Interview with Wendy Woon
September 2017
Interview with The Edward John Noble Foundation Deputy Director for Education, The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Wendy Woon
1. In your article, you mention that Alfred H. Barr, the first Director of MoMA, designed the museum as a laboratory for art education. As being the primary inspiration for MoMA’s Department of Education, would you please tell us about the educational tradition in MoMA?
The Museum of Modern Art has always been a laboratory for experimental programming with modern art, exhibition methods, and pedagogical methods to test and better understand the nature and value of experiences with art. The scope of educational experimentation ranged from programs for small children and youth to adults, including war veterans. From the beginning there was a commitment to inclusivity for people of all ages, abilities, races, and economic means in the educational initiatives. MoMA’s pioneering uses of technology, such as television, and the media expanded models of enjoying, understanding, and using modern art. This extended the mission nationally and globally, and continues through today.
The educational function of the Museum was distinguished from the curatorial function from the start. As early as 1931, an Education Committee was formed and, during this same year, the permanent educational charter was granted to the museum. By 1937, the “Educational Project” was established. Moreover, 2017 marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of MoMA’s Educational Project.
A pivotal report on the future of The Museum of Modern Art, the Packard Report (1936), squarely identified the central duality of MoMA’s DNA. The Packard Report also highlighted the complexity of the inherent paradox of a public cultural institution.
“What we are really confronted with is the need for two quite consciously and deliberately different kinds of enterprise; on the one hand, the search for what is best in Art according to the highest standards of critical discrimination, and, on the other hand, the provision of facilities for popular instruction in accordance with public need. These two objectives will at times seem mutually antagonistic, but in the long run I am convinced they will be found to complement and reinforce one another.”
From the 1940’s through 1960’s, MoMA embraced and championed the leadership role it played within the conversation, nationally and globally, about the value of art in people’s lives. All programming was considered “research” to better study and understand how to develop creativity in individuals through art experiences, with the larger goal of enhancing or “humanizing” society. The Museum played host to annual convenings of the National Committee on Art Education, focused on topics such as “Art Education and World Unity” (1949), with leading artists, professors, architects, and thinkers from varied disciplines. Furthermore, MoMA hosted over 110 exhibitions
between 1938 and 1998, which featured art education concepts. The exhibitions often included demonstrations of new pedagogical models or evidence-based research on creative development, which was documented in the artwork of people of all ages and abilities. Amateur artwork was fully embraced as part of the exhibition program, with particular attention to international exhibitions of art from various countries and, in particular, examination of human expression under the direst circumstance of World War II.
During the 1980s and early 90s MoMA Education pioneered a research-based approach to art education, “visual thinking” that, although not an approach used at MoMA today, it is used successfully in schools and museums elsewhere.
Building strong connections for the museum to its communities and neighborhoods through partnerships and exchange with schools, social service and healthcare have ensured that MoMA continue to remain relevant to New York City’s constituents of all ages and abilities.
Over the past ten years we’ve embraced an experimental, research-based approach to working as we plan and implement programs and resources. Developing a culture of curiosity, creativity and collaboration is ethos of the department has been my goal, and it has spread beyond the Education department as we collaborate regularly with curatorial and other colleagues across the museum.
Access, essentially removing barriers to participation, and Engagement, understanding the many ways that people learn and engage with art, artists and each other are core values and the research and experimentation provides us with real time data on how we are doing and what we could do better.
Recently I articulated these ways that we build on the history of experimental education at MoMA in our 80th year of what was originally conceived of as an experimental "educational project," I was thrilled to be able to share with you some of the key ways we continue to build on our past:
Developing innovative programs that pioneer new methods of engaging people with disabilities through art, and in doing so contribute to society in many, impactful ways;
Creating welcoming, well-designed spaces that invite people of all ages to learn and engage more deeply;
Experimenting with new models of teaching and learning that foster individual creativity and innovation, using qualitative and quantitative research to inform our practices and programs;
International leadership, sharing our innovative practices nationwide and worldwide, and learning from others through exchange; and
The one I'm most interested in further researching, a commitment to inclusion in audiences and teaching staff that echoes back to the early founding of the “Educational Project.’
2. As distinct from the idealist aesthetic and art philosophers who argued that art is an ethereal and transcendent thing and thus inaccessible to (common) sense, John Dewey2 conceptualized art as an experience by referring to its experiential and pragmatic roots. In this sense, how, do you think, the museums should be organized as the places where having experience of art is possible for the public?
That is a good question. MoMA was founded by Trustees who were incredibly supportive of Dewey and progressive educational models, and the primary mission was to help people “enjoy, understand and use the art of our time.” I’ve always loved that word “use” as it indicates integration into life, that art might have a role to play and a relevance in a personal way. What we do know about best learning experiences with art is that they are personal, that they build upon your own experience and knowledge.
Our visitor research indicates that people most want to know about artists inspiration and processes- which essentially humanizes or animates the object. We involve artists as much as possible in our programming, as they model ways of being and thinking that engage people. Whether it is a conversation we’re facilitating or actively engaging people in making or participating in an artists process, and hence developing their own creativity, it is always about experience.
For me the museum should be organized to recognize the public function - the real “product” of a museum is experiences with art, yet exhibitions are often considered the sole product of an institution. I think museums would be stronger, more nimble and informed if they organized themselves as laboratories continually informed by research on the nature of art experiences. As museum educators we constantly are looking to research not only within the museum but outside as well -how people learn, how the brain functions, how technologies are transforming the way people want to engage with culture, for example, moving away from consuming in the more traditional sense, to producing, collaborating on producing.
3. Public engagement and access seems to be the significant part of the institutional mission of the MoMA. You have particular programs for different parts of the society, such as families, children, the elderly and the people with disabilities. What is your social goals in connecting the wider public with the museum?
As mentioned, accessibility, removing barriers to participation has been key from the start. At any stage of life, we want MoMA to be “useful” and as people’s lives and circumstances change we want to still be a place that adds value to people’s lives. For example, the program we pioneered for people living with dementia and Alzheimer’s and their caregivers is important, and sharing that research and work with a local,national and global audience is simply what we should be doing to be relevant. In the past year we’ve been experimenting with a drop-in Open Art Space for LGBTQ youth because we feel that is an important audience and that experiences with art and artists and great educators can really add value to their lives and foster a community, at time when youth might feel isolated and unwelcome in their schools and communities.
4. You have so many innovative experiences in MoMA, such as MOMA Art Lab, MoMA Studio and Gallery Sessions. Would you please share with us some of your impressions about participants’ experiences you have noted or the feedback you have?Where to begin!
I remember the first MoMA Studio, and envisioning it with my colleague Pablo Helguera - the Bauhaus Lab. We had done some visitor research generally in the museum and 11% of visitors said they felt like making something after a visit I wasn’t surprised because I think that many people come to a museum for inspiration for their own lives, as well as for social reasons. That idea of engaging people with artists, their ideas and processes and also with other participants was key. In all the Studios we’ve involved contemporary artists, designer and architects responding to artists or exhibitions. We’ve learned a lot over the past years for example, if people were oriented to the studio space first, they stayed twice as long. In one studio, the average time spent was 54 minutes, which is much longer than people generally spend looking at art. Our goal is to take people deeper into the art and ideas, bringing their own knowledge, experience and creativity to the table. Museum gallery behavior in many ways limits the ways that people can learn and engage -looking and talking softly and not touching. We know that we learn through all of our senses and much of learning is personal and social. Allowing for opportunities to learn in other ways, to personalize the experience and to engage with others, their perspectives and ideas, only expands the visitor’s experience. I love it when I hear people say they came with one idea about something but left a bit transformed in their opinions, their creativity or just that they had fun and enjoying doing something new. With Gallery Session experimentation, we learned that people loved the unexpected encounter in the galleries - they felt like they had simply arrived at the right moment - and something wonderful and unexpected had had happened when they went to MoMA. I could go on and on!
5. Would you please briefly describe us the profile of 21st century museum visitor? Is she/he onsite or online?Well, I don’t know if there is one definition but I would say that they have access to information 24/7 as never before and increasingly it is visual. What we can add is helping to foster a sense of criticality more deeply engaging (longer and in more depth) with images, as they are powerful and can have social impact beyond face value.
I also think that analog experiences are equally important and I see digital only as a means to an experience rather than an end. In the past people wanted to use every shiny new tech product or service, but I always start from people, what they want to do, how they learn best and what really helps engage them with art, and equally what is appropriate and respectful of the art.
And, change - behaviors are changing rapidly and that’s why I really advocate for never ceasing to be curious about whether what you are planning to do for audience, be it an exhibition or a public program or digital experience requires that you continually do research to inform your decision making. What looks good and seems right today may change tomorrow!
6. What kind of strategies should today’s museums deploy in order to adapt themselves to the necessities of the digital age?
Partnerships - be selective but realize you can’t do it all. For example, we created online courses on a learning management system but later realized it made more sense for us to partner with Coursera and they have a robust infrastructure, network and incredible reach. Now the courses we create are free and we’ve gone from 5K students to over 300K in 180 countries worldwide. We could never do that on our own and we learn so much from them - they ahave incredible capacity to produce data that helps us understand how to improve teaching, learning and course development online-
(but we can also apply that knowledge to on site too) https://www.coursera.org/moma
7. What kind of educational practices do you suggest for the museum administrators and educators in Turkey that could inspire them for the orientation of the visitors to the museums?
I’m really interesting in experimental approaches but also looking how we might bring imagination and creativity into what we do. As a team we realized that the museum is a laboratory we can access anytime. We used our department meetings to go out and simple try new ideas in pairs, then we all reported back. Many of them were really out there imaginative things or things that we did with kids but it ended up that adults loved to participate just as much. So for example we can go out and experiment at any point in the day. I would say get out there talking with and trying new things with visitors. Listen, listen, listen. People bring incredible knowledge and experience to the museum. We need to recognize this valuable asset, honor it and make it visible. Also, observe and constantly test your assumptions about how people use museums and engage with art and artists’ ideas. What do they find interesting and inspiring and how do they use that experience in their lives.
Also, bring people in to review what you do. For example before we developed Prime Time, a program for older adults we brought in a team of 12 older adults aged 63-94 for a year to review everything we did and we got really amazing insights and that has helped us shape programs.
Right now we are about to do our biggest experiment yet. A cross departmental team (access, adult, interpretation and research and family program representatives) are working together to create our first MoMA Studio in a gallery space adjacent to the galleries (rather than in the Education Center where it is hard for visitors to find) The People’s Studio: Design, Experiment, Build (and we tested that title with random visitors!) https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/3835 will open in June and run through September. We’ve been working closely with curatorial colleagues, exhibit design, visitor services, library and archives and other colleagues to plan this space, and we honestly don’t know what will happen when we open but we will definitely learn from this and it will inform our next projects as the museum expands in 2019.
Finally, I really am interested in the use of imagination both in the design of education programs and fostering the imaginative skills of people visiting the museum. I use this article with my students and they found it particularly resonant. https://artmuseumteaching.com/2014/04/03/ invisiblepedagogies/
And I’ve also been very inspired by Reggio Emilia, the approach to early childhood education as I think it draws upon and fosters engagement with all the senses and the innate intelligences we are all born with but often “lose muscle tone” with because experiences become limited - in particular through formal education.
References
Jackie Armstrong, Deborah Howes & Wendy Woon, “Reinventing MoMA’s Education Programs for the 21st Century Visitor” In. Herminia Din & Steven Wu (Eds.), Digital Heritage And Culture: Strategy and Implementation. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing, 2015.
John Dewey, Art as Experience, New York: Perigee Books, 1980.
This text first appeared in the September 2017 issue of Artam Global Art.