The art of welcoming

The welcome in cultural spaces is not limited to an open door or an architectural intervention made of colors or lights; it is above all a matter of relationship, listening, and quality of communication.
Available on fad.fondazionescuolapatrimonio.it, from January 22, 2026, to June 30, 2026, the course The Art of Welcoming. Principles and Practices of Hospitality in Museums, Archives, and Libraries proposes and explores hospitality no longer as a subjective inclination and optional practice, but as a principle and pillar of the very mission of museums, archives, and libraries.

This is the third of the four distance learning courses that constitute the training offer of Personeper. Accessibilità nei luoghi della cultura, a national training plan designed to improve the accessibility of spaces, content, and services of cultural venues.

The course in brief

Mainly designed for reception and security staff and for communication and educational services staff, the course The Art of Welcoming is actually aimed at all those who work in cultural places, including those in managerial roles, collection and heritage managers, technical and administrative staff.

Through an overview of the meaning and value of hospitality, the course highlights the responsibilities and tasks of the entire cultural organization, both of those who work directly with visitors and users, and those who work behind the scenes.
Listening, observation, and understanding become key elements to intercept the needs and desires of audiences and satisfy them, in a delicate balance between individual needs and collective dimension.
A specific focus is dedicated to communication, understood as a lever to attract attention, establish a dialogue, and actively engage: to respond to the concrete needs of those who deal daily with hospitality, the course offers practical tools and operational strategies, suggesting techniques for interaction and relationship management with audiences.

The training offer, lasting a total of 5 hours, is divided into video capsules, video lessons, and an interactive lesson and is curated by academic teachers (Andrea Augenti), experts from the cultural heritage sector (Cecilia Cognigni, Monica Grossi, Daniele Lupo Jalla, Federica Lamonaca), or sector associations (Rosa Garofalo and Carlo Riva).

The course program

In the first of three video capsules, What is hospitality in cultural places?, tracing the more and less obvious differences between museums, archives, and libraries, Daniele Jalla explores the concept of accessibility in all its potential, from the proper provision of services to the active involvement of visitors and users, including the care of atmosphere and spaces. In Hospitality between roles and functions , Cecilia Cognini reiterates how the principle of hospitality must underpin the very mission of institutions to guide every design and communication choice, impacting the daily actions of the entire team. Monica Grossi concludes the introductory part in MAB between visitors and users intercepting the similarities between museums, archives, and libraries and inviting, precisely on the topic of hospitality, to build shared reflections and integrated practices, with an MAB perspective.

These concepts are then deepened in the video lessons.
In the video lesson Listening, observing, understanding the audience , Jalla, Cognini, and Grossi focus on the three pillars on which hospitality is based: listening, observation, and understanding of the audience, respectively in museums, libraries, and archives; highlighting the specific characteristics of each institution, differences in visit and enjoyment experiences and, consequently, how reception staff can better operate. Another crucial element for hospitality in cultural places is space. Careful design of environments, paths, furnishings, and signage – explains Carlo Riva in Space as a hospitality tool – facilitates the encounter between cultural heritage and the public, reducing physical and symbolic barriers: Rosa Garofalo focuses on solutions for visually impaired people.
Accessibility, hospitality, clarity: storytelling cultural heritage is Andrea Augenti's contribution on communication topics: an invitation to selection and synthesis, a deepening on language, and then some case studies, national and international.
Federica Lamonaca in Hospitality as a culture of encounter proposes a reflection on “the art of welcoming” as a professional competence, analyzing the evolution from traditional hospitality to active hospitality and deepening interaction, listening, and relationship management techniques typical of MAB professionals.

After Cultural Accessibility: principles and practices, an introductory course, and with Designing Accessible, a specialized course for architects and designers, this new course contributes to composing Personeper’s training offer which will continue with Mediating, storytelling, communicating, aimed at educational services staff, collection or heritage managers, communication staff.

Participation modes

The course is available from January 22, 2026, to June 30, 2026 on our e-learning platform fad.fondazionescuolapatrimonio.it.
Subtitles and translation in Italian Sign Language (LIS) are available.

Access is free and open upon registration on the platform.

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