Memorial Art Gallery
Exploring the role of art in museums: understanding visitor reactions to the National Anthem Exhibit
Role: Researcher and Statistician
Team: Hanna Felber, Maren Goldstein
Tasks: Survey, interview, literature review, statistical analysis
Duration: 15 weeks (September - December 2022)
Tools: Qualtrics, RStudio
Context
The Memorial Art Gallery (MAG), the University of Rochester’s art museum, partnered with the university’s Brain & Cognitive Sciences Department to explore how visitors perceive the National Anthem exhibit by artist Kota Ozawa. This exhibit features NFL athletes who engaged in peaceful on-field protests in 2016 to protest police brutality against people of color in the United States.
Our team was interested in investigating the broader role of art in museum spaces. Do museumgoers believe that controversial art belongs in museums? What factors influence shape visitors’ reactions to the National Anthem exhibit?
Approach
We developed and distributed a Qualtrics survey for museumgoers before and after their visit and conducted interviews with MAG staff to better understand curatorial intent. Analyzing the survey data in RStudio revealed that visitors’ perspective on art largely unchanged after viewing the exhibit, reinforcing existing beliefs. Many valued purposeful, thought-provoking art and responded positively to the exhibit, especially when visiting in groups or with a mindset of learning and reflection.
Survey questions
We surveyed visitors about their motivation for attending museums, perspectives on art, opinions on the National Anthem exhibit, demographic information, and prior museum experiences.
Additionally, we recorded how much time each visitor spent in the exhibit and the museum overall.
Key Insights
Stable attitudes
Visitors' general views on art did not change after visiting the museum, suggesting that the experience reinforced existing beliefs rather than shifting perspectives.
Value in purposeful art
Visitors largely believe that art should serve a purpose, provoke thought, and even be controversial. Those who see art as educational responded more positively to the National Anthem exhibit.
Positive reception of National Anthem exhibit
While museum staff view the exhibit as controversial in a productive way, most visitors did not find it controversial. Still, they appreciated it—especially when visiting in groups or with a mindset of learning and reflection—though some noted issues with disruptive sound from the exhibit.
What we learned
How to …
approach survey-based research.
develop insights from an analysis.
collaborate with community partners.
Future direction
In the future, we hope that MAG considers incorporating more purposeful and thought-provoking—potentially controversial—art into its exhibitions.
We also encourage further research on controversial art, especially in public or virtual spaces that can engage a broader and more diverse audience.
For future projects of this nature, we plan to conduct staff interviews before survey development to better inform our questions, dedicate more time to refining the survey itself, and include interviews with museum visitors and other key stakeholders.
Additionally, we’re interested in exploring future research that compares aesthetic and conceptual liking of art.
A special thank you to Dr. Nile Blunt, McPherson Director of Academic Programs at MAG, and our BCSC 205: Lab in Development and Learning professors Dr. Karl Rosengren and Dr. Daniel Mruzek.