Monday, September 27, 2010

Observational Blog 4

           People often go into a museum with certain expectations. Some could be positive but others could be negative as well. Someone who enjoys going to art museums and decided to visit a new one would have expectations from their previous experiences with art museums. They may expect the set up of the museum or the design of the exhibition to be similar, or the learning outcomes to meet their standards. On the other hand, a person who may have had one bad experience at an art museum, whether it is a group of noisy children distracting them or the text used too much technical jargon; they may anticipate their next visit to an art museum to be the same.
            Frequently visitors who have an idea of what their visit is going to be like they often mold their situation into fulfilling their suspicion. This is why it is often difficult to try please every visitor. If they do not come into the museum with an open mind, it is tricky to change their impression. Although it is not impossible by any means to impress a person with preset notions of the museum and change their opinion of museums in general. If a person who does not generally enjoy art museums because of a past experience or they feel they do not understand what they are seeing, they may feel as if they will not learn anything. They may become persuaded to visit an art museum with a friend. This person is coming with the idea that they probably won’t enjoy their experience. Chances are no matter what exhibits are on display; they won’t get much out of the visit. However, this could be a great opportunity for the museum and the person’s friend to open the eyes of the visitor.
            A museum tries to connect to each person that comes through the door but it is not always possible. The museum tries to teach people about the exhibits on display with some degree of authority but use lay-people terms. Interactive displays are helpful in reaching out to people who are more visual learners. Video clips can also affect a visitor’s experience because they can see what is happening in 3D and they can learn something new. Interactive methods such as these may help to connect with people who have high expectations for their visit.

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