Open Forum

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

Hi Jane, great topic,

1) I think that experience and memory are linked. If the experience is good then the memory will be positive. I don't think there is a way to create a memory without first having an extraordinary experience. As an example Recent studies have shown that when people take pictures of things, they have a harder time remembering what they saw. I think the reason is that they are focused on taking the picture versus having the experience. The perfect museum would be so relevant, dynamic, and engaging that no one would take out there cameras, because they would be afraid to miss something amazing.

2) When I used to work in direct contact with the visitor the thing they seemed to desire most was a "real" experience. The visitor today is pretty savvy and they have a good sense for fakery. If there is a fire, it better be a real fire; they don't want resin casts of bones they want real bones! Or, if there are resin casts, they want a reason.
I think the driving motivator for this pursuit of "real" is the fact that so much entertainment and media has no relationship to the actual world. People love to live in fantasies, but museums seem to be a bastion of solid fact without the filters. I'm not sure that I would call this a desire for respite, because I think people genuinely love to be entertained with virtual worlds, but it's not the only thing they love. I butchered a goose on site once, and one of the visitors took me aside after the demonstration and said, "Wow, thank you, I wasn't expecting this place to be so real." That shows me that people have come to expect things to be watered down or faked for ease; we can wow them with reality.

-------------------------------------------
Steven Prokopchak
Associate Producer
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Williamsburg VA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

Thank you for the thoughtful responses.I was intrigued by the link Steven Prokopchak pointed to about how fixating on taking photographs can actually interfere with building memories of the event you are experiencing. Having taught photography and served as a professional photographer, my sense was always that participating in the event and documenting the event were very different and each engaged different parts of the brain. This was my instinct. For example, cooking a meal is completely different than eating a meal although you are both experiencing the meal. I am delighted to have the research that backs up that instinct. Thank you, Steven.

Interestingly, I recently read in Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman, (2013) which suggested that if a person had the choice of having a great experience but would have no memory of it, would s/he actually go through with the experience. Study participants said, no. (I apologize to Kahneman for brutally summarizing his chapter on this topic). So, my take away--but I'd like others' thoughts--is that people crave ways to capture and share their memories. I think this helps explain the trends of things such as "selfies," or purchasing the photos of your family going down the slide as you exit the water park. Yet, as Steven points out, if you are behind the viewfinder taking the photos, you miss part of the experience. So, how can these two conflicting components of living vs immortalizing the experience be resolved?

And, I also appreciate bringing the concept of "real" into the conversation regarding museum experiences. Is that what the visitor is truly seeking? Authenticity? A sensory richness that cannot be experienced on a screen?

Thoughts?
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC.
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 01:06 PM
From: Steven Prokopchak
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

Hi Jane, great topic,

1) I think that experience and memory are linked. If the experience is good then the memory will be positive. I don't think there is a way to create a memory without first having an extraordinary experience. As an example Recent studies have shown that when people take pictures of things, they have a harder time remembering what they saw. I think the reason is that they are focused on taking the picture versus having the experience. The perfect museum would be so relevant, dynamic, and engaging that no one would take out there cameras, because they would be afraid to miss something amazing.

2) When I used to work in direct contact with the visitor the thing they seemed to desire most was a "real" experience. The visitor today is pretty savvy and they have a good sense for fakery. If there is a fire, it better be a real fire; they don't want resin casts of bones they want real bones! Or, if there are resin casts, they want a reason.
I think the driving motivator for this pursuit of "real" is the fact that so much entertainment and media has no relationship to the actual world. People love to live in fantasies, but museums seem to be a bastion of solid fact without the filters. I'm not sure that I would call this a desire for respite, because I think people genuinely love to be entertained with virtual worlds, but it's not the only thing they love. I butchered a goose on site once, and one of the visitors took me aside after the demonstration and said, "Wow, thank you, I wasn't expecting this place to be so real." That shows me that people have come to expect things to be watered down or faked for ease; we can wow them with reality.

-------------------------------------------
Steven Prokopchak
Associate Producer
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Williamsburg VA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

Original Message------

Thank you for the thoughtful responses.I was intrigued by the link Steven Prokopchak pointed to about how fixating on taking photographs can actually interfere with building memories of the event you are experiencing. Having taught photography and served as a professional photographer, my sense was always that participating in the event and documenting the event were very different and each engaged different parts of the brain. This was my instinct. For example, cooking a meal is completely different than eating a meal although you are both experiencing the meal. I am delighted to have the research that backs up that instinct. Thank you, Steven.

Interestingly, I recently read in Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman, (2013) which suggested that if a person had the choice of having a great experience but would have no memory of it, would s/he actually go through with the experience. Study participants said, no. (I apologize to Kahneman for brutally summarizing his chapter on this topic). So, my take away--but I'd like others' thoughts--is that people crave ways to capture and share their memories. I think this helps explain the trends of things such as "selfies," or purchasing the photos of your family going down the slide as you exit the water park. Yet, as Steven points out, if you are behind the viewfinder taking the photos, you miss part of the experience. So, how can these two conflicting components of living vs immortalizing the experience be resolved?

And, I also appreciate bringing the concept of "real" into the conversation regarding museum experiences. Is that what the visitor is truly seeking? Authenticity? A sensory richness that cannot be experienced on a screen?

Thoughts?
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC.
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 01:06 PM
From: Steven Prokopchak
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

Hi Jane, great topic,

1) I think that experience and memory are linked. If the experience is good then the memory will be positive. I don't think there is a way to create a memory without first having an extraordinary experience. As an example Recent studies have shown that when people take pictures of things, they have a harder time remembering what they saw. I think the reason is that they are focused on taking the picture versus having the experience. The perfect museum would be so relevant, dynamic, and engaging that no one would take out there cameras, because they would be afraid to miss something amazing.

2) When I used to work in direct contact with the visitor the thing they seemed to desire most was a "real" experience. The visitor today is pretty savvy and they have a good sense for fakery. If there is a fire, it better be a real fire; they don't want resin casts of bones they want real bones! Or, if there are resin casts, they want a reason.
I think the driving motivator for this pursuit of "real" is the fact that so much entertainment and media has no relationship to the actual world. People love to live in fantasies, but museums seem to be a bastion of solid fact without the filters. I'm not sure that I would call this a desire for respite, because I think people genuinely love to be entertained with virtual worlds, but it's not the only thing they love. I butchered a goose on site once, and one of the visitors took me aside after the demonstration and said, "Wow, thank you, I wasn't expecting this place to be so real." That shows me that people have come to expect things to be watered down or faked for ease; we can wow them with reality.

-------------------------------------------
Steven Prokopchak
Associate Producer
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Williamsburg VA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

This is an interesting and relevant topic. For me what is at issue is the absolute proliferation of the use of photography as a means of experiencing something. It is one thing to encapsulate a moment, but another to encapsulate an entire experience through recording rather than experiencing. I also doubt the amount of time people spend actually reviewing these "recorded" memories. The motivation often seems based in ego whereby the photos are being taken so they can show someone else they have been there. It is not about the individuals actual experience.

This is a bit of an off-shoot, but I do recommend a series of essays by Susan Sontag entitled "On Photography." Though these essays were written in 1977 Sontag discusses ideas and concepts that I think are still relevant today. Sontag writes how the proliferation of photographic images establishes within people a "chronic voyeuristic relation" to the world around them and as a consequence the meaning of all events is leveled and made equal.

The essays are quite interesting.

Thanks for sharing a great topic and ideas.

Mark


-------------------------------------------
Mark Osterman
Guiding Programs Manager
Vizcaya Museum & Gardens
Miami FL
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-08-2014 11:40 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

Thank you for the thoughtful responses.I was intrigued by the link Steven Prokopchak pointed to about how fixating on taking photographs can actually interfere with building memories of the event you are experiencing. Having taught photography and served as a professional photographer, my sense was always that participating in the event and documenting the event were very different and each engaged different parts of the brain. This was my instinct. For example, cooking a meal is completely different than eating a meal although you are both experiencing the meal. I am delighted to have the research that backs up that instinct. Thank you, Steven.

Interestingly, I recently read in Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman, (2013) which suggested that if a person had the choice of having a great experience but would have no memory of it, would s/he actually go through with the experience. Study participants said, no. (I apologize to Kahneman for brutally summarizing his chapter on this topic). So, my take away--but I'd like others' thoughts--is that people crave ways to capture and share their memories. I think this helps explain the trends of things such as "selfies," or purchasing the photos of your family going down the slide as you exit the water park. Yet, as Steven points out, if you are behind the viewfinder taking the photos, you miss part of the experience. So, how can these two conflicting components of living vs immortalizing the experience be resolved?

And, I also appreciate bringing the concept of "real" into the conversation regarding museum experiences. Is that what the visitor is truly seeking? Authenticity? A sensory richness that cannot be experienced on a screen?

Thoughts?
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC.
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 01:06 PM
From: Steven Prokopchak
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

Hi Jane, great topic,

1) I think that experience and memory are linked. If the experience is good then the memory will be positive. I don't think there is a way to create a memory without first having an extraordinary experience. As an example Recent studies have shown that when people take pictures of things, they have a harder time remembering what they saw. I think the reason is that they are focused on taking the picture versus having the experience. The perfect museum would be so relevant, dynamic, and engaging that no one would take out there cameras, because they would be afraid to miss something amazing.

2) When I used to work in direct contact with the visitor the thing they seemed to desire most was a "real" experience. The visitor today is pretty savvy and they have a good sense for fakery. If there is a fire, it better be a real fire; they don't want resin casts of bones they want real bones! Or, if there are resin casts, they want a reason.
I think the driving motivator for this pursuit of "real" is the fact that so much entertainment and media has no relationship to the actual world. People love to live in fantasies, but museums seem to be a bastion of solid fact without the filters. I'm not sure that I would call this a desire for respite, because I think people genuinely love to be entertained with virtual worlds, but it's not the only thing they love. I butchered a goose on site once, and one of the visitors took me aside after the demonstration and said, "Wow, thank you, I wasn't expecting this place to be so real." That shows me that people have come to expect things to be watered down or faked for ease; we can wow them with reality.

-------------------------------------------
Steven Prokopchak
Associate Producer
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Williamsburg VA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

I am often a photographer and cinematographer at special events and yes, I sometimes feel I miss the full impact of the experience because I am focused on getting the shot and having it be something meaningful. Museums today are expected to deliver an experience of value that enriches the lives of the viewer. Whether its strictly education, entertainment or as some say infotainment we want to be inspired as well. One way this dilemma of immersion in the experience and taking it home with you has been somewhat bridged with the GoPro camera. It can attach to the viewer in a number of different ways and be set to take automatic photos and with its wide lens the viewer doesn't have to miss so much of the experience, The camera does have its limitations but its one way that gap has been bridged. (I am not connected with them in any way, I am a user though)

-------------------------------------------
Richard Bent
Sr. Manager of Communications 
Richard Allen Productions
Laguna Niguel CA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-08-2014 11:40 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

Thank you for the thoughtful responses.I was intrigued by the link Steven Prokopchak pointed to about how fixating on taking photographs can actually interfere with building memories of the event you are experiencing. Having taught photography and served as a professional photographer, my sense was always that participating in the event and documenting the event were very different and each engaged different parts of the brain. This was my instinct. For example, cooking a meal is completely different than eating a meal although you are both experiencing the meal. I am delighted to have the research that backs up that instinct. Thank you, Steven.

Interestingly, I recently read in Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman, (2013) which suggested that if a person had the choice of having a great experience but would have no memory of it, would s/he actually go through with the experience. Study participants said, no. (I apologize to Kahneman for brutally summarizing his chapter on this topic). So, my take away--but I'd like others' thoughts--is that people crave ways to capture and share their memories. I think this helps explain the trends of things such as "selfies," or purchasing the photos of your family going down the slide as you exit the water park. Yet, as Steven points out, if you are behind the viewfinder taking the photos, you miss part of the experience. So, how can these two conflicting components of living vs immortalizing the experience be resolved?

And, I also appreciate bringing the concept of "real" into the conversation regarding museum experiences. Is that what the visitor is truly seeking? Authenticity? A sensory richness that cannot be experienced on a screen?

Thoughts?
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC.
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 01:06 PM
From: Steven Prokopchak
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

Hi Jane, great topic,

1) I think that experience and memory are linked. If the experience is good then the memory will be positive. I don't think there is a way to create a memory without first having an extraordinary experience. As an example Recent studies have shown that when people take pictures of things, they have a harder time remembering what they saw. I think the reason is that they are focused on taking the picture versus having the experience. The perfect museum would be so relevant, dynamic, and engaging that no one would take out there cameras, because they would be afraid to miss something amazing.

2) When I used to work in direct contact with the visitor the thing they seemed to desire most was a "real" experience. The visitor today is pretty savvy and they have a good sense for fakery. If there is a fire, it better be a real fire; they don't want resin casts of bones they want real bones! Or, if there are resin casts, they want a reason.
I think the driving motivator for this pursuit of "real" is the fact that so much entertainment and media has no relationship to the actual world. People love to live in fantasies, but museums seem to be a bastion of solid fact without the filters. I'm not sure that I would call this a desire for respite, because I think people genuinely love to be entertained with virtual worlds, but it's not the only thing they love. I butchered a goose on site once, and one of the visitors took me aside after the demonstration and said, "Wow, thank you, I wasn't expecting this place to be so real." That shows me that people have come to expect things to be watered down or faked for ease; we can wow them with reality.

-------------------------------------------
Steven Prokopchak
Associate Producer
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Williamsburg VA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

Dear Jane:  I think these are great questions.  In terms of the first, I don't think they are mutually exclusive.  It depends on the person's past history, experience, intention, and the nature of the exhibit itself. I think that many people will find their experience meaningful if they interact somewhat with the exhibit.  One is a take-away, whether it is a picture they took of a piece, a handout, a sketch, a book or artifact that they have bought at the museum store.  Another is whether they have interacted with someone appropriate while viewing.  I remember reading a study in Museum Anthropology some years back.  Briefly, this museum mounted an exhibit of indigenous culture.  The museum had made sure that it had involved the local community in the project.  Members of that community had known about the participation and had toured the exhibit later.  They did not remember the introductory labels that said that they exhibit was prepared with the help of the community.  There were anthropologists acting as researchers about the exhibit. When the people interacted with them, they had their attention focused on the exhibit. Personal interaction helps.  
      I can give you a personal example.  One of my favorite museums is The Plantation Museum in Pearl City, outside of Honolulu.  The Museum presents examples of dwellings of people from different ethnic groups who did rural and agricultural work on the Islands. The times I have been there, I had a docent take me around. The docent was always an older person who had  been a member of one of those ethnic groups.  My interaction with her or him always made it memorable. I could ask additional questions.  Moreover, one time there was appropriate food samples available at the end.  I can still remember my conversations and my interaction.  

-------------------------------------------
Richard Zimmer
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------

I often think about the photograph/experience balance. Museums offer many unique photographic opportunities, and of course, a wealth of first-hand experiences. For me personally, I feel most content with my museum visits when I take time to focus solely on my photos, then put the camera away completely for the rest of the visit. I think a balance between memory and experience can be achieved. 

-------------------------------------------
Allison Ramsey
Woodbridge VA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2014 09:11 AM
From: Jane Mason
Subject: Museum Visitor Experience

I am working on a project for a client examining expectations of a museum experience. I have a couple of questions: 1) Is the memory of the experience or the experience itself more important? 2) In today's world with visitors suffering from "21st Century Fatigue" and weighing every out of home excursion against the "PJ Factor" (staying home in PJs and watching video games), do you believe they are visiting for respite and renewal more than they were 5 to 10 years ago?

Thank you!
-------------------------------------------
Jane Mason
Pres/CEO Watching Paint Dry, LLC
Museum Consultancy
janemmason123@gmail.com

Formerly VP Marketing & Communication
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland OH
-------------------------------------------