As part of a project aimed at developing Franco-Mexican cooperation between museums and companies, {CORRESPONDANCES DIGITALES] co-organized a professional delegation to Mexico, from March 6 to 13, with the cooperation agency Expertise France (Frédéric Chambon, International Technical Expert based in Mexico City). The Musée du Quai Branly, the Musée des Confluences, the Cité des Sciences, Iconem, Small Creative and Unframed Collection were among the French structures that met their Mexican counterparts, with the aim of sharing projects and expertise, and creating or disseminating joint experiences or exhibitions.
During the week, more than 14 visits and over 30 meetings were organized, and a Franco-Mexican forum was held, bringing together some 50 professionals from both countries. Such a week was an opportunity to discover a country with an incredible wealth of culture, history and creativity. This article aims to capture as much of this richness as possible. This delegation was organized within the framework of the Cultural and Creative Industries Program, thanks to the support of the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs and the French Institute for the International Export of French Cultural and Creative Industries, the French Embassy in Mexico and the French Institute of Latin America. Many thanks to these partners for their trust.
Numerous digital projects already underway in many cultural and museum venues: between creativity, networking and international collaboration
With 130 million inhabitants, Mexico is the world’s 12th largest economy. Despite cartel violence, corruption and inequality (1% of the Mexican population will own 41.2% of the country’s wealth in 2024, according to CEPAL), the country is witnessing the emergence of a middle class in search of culture and proud of its heritage.
The country’s many archaeological sites and magnificent museums also attract some of the more than 45 million international tourists who visit the country every year.
In archaeological sites: digital creativity at the heart of renovation and enhancement.
Mexico is a country steeped in a breathtakingly rich history. The country is dotted with sites that bear witness to the refinement and sophistication of pre-Hispanic civilizations. These sites are the subject of regular archaeological research, leading to scientific advances that are helping to enhance their value.
Interpretation centers and site museums: the key role of the INAH in modernizing these sites.
There are many pre-Hispanic sites in Mexico. Many of them are enhanced by interpretation areas and archaeological museums managed by theNational Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). The INAH manages a network of 162 museums and museographic spaces, and is responsible for scientific research (archaeology, anthropology, history and paleontology), protection, conservation, cultural dissemination, animation and territorial coordination of museums (31 regional museums).
In addition to administering the National Museum of Anthropology (see below), INAH manages site museums such as those at Chichén Itzá, Tulum and Teotihuacán.
Teotihuacán is a UNESCO-listed site, with 3 museums alone, which are currently being renovated in the run-up to the 2026 Football World Cup, organized by Mexico, the United States and Canada. Such transformations open the way to new forms of museography and mediation to better enhance the richness of these collections for a wide range of audiences.
The development of these mediation systems is based on a digital policy implemented many years ago by the INAH to digitize the collections of the museums and sites under its responsibility, for the purposes of study, conservation and mediation.. 500,000 objects have already been digitized, and numerous 3D and 360° tours are now available. In addition to the development of scientific and mediation resources, this kind of investment in digitization enables the creation of other, more event-driven applications. This is the case of the Noches de Kukulkan at Chichén Itzád, whose videomapping show was developed from a 3D model made available by INAH.
Promotional events: videomapping to create new approaches to Mexican archaeological sites.
Regularly visited by a large number of Mexicans, these sites are also the focus of development projects involving digital creativity.. This is the case, for example, of a project by the Mexican studio AuraLab (VR and videomapping) on the ancient Mayan complex of Chichén Itzá (2.1 million visitors in 2025 – Source: INAH).
Using light, sound and narrative imagery, Aura Lab created a 30-minute video-mapping show on the Kukulkan pyramid, an emblematic site in Mexico, to symbolically reveal its rituals, its relationship with time and cosmology, its mythologies and the great historical moments it may have undergone. Las noches de Kukulkan runs from Wednesday to Sunday and has attracted some 18,000 visitors in 2025.
These different creative and digital approaches are also increasingly developed in a variety of other Mexican museums (decorative arts, history, society or science).
In museums: from experimentation to diversification of mediation approaches.
During this week of professional delegation, we met many museums with diverse collections: Musée d’Anthropologie (with its magnificent pre-Hispanic collections), Musée Frantz Mayer (a private museum dedicated to decorative arts, photography, architecture and contemporary art), Musée Mémoire et Tolérance (a social museum), Universum, Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle and Palalote (science centers). Each of these museums is developing very different approaches in terms of collaboration and digital technology: experiments, augmented tours or dedicated spaces.
The Musée national d’Anthropologie: towards a policy of experimentation?
Founded in 1964, the museum is dedicated to the archaeology and history of pre-Hispanic civilizations. It welcomes over 5 million visitors a year. Its visitors, many of whom are Mexican, are attracted by the wealth of pre-Hispanic collections in this magnificent museum. In addition to a permanent collection of over 60,000 objects, the museum, with the active support of INAH, is developing a number of ambitious temporary exhibitions.
In terms of mediation, digital technology has very little presence in the museum. An introductory room has been developed to put the museum’s collections into perspective. It mainly uses models, artifacts and a short video projection. Experiments with virtual reality have also been carried out in the past, but the resources deployed (2 VR headsets freely available to visitors) have not been sufficiently convincing to create a model. Numerous projects have yet to be developed to accompany visitors to this museum, in addition to the richness of this itinerary and the support provided by the establishment’s mediators.
On the other hand, Mexican science centers use a particularly wide range of digital creativity: dome projections, interactive devices, immersive rooms (projections or virtual reality).
Papalote – Museo del Niño: turning digital creativity into an event
This children’s museum was created over 32 years ago, in 1993, in Mexico City’s Chapultepec Park (2 other museums were opened with Papalote in Mexico, in Monterrey and Cuernavaca). With 30 million visitors since its opening, it is the most visited children’s museum in Latin America.
Having welcomed several million visitors since its inception, the 25,000 sq. m. site offers a wide range of experiences for young audiences, from infancy to adulthood. Dedicated to the environment and biodiversity, urban planning and health, this private museum has developed most of its spaces and mediation systems in close collaboration with companies. Numerous international partnerships have also been forged with museums dedicated to American children (in Minnesota, Brooklyn, New York and Ontario) to develop the museum’s programming.
In terms of digital technology, there is very little of it in the course, to leave room for tangible, sensitive and material mediation through observation, experimentation and manipulation. Digital creativity is therefore welcomed in dedicated spaces such as the museum’s planetarium.
In addition to an IMAX cinema (77 films programmed and more than 18 million spectators over the past 30 years), Papalote has a planetarium (22 titles projected, attracting more than 9 million spectators over the past 20 years). The museum offers a range of events featuring high-quality artistic and creative projects. Such as the DomoArte Mexicoa fulldome festival curated by French artist Jérémy Oury.
This approach to digital creativity in temporary dedicated spaces is also adopted by Mexico City’s Natural History Museum. The latter, however, makes regular use of digital mediation devices within its permanent exhibits.
Mexico City’s Natural History Museum: a journey between immersion and interactivity.
Located not far from Papalote, Mexico City’s Natural History Museum was established in 1986. 10 years of renovation since 2017 have been necessary to create a high-quality journey through the emblematic architecture of this place designed by architect Leónides Guadarrama.
The museum’s renovated layout features a number of different spaces, each of which offers a rich tour of collections brought to life through a more open scenography, enhanced by numerous re-enactment scenes, dioramas and interactive digital devices (designed by the Mexican scenography agency Siete colores). These digital devices are based on the principles described by Jorge Wasenberg: manual interactivity (Hands on), intellect (Minds on) and cultural emotion (Hearts on).
The museum’s renovated itinerary.
In addition to this tour, the museum has also created an immersive room to host programs such as One World, One Chance produced by National Geographic and Oasis immersion. Another immersive program was also presented thanks to funding from the museum’s endowment fund (Fideicomiso) and the Fund for the Preservation of the Seas (Fomares): the Oceanic Symphony. This experience allows visitors to immerse themselves in the ocean depths, listening to the songs of whales. These different programs help to raise awareness among museum visitors of a range of social and environmental issues.
The recently-renovated Muséum has made use of a number of digital devices, as has the Universum science center, which has enhanced its visitor experience with a range of complementary digital cultural offerings.
Universum: diversifying approaches to scientific mediation.
Located in Mexico City’s sprawling university campusUniversum is the science museum of the UNAM (National Autonomous University of Mexico), opened in 1992. With more than 25,000 m² (including 12,000 dedicated to permanent exhibitions) and over 23,000 visitors per month, is one of Latin America’s most important science centers.
A pioneer in narrative experiences, Universum offers temporary and permanent exhibitions on themes as varied as biodiversity, mathematics, chemistry, the universe and artificial intelligence. The area dedicated to biodiversity, for example, provides a better understanding of the changes taking place in Mexico City, with a dynamic map of the city projected on the floor and a range of information on the walls relating to the themes covered in this room. A model of Mexico City’s environment can also be used to video-project a range of information on the city’s urban evolution and its impacts.
2 mediation approaches to the impact of Mexico City, one of the world’s most polluted cities, on its environment.
Universum also boasts a planetarium offering high-quality programs, as well as a room equipped with 20 virtual reality headsets for discovering a range of programs dedicated to the environment and the animal world, developed and made available by Paris-based company Wild Immersion.
In addition to museums dedicated to the sciences, some of Mexico City’s social museums also feature digital mediation in their permanent and temporary exhibits. Such is the case of the Memory and Tolerance Museum.
The Memory and Tolerance Museum: digital technology at the heart of social dynamics.
Created in 2010, under the impetus of the “Memoria y Tolerancia” association, the museum is a private museum supported by numerous patrons, with a permanent exhibition and two temporary spaces. It seeks to raise awareness of the need to respect human rights, remember genocides (particularly the Holocaust) and fight indifference and discrimination.
At the time of our visit, an Infancias en silencio exhibition was dedicated to violence against children and teenagers in Mexico, with the aim of breaking the silence and promoting prevention. Spaces were dedicated to oral testimonies calling on people to speak out. Others were dedicated to Fake News (produced in association with Meta and Tiktok), spaces that witnessed unprecedented models of collaboration with GAFAMs to prevent risks linked to the use of social networks.
Among the forthcoming exhibitions currently being installed, one will be devoted to soccer in connection with the World Cup, to remind us of the values of tolerance and respect that this sport can bring to the Mexican population.
This panorama of some of Mexico’s museums highlights a wealth of forms of collaboration and approaches. Some, like the Museum of Anthropology, are experimenting with new approaches, while others, such as the Museum of Natural History and the Museum of Memory and Tolerance, are renovating their exhibition spaces to introduce new, more interactive and immersive approaches to mediation. Some see this as an opportunity to develop temporary projects or events with a range of artistic or entrepreneurial partners. Whatever the approach, this diversity also demonstrates the existence of a particularly dense creative ecosystem.
A booming creative and entrepreneurial ecosystem.
With such a rich cultural offering right in the heart of Mexico City, a number of creative studios have sprung up to support the development of these museums’ digital projects, or to create their own immersive rooms. This ecosystem also benefits from its proximity to the United States, where, despite the stance taken by the current American government, people still manage to work in Las Vegas, Dallas or Austin.
Creative studios showcase their know-how
Spurred on by various creative studios and entrepreneurs, a number of immersive rooms have sprung up in Mexico City in recent years. These spaces develop their own projects or join networks to acquire and distribute programs.
Alter CDMX: between corporate events and the general public.
Alter CDMX is one of these spaces developed by Mexican creative studio AlgoStudio. Recovered 2 years ago by the studio, this space can host numerous corporate events. Recently for Audi, the creative studio designed and developed a dedicated course for the brand’s employees and customers.
Alter CDMX also hosts projects for the general public. This was the case with the exhibition ” Frida Kahlo: The Immersive Biography “, designed by Barcelona studio Layers of Reality, adapted by AlgoStudio and distributed here.
Having tested the use of this immersive experience, the studio is also keen to develop its own immersive experiences. In the very near future, for example, AlgoStudio intends to develop an exhibition on soccer in connection with the World Cup, in order to increase the number of visitors to their venue and anchor it more firmly in the cultural and leisure activities of Mexico City’s residents. Just as many museums and immersive rooms are preparing to host this global event in a country where soccer is omnipresent!
Alter thus represents a fine example of showroom-style, made-to-measure solutions for companies, while at the same time combining this model with the deployment of catalog and made-to-measure programs for the general public.
Inspace / Sensea: towards the creation of two immersive rooms with distinct programming.
In Mexico City, another venue recently opened: Inspace. Operated by the IntusTV studio, it offers digital artistic creations distinct from the large-scale immersive exhibitions distributed internationally.
However, this model is also enriched by numerous collaborations with companies. As with Alter, Inspace is primarily a space for experimentation and showcasing for companies, while at the same time being open to the general public (albeit on a minority basis). To accelerate these hybrid collaborations, Inspace will be moving very soon, leaving the running of its space to Sensea Immersive.
Sensea Immersive is resolutely focused on the general public, and operates various immersive exhibits in close collaboration with national and international distribution networks such as the Italian Crossmedia Group, theImmersive Center Alliance (launched in 2024 at NUMIX LAB Germany) and theMexican Association of Museums and Science and Technology Centers (ammccyt).
Beyond these few emblematic examples of studios that have become broadcasters, the Mexican creative ecosystem is rapidly taking shape.
Towards the emergence of a structured creative ecosystem
As part of Expertise France’s cooperation with Monterrey’s TEC University, and in connection with the French delegation to Mexico City, TEC’s Master in Digital Art and New Media has developed a pilot project comparing immersive creation ecosystems in France and Mexico. This part of the article reports on the excellent speech given by Enrique García, Head of the Master nuevos medios y artes digitales, at the Franco-Mexican forum organized during the delegation (work in progress – many thanks to him for sharing).
The development of numerous festivals and support programs to develop the production and distribution of Mexican creative studios.
In addition to the immersive cinemas, no fewer than 27 festivals have been counted by the TEC de Monterrey, promoting Mexican audiovisual and digital works and productions.
These festivals are dedicated to film and audiovisual, music, video games or digital art and creation. While the majority of these festivals are concentrated in Mexico City, a number of others are springing up in other regions of Mexico, financed by both the public and private sectors. These include Mutek MX, FILUX and VR Fest MX.)
Fifteen or so funds and financing programs help these studios to develop, whether through production, residencies or training.
Territorial hubs are also supporting this structuring. This is the case, for example, of the Ciudad Creativa Digital, the ICC hub for the Guadalajara region, which includes the Jalisco Open Platform for Innovation and Development, which aims to train, create links and foster innovation in the Guadalajara region.
The emergence of talented studios and creators.
The structuring of such an ecosystem favors the emergence and consolidation of numerous companies in Mexico. Some of these, such as AuraLab and AlgoStudio, have already been mentioned in this article.
To this first list are added many other talented studios such as Medusa Lab, (immersive and digital devices in the museum sector) CAMMARQ (working on the digitization of numerous heritage sites in Mexico), Bitchi Soul (developing mixed reality solutions), Linea 2 (animation studio) or Josué Ibanez (former co-founder of the Cocolab studio, talented artist regularly collaborating with Meowolf, the Las Vegas Sphere, etc.).
The diversity of these examples demonstrates the creative dynamism of a city like Mexico City, and its ability to spread the word. Mexico is a fascinating territory, as much for its past as for its capacity for innovation, and its developments are particularly inspiring. Thank you to Expertise France, the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, the French Institute, the French Embassy in Mexico and the French Institute of Latin America for making this delegation possible. Thanks also to the participants in this delegation.
Antoine ROLAND