moreover, participation offers a strategic counterweight to the unpredictability of ticket sales and grants. It builds what economists call “relational capital”—long-term loyalty and community embeddedness that can buffer institutions against economic volatility. When cultural spaces become sites of collaboration rather than consumption, they embed themselves more deeply in the lives of their publics, who in turn become more willing to support their survival.
From Concept to Practice
Participatory design can begin with small shifts in process: inviting feedback earlier, testing co-creation through pilots, or integrating public input into strategic decisions. Over time, these experiments can lead to deeper transformations in governance, programming, and organizational culture.
The most effective models treat participation not as symbolic consultation, but as structural collaboration. They acknowledge that the public is not only the audience, but also the co-author, the editor, and, at times, the curator.
A Model for the Future
As cultural organizations consider how to remain relevant, participatory design offers a compelling pathway forward. It invites institutions to move beyond broadcasting and embrace collaboration. It challenges them to expand the boundaries of expertise and reimagine what cultural work looks like in the 21st century.
