We won! The digital presence of the Crafts Museum Ovelgönne is the winner of the DigAMus Award 2026 in the category Small Budget. The result was announced at the award ceremony on 9 November 2026 at the German Mining Museum in Bochum. Museum director Arman Džaferagić joined by video conference.
The DigAMus Award puts good digital museum projects in the spotlight. We are delighted that the choice fell on our website, because it was built entirely by volunteers: a team that puts time, knowledge and heart into our museum alongside work and everyday life.
What was awarded
The award went to the digital presence of the Crafts Museum Ovelgönne. The website has been online since June 2026, in German and English. It shows 3D models of digitised objects and a simulator for the cobbler's globe. At ten large working machines in the museum garden, a QR code opens the object guide, no app needed. And a participation area invites you to share objects and family memories and to help decide what gets digitised next.
Our old website no longer met the standards of a modern museum, and we had no budget for an agency. So we took on the redesign ourselves: a volunteer team together with the museum management.
We were nominated in two categories: Innovative Technologies and Small Budget. In our application we summed it up like this: "The project shows what quality of digital engagement a small museum, run by volunteers and led by a full-time director, can achieve by its own efforts."
LEADER laid the foundation
The 3D digitisation on which our digital offering is built was made possible by LEADER. With the support of the European funding programme and the Local Action Group "Wesermarsch in Bewegung" we were able to set up our own 3D digitisation department in 2023. Since then we have been capturing objects of regional craft and everyday history digitally, in our own house and with our own equipment.
The new website is the next step of that project and opens our digital collection to everyone: what we digitise in the museum, you can now view, rotate and explore from home.
The road to the award
- 2023LEADER funding: we set up our own 3D digitisation department.
- June 2026The new website goes online, in German and English.
- October 2026Our digital presence makes the shortlist: 19 of 71 submissions.
- 9 November 2026Award ceremony at the German Mining Museum Bochum: we win.
Thank you
This award is not ours alone. We say thank you:
- To the juryand the entire DigAMus team for the award and for appreciating our work.
- To our teamThe volunteers and the museum management: without you, this website would not exist.
- To everyonewho voted for us.
- To LEADERand the Local Action Group "Wesermarsch in Bewegung", who made our 3D digitisation possible.
About the DigAMus Award
The award
- Since 2020awarded every year
- 4 + 1main categories and a special prize
- Expert jurydecides on the awards
Since 2020 the DigAMus Award has honoured outstanding digital projects by museums in the German-speaking world. It is run by experts from museums, communications and technology who volunteer their time so that good digital work becomes visible, even when it was created with few resources. Every year an independent expert jury honours projects in four main categories and one special prize.
The award works together with the German Museums Association and is supported by NFDI4Culture, the consortium for research data infrastructure on material and immaterial cultural assets. The ceremony took place on 9 November 2026 at the German Mining Museum in Bochum, as part of the NFDI4Culture Community Plenary.
Come and visit
The website tells the story of the museum, but you can only experience it with us: in the house, in the museum garden and at the large working machines where a QR code opens the object guide.
For the media
Are you reporting on the award or on our museum? We look forward to your enquiry. We provide images of the museum and the website on request. Your contact is Arman Džaferagić, Museum Director.
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More about the project
Frequently asked questions
What did the Crafts Museum Ovelgönne win?
The digital presence of the Crafts Museum Ovelgönne is a winner of the DigAMus Award 2026 in the category Small Budget.
Who decides on the awards?
An independent expert jury. The online vote during the shortlist phase was only an additional aid in the event of a tie.
When and where was the DigAMus Award 2026 presented?
The ceremony took place on 9 November 2026 at the German Mining Museum in Bochum, as part of the NFDI4Culture Community Plenary.
Is there prize money?
No. The DigAMus Award is a purely volunteer initiative. What counts is visibility and networking within the museum landscape.