The ‘O’ doo-dad is pretty impressive, although I didn’t have the chance to give it a full work out. Too busy eating, drinking, gas-bagging and looking at art. It hangs around your neck on a lanyard, and you point it at an artwork and touch the screen. Basic information (artist, dates, title, media etc – per the standard museum label) and an image of the artwork comes up on the screen, with a series of options at the bottom, including ‘artwank’, which provides you with additional info if you so desire. Other functions are a ‘like/dislike’ option where you can vote for or against a work of art. I was chatting with Jane, and there’s no telling how Mr. Walsh intends to use this data – if a work is too popular he may take it off display. Likewise, if something gets too many ‘dislikes’, he may rearrange the display so it’s placed front and centre in the gallery. Most impressively, though, is the capacity to ‘save’ your visit and later link to the MONA website to take a virtual trip along your pathway. As far as I can gather, each time you view an artwork, it’s recorded in the ‘O’ device. There’s an option to ‘save’ your tour – if you do that at the end of your visit, you’re emailed a link to the MONA website where you can view your trajectory around the museum.

Because I’m really keen to canvas opinions about the place, what in particular excited you about the museum? And if you can be bothered, please let me know what your husband thinks about it – the hits and misses etc. The bonus for him is that he’ll be able to throw back a nice cold beer as an adjunct to his visit, regardless of what he thinks about the place.