Interesting food for thought, and the only thing I might add to the
discussion is rather than "museum folk" sitting and waiting for "eager
to learn" visitor to ask questions- I might propose that perhaps the
"eager to learn" visitor- while eager, may not know the questions to
ask, or may not be familiar with the language of any given subject. In
other words, while they might be interested, they may not know the rules
of the game. Tough to play a board game if you don't know the rules.
On the flip side, us "museum folk" have, at times, handed down
information "about that which they've been entrusted to care for" to
said "eager to learn" visitor as if we automatically know what those
visitors want and/or need.
As the "experts", we are entrusted to not only collect, and preserve
art/objects/ideas but also interpret them to the public. Within this,
have we been asking the visitor what their interest is? (Within the
stories and mission any given institution tells.) Are we as
institutions, providing the right service, and the information that our
constituencies are wanting? What does the customer want to learn, and
how can we follow the visitor interest within the mission of our
institutions?
Just some random thoughts on a Monday. Good stuff to discuss all the
way around.
Dan Schoeneberg
Dan Schoeneberg
Historic Area Manager
1886 Liberty Corner
13400 Allisonville Road
Fishers, Indiana
46038
[log in to unmask]
www.connerprairie.org
www.whiteriverfolkfestival.org
www.ruralhistoryproject.org
>>> [log in to unmask] 08/09/04 11:22AM >>>
Hi Indigo,
Generally, a well-written op-ed piece. Though I cannot disagree more.
You, after all, are not an average visitor.
Sadly, you fall in step with your criticism. To be specific, while
you
state at the beginning ("it's unfair to stereotype what the
museum-goers
want when they go to a museum"), you stereotype art museum workers at
the end ("I just think that museum folk often take for granted that
which they've been entrusted to care for").
Some artwork here has extended labels which are about the artist
(approximately half the text) and about the artwork (approximately
half
the text). Some artwork doesn't get an extended label as there is
limited time I can devote to such research and writing when
exhibitions
must be developed and hung, educational programs must be developed,
tours led, meetings attended, telephone calls returned, letters
written
and mailed, grants completed, etc.
"Museum folk" are people, with reasonable limitations. One of those
reasonable limitations is presenting information for the average
visitor. The average visitor spends little time looking at each
artwork, and significantly less than half visitors read labels. So,
if
the average museum-goer doesn't even care about the artist's name or
the
title of the artwork, what should make "museum folk" think the average
museum-goer cares about the complicated symbolism to which you refer?
Eager-to-learn visitors can approach "museum folk" and ask for more
information. For me, that would be a highlight of my day, my week, my
month!
Sincerely,
j heuman, Education Curator
Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art
Utah State University
4020 Old Main Hill
Logan, UT 84322-4020
t 435.797.0165 | f 435.797.3423
Education costs money, but then so does ignorance.
Sir Charles Moser, b. 1922
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