I have never been a huge museum goer. Even when I lived in Paris, a hot bed of interesting museums, I only voluntarily went when there were photography exhibits that I knew I would enjoy. I have also never really thought about why I am not a huge museum goer–I just assumed I was not “of the type”–until reading “Curatorship as Social Practice”.

Most of my previous museum experiences are bland. I go to an exhibit, I look at some pieces that either hold my attention for a minute or two or do not. I glance over the plaque next to the piece, hoping for something that will contextualize the piece and draw me in–usually I am disappointed.

After reading “Curatorship as Social Practice”, I think I finally understand why I have, in the past, not enjoyed going to museums. When I look at a piece of art, I want to learn something new or understand something about life just a little bit better. The kind of photographers I enjoy most (Leon Gimpel, Diane Arbus, etc.) are the ones that make me feel like I understand humanity better when I look at their work. In the outdated “object-oriented” model of museums/curatorship, teaching the viewer about something was not the goal of an exhibit. It is exciting to me to read that the idea of museums and curatorship is changing to focus more on the people behind the objects being displayed. To me, half the interest of an object lies in the story of its creation (I happen to think this about movies as well–despite the fact that the object, or movie, tells a story on its own!). I hope that as museums allow the people-focused aspect of an object to shine through, I will enjoy the exhibits more and more!