Hi Janelle et al.:

Do you share this same view about historic sites?  At Monticello: No point
having signageabout who lived there, right?  At the Vietnam War Memorial in
Washington: No point having a directory so that visitors can find a specific
name buried amongst the thousands?  At Gettysburg: Just a big open field . . .
no need for a sign, so people might just drive on by without knowing to stop?

This notion of 'intuitive learning' is a grand fantasy, as if the AVERAGE art
museum visitor experiences something more profound than utter frustration when
looking at much art without 'educational' devices.  Yes, one can enjoy a
Realist landscape (circa 1850s) without additional educational devices . . .
but what about multi-hued, abstract Tahitian landscapes by Gauguin (circa
1890s)?  Yes, portraits by Piero della Francesca are beautiful, luxurious
things . . . but isn't it nice to know who you're looking at?  And isn't it
nice to have an explanation of why Cubist portraits by Goerges Braque or
abstract portraits by Pablo Picasso feature misplaced eyes and noses?  Just
watch an audience with starry expressions when looking at glass by Dale
Chihuly, but total confusion when looking at minimal sculpture by Robert
Morris, and absolute disgust when looking at sculpture by Damian Hirst.

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that people - adults and chilren
alike - expect instant gratification . . . that the AVERAGE art museum visitor
looks at a painting or sculpture about 5 seconds?  (Is this the latest
statistic?)  The only way to get people to LOOK longer - so taht they do learn
something - is to provide MORE information, which is to say something
comprehensible to aid deeper understanding.

Educational devices can, for those who choose to read them, add to the
experience.  After all, it's not like curators and museum educators hold guns
to the visitors' heads and make them read labels and signs!  LOL!

Sincerely,

Jay Heuman
Assistant Curator of Education
Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art
t   435 797 0165
f   435 797 3423
e  [log in to unmask]
www.artmuseum.usu.edu

Education costs money, but then so does ignorance.
Sir Claus Moser (b. 1922)




>I'm not poo-pooing educational devices, but maybe we should also be
>teaching/showing our patrons how to have an aesthetic experience without
>needing to have a label.  My theory is that anyone can have an experience
>with any art, even if they have no background information: how does the work
>make them feel, does it remind them of something, what thoughts are they
>thinking while looking and why?  I sometimes feel that art makes them feel
>stupid because they "don't get it".  What's to get?  Can't it just be a
>personal experience?   Who says there is something to get?  Us?  I realize
>background info can give a deeper learning experience, but sometimes we
>forget about the simpler experiences we can have with art.
>Janelle Aieta
>Admin. Asst.
>Collections Management
>LACMA

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