Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine how viewers experienced the museum environments of two different Japanese collections, and to explore how these physical environments affected visitor meaning making. The two museum environments selected for the study were the Morikami Museum in Delray Beach, Florida and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. A phenomenological research methodology using qualitative data-gathering techniques and analysis was employed. Data-gathering involved the observation and description of the museum environments housing the Japanese collections, the observation of visitor behavior, including conversations, at the two research sites, and in-depth interviews with visitors. The analysis of the data revealed that, despite the differences between the two museum environments, most visitors aged 45 to 65 were engaged by the exhibitions at both museums and were able to largely satisfy their keen interest in Japanese art and culture. In addition, most had begun to develop their interest in Japanese art and culture prior to their visit, and incorporated their personal experiences, past memories, personal affection, and familiarity into their personal meaning making in these museum contexts. Features of the museum environments that enhance or detract from the visitors’ meaning making were identified. The proposed study provides a model for the phenomenological examination of personal meaning making in museums. It is hoped that this study will encourage museum educators, curators, designers, and directors to reconsider museum exhibitions and physical environments in order to facilitate the process of making meaning by visitors.
|
