Ethnographer: Brittany Concannon Location: New Museum (235 Bowery, New York, NY, 10002) Date: Saturday, December 3, 2016 Time: 3:00 P.M. - 5:30 P.M. (2.5 hours)

1. NEW MUSEUM
FIELD NOTESV
Ethnographer: Brittany Concannon
Date: Saturday, December 3rd 2016
Time: 3:00 P.M. – 5:30 P.M. (2.5 hours)

2. 3:00P.M.
Formylastobservation,Idecidetovisit
theNewMuseumwithoneofmyclose
friendsinordertogainanewperspectiveon
theexhibitionsthatIhavealreadyviewedtwo
ormoretimes. Wewaitinlineforaboutten
minutes,discussingmy researchaboutthe
museumaswellassharingupdatesabout
howwespentThanksgiving. Likethose
discussedinmyindividualmemo,someof
ourconversationsmaybeclassifiedas
hearingliveswhenwespeakofholiday
celebrations,whileothersmaybesortedas
rhythmsofconversations,sinceourmutual
objectivesofspendingtimewitheachother
whilegatheringresearchformyproject
influences thecontentofourconversations.
Uponentering,wewalkstraighttotheDiary
ofaMadmanwherewespottwochildren
whoarewatchingthevideocliptitled“Trash.”
Whenthetitleofthefilmappearsprojected
infrontofametalgarbagecan,theboywith
theglassesyells,“Look,that’swhyit’scalled
trash!”

3. 3:18P.M.
Aswewalkaround,myfriendwhohas
livedinNewYorkallofherlifeidentifiesthe
locationofwhereeachvideoclipwasfilmed,
exceptforonethatshedescribesaslooking
“likeajungleinNewYorksomehow.” Ialso
sharewhatIlearnedabouttheartist’s
thoughtprocessfromthetour. Thisreminds
meof theeducationalideathat
heterogeneousgroupsarebeneficialforall
learners. Sincewebothpossessdifferent
typesofknowledge,weareabletoassist
eachotherinunderstandingtheartpiecesto
agreaterextentthanwecouldhave
accomplishedonourown. Asimilarsituation
occurswithinthefirstpartofthePixelForest
wheremyfriendpresentsinformationon
pastNewMuseumexhibitionsthatshehas
visited,whileIhighlightconnectionsthatI
havenoticedbetweendifferentcomponents
oftheexhibition. Bythetimethatwemove
tothethirdfloorwiththedanglinglights,we
havedevelopedatleasttwowell-supported
hypothesesabouttheintentionsofPipilottiin
combiningaspectsofnatureandtechnology.

4. 3:31P.M.
Aswesearchforaspacetositwithinthe
thirdfloorgallery,Inoticethattherearethree
babiescrawlingaroundvariousareasofthe
rug. Iwonderifthedesignofthisexhibition
withitsflatsurfacesandpillowsencourages
familiestobringtheirinfantchildren,orifthis
isageneraldemographictrendoftheNew
MuseumthatIhavenotyetidentified. Iam
alsocurioushowthisexhibitionwouldbe
viewedfromaneducationalperspective
regardingteachinginfantsduetoitshigh
auditory,tactile,andvisualcontent. When
myfriendandImovetostudythechandelier
ofundergarments,weseethatpeopleare
takingturnsmovingdirectlyunderthe
chandeliertotakephotographsand/orto
lookintoitscenter. BothmyfriendandI
choosetoimitatethisbehavior;indoingso,I
amabletocapturethepicturethatisshown.
Fromthisperspective,Icanalsounderstand
whythispiecewaspresentedbythetour
guideasasymbolofthelife-givingwomb. Is
thistheanglefromwhichtheartistintended
ustoviewthiswork,oristhereanotherangle
thatbettercommunicateshermessage?

5. 3:42P.M.
Beforeweleavethethirdfloorofthe
PixelForest,Ispota youngwomanasshe
takesoneofthelaminatedlearningaidsthat
areavailableinthewallslotbytheelevator.
Asbothofmyresearchpartnershave
describedintheirobservations,thislearning
aidisrarelyusedforlongerthantenseconds
afteravisitorfindsit. Unsurprisingly,the
personstaresatthelearningaid forashort
periodoftimebeforereturningittoitsslot.
LikethelearningaidsforMyBarbarian,the
learningaidsofthePixelForestaredesigned
inasmallfontandviolateprovenmultimedia
principles,likethoseofspatialcontinuityand
ofsignaling. Inotherwords,thelearningaids
arenotproperlydesignedfornovicevisitors
whowouldmostlikelybenefitfromthese
tools. Whatwasthethoughtprocessin
designingtheselearningaids? Whyistherea
lackofsignageandlabelingfortheseaids
withintheexhibition,especiallywhentheir
contentisessentialforfullygraspingthe
artist’sworks?

6. 3:54P.M.
Myfriendleadsmetothebackstairwell
thatIhaveseenstandingonthefourthfloor
butIhavenotwalkedacross. Tomysurprise,
thereiswhatappearstobeatraditional
sailboatpaintinginagildedframe. Upon
closerinspection,Irealizethatthecolorsof
thesailboat,sea,andskyarechanginginsuch
awaythatthereal-lifemovementofthetides
andcloudsareimitated. Iexaminethe
surroundingstotrytodeterminehowsuchan
effectiscreated,andspotaprojector
oppositeofthepainting. Whatmessageis
theartisthopingtocommunicatewiththis
painting? Isthisanotherexampleofartwork
wherePipilottisubvertstraditionaliconsto
provokequestionsaboutsocialexpectations
thatcanremainunchallenged? Iamalso
curiousaboutthelocationofthisitem:there
isverylittlecueing thatpartofthePixelForest
exhibitionextendshere,andthisportionis
isolatedfromtherestoftheexhibitionbythe
smallspaceofthenarrowhallways. Issuch
isolationintended,asRuiarguesin her
analyticmemo,toprovideareasfor
conversationandthus,learning?

7. 4:05P.M.
Ontheoppositesideofthepainting,there
isacellphonelayingonthefloor. Aswelean
overtoexaminethecellphone,theperson
nexttousexclaims,“AtfirstIthoughtitwas
someone’sphonebutthen...” Themannext
tohimreplies,“That’sartthere,man,”while
laughing. Thiscommentremindsmeofone
ofthecriticismsthatoftenariseswhen
discussingmodernart—thatanything,evena
worklackingtechnicalskill,canbeconsidered
artifgiventhatlabel,whichthendepresses
thevalueofmodernartasawhole. Inmy
opinion,theimmenseextensityandvarietyof
therealmofmodernartisoneofits
strengths,asitpromotesexperimentation
thatcanproduceprofoundlymeaningfulart.
Thevideocliponthephonedisturbingly
featuresanakedwomanbeingconsumedby
hell-likefires,pleading,“Helpme!”invarious
languages. Iwonderwhythisphrase,“help
me”isvoicedsofrequentlythroughout Pixel
Forest(insigns,insongs,andnowinfilm). Is
thisentireexhibitionapleatoitsvisitorsfor
help,andifso,why?

8. 4:17P.M.
Wethenfollowthestairsbythe
paintingandcellphone(whichareshown
intheimage)tothefourthfloor.
Comparedtothecentralstaircaseswhose
starkwhitenessandabsenceof physical
dividerscausedifficultyinidentifyingthe
relationshipbetweenthefloors,these
stairshighlighttheconnectionsbetween
thedifferentpartsoftheexhibitionby
servingasastraightpathwaybetween
thetwofloorswithoutdoors. Infuture
projectsthatstudylearningattheNew
Museum,itmaybeusefultocomparethe
observationsandinterviewsofvisitors
whoutilizethedifferentstaircases. Are
thevisitors’perceptionsofthemuseum
andlearningimpactedbythesedifferent
arrangementsofspace,andifso,how? Is
therefrequentlyartworkpresentedinthe
staircasesfromtheimage,orwasthisa
newcomponentaddedbytheartist?
Howarethevisitors’understandingsof
theexhibitionaffectedbytheviewingof
thisinstallation?

9. 4:26P.M.
Myfriendwishestolaydownononeofthe
beds“togetthefullexperience,”sowesit
andwaitonanunclutteredpartoftherug,
reminiscinghowthelonglinesandsensory
experiencesofthisexhibitionremindusof
anothershort-termgallery—theMuseumof
Feelings. Assoonasweseeapairofwomen
sittingupandputtingontheirshoes,we
moveclosertothatbedtoaskiftheyare
leaving. Forthenexttwentyminutes,we
watchthefilm,mostlyinsilence,exceptfora
fewremarkslikewhenmyfriendsays,“Iwish
moremuseumsplayedmusic...Itchanges
theexperience.” Assoonasthenoiselevelof
theroomincreasesabovethatallowedbya
library,afewpeopleloudlywhisper,“Shhh!”
Thinkingaboutmyownanalyticmemo,this
situationcanbeclassifiedasanexampleof
conformingsilence. Later,whenmyfriend
andIdiscussthepossiblemeaningsofthe
videoclipsshowninthisgallery,Ireflecton
myinitialhypothesisthatthistypeofsilence
produces“episodicmemoriesthataremore
memorableandthusassistthevisitorsin
rememberingotheraspectsofthemuseum”
(Concannon,2016).

10. 4:50P.M.
Beforewetraveltothefifthfloor,Ispota
fatherleaningoverhisdaughterwhois
lookingintothecratethatisnearthemain
staircase. Thedaughterappearstobefour-
orfive-yearsold,andisdiscussingthe
contentsofthecratewithherfatherasifthey
areitemsthatbelongtoher. “There’sthe
guitaryouusedtoplay...There’syourbed...
Itwasontheothersideoftheroom,butthen
itgotsmashedbytheplanet,”statesthe
father. “Oh,Iremember,”repliesthegirl,
“That’smypurse...andmypizza.” This
conversationseemstoserveasaplayful
exercisethatallowsthedaughtertopractice
vocabularyintheformofapersonal
narrative. Ithenwonderifthereareany
similaritiesinthelearningexperiencesof
visitorswhosharesimilardemographics. For
example,arethereanycommonpatterns
amongthelearningexperiencesofvisiting
groupsthatincludeparentsandtheir
children? ThemoreobservationsthatI
conduct,themorethatIamstruckbythe
varietyofapproachesthatonecouldassume
instudyinganinformallearningenvironment.

11. 4:54P.M.
Whenweenterthefifthfloor,wespenda
fewmomentswanderingthroughthe
educationalcenter,brieflywatchingthevideo
clipsthataredisplayedinthefarleftcorner
andonthelargescreen. Ultimately,weare
drawntothesmallroomthatisphysically
separatedfromthemainroombyglasswalls
andaestheticallyseparatedbytheincreasein
brightness. Ipeakthroughtheclosedglass
door inthefarthestcornerofthesmallroom
andtakeaphotographoftheofficeofwhichI
waspreviouslyunaware. Thisismyfirst
glimpseintotheorganizationalaspectofthe
NewMuseum. Arethereadditionalofficeson
thesixthfloorwherevisitorsarenotallowed?
Whattypeofworkisconductedwithinthese
confines,andhowdoessuchworkdirectly
impactthelearningexperiencesofthe
visitors? ItisinterestingthatasIlearnmore
aboutthemanyaspectsoftheNewMuseum
viaobservationsandconversations,Ialso
developmorequestions.

12. 5:00P.M.
Wedecidetositatthelargetableinthe
centerofthesmallroomandscanthrough
the“ExpandedSourcebook.” Perhaps,as
resultofmyteachingprofessionwhich
requiresahigh-leveloforganization,Iam
frustratedthatthebinder’s tabsarenot
labeledtoinformmeabouttheorganization
ofthebinder’sinformation. Wechoosean
articleatrandomandreadaboutoneofthe
earliestpublicperformancesofradical
theatre,whichincludedconsumingbodily
fluids(suchasurineandvomit)infrontofan
audience. MyfriendandIareequally
disgustedabouttheactions,asweare
curiousaboutwhatmessagestheartistswere
tryingtoconveyoremotionsthattheywere
tryingtoevoke. Thisisoneoftheinstances
whereapersonwhoismoreknowledgeable
inthehistoryofradicaltheatrecould
particularlybeusefulinhelpingnovices,like
ourselves,ingraspingatopicwithwhichwe
arepreviouslyunfamiliarorofwhichwehold
misconceptions.

13. 5:12P.M.
Sinceweknowthatthemuseumisclosing
soon,wemovetotheseventhandfinalfloor,
theSkyRoom. Tomysurpriseanddelight,
thereisaMicro-Museumintheroom’s
center. IexplaintomyfriendthatIhaveread
abouttheseBrooklyn-basedproductions,
whichareintendedtoserveasanavenueto
exerciseone’scuriositywhilewaitingata
placethatisstereotypicallyboringlikethe
DMVoradoctor’soffice. Ifinditparticularly
appropriatethatthereisaMicro-Museumat
theNewMuseum,consideringthattheNew
Museumisknownfordisplaying
contemporary,quirkyart. Moreimportantly,
boththeNewMuseumandtheMicro-
Museumareinfluencedbytheconstructivist
ideasthatlearnersshouldconstructtheirown
knowledgeusingsocialinteractionandwell-
designedexploratorytools. Atthetime,the
fivepeoplethatareonthisfloorareoutsidein
theSkyRoom. Personally,Ifeelthatthis
exhibitionbelongsinadifferentlocationin
themuseum,perhapsonthefirstfloorwhen
museumfatiguehasnotyetstruck.

14. 5:15P.M.
AsIwalkaroundthestructurethatisabout
afoottallerthanme,Itakephotographsof
theexhibitionsthatmostinterestme. Again,
mypersonalpassions—specificallythatof
MarineBiology—influencemyemotions
towardstheMicro-Museum. Asweare
learninginourCognitiveScienceclass,the
provocationofstrongemotions,especially
positiveones,canleadonetomoreclearly
rememberalearningexperience. Likelyasa
resultoftheclassesthatIamtaking,Ifind
myselfevaluatingtheseexhibitionsinlightof
SchemaTheoryandMultimediaPrinciples.
Forinstance,Iappreciatethatthesign(thatis
shownintheimageintherightcorner)helps
alearnertovisualizeasnail’sformof
transportationbyconnectingthecontentto
thelearner’spriorknowledgeaboutthe
BrooklynBridge. Thequote,“Humans
evolvedtoberaisedbyparentsandlearn
fromthosearoundus”inthepurplesign
particularlycapturesmyattention,sinceit
promotesaSituatedLearningviewpoint.

15. 5:20P.M.
Wegooutsidetoseetheskylineviewofthe
LowerEastSideneighborhood. Myfriend
remarks,“Ohno,weshouldhavecomefor
sunset. Itwouldhavebeenbeautifulthen.” I,
however,thinkthatcompletingmyfinal
observationswhereIendedmyfirstoffive
fieldvisitsispoeticallyfitting. Westand
outsideinthebriskcold,insilence,forafew
moments,listeningtothedistantcarbeeps
andnearbyconversations. Then,likemany
othervisitorsthatIhaveobserved,myfriend
asksifIamreadytoleaveandweexitwhile
discussingoursubsequentdinnerplans. To
anobserverlikemyself,ourconversations
mayseemoff-taskorpossesslittleevidence
oflearning. Yet,asthesefieldvisitshave
taughtme,observationscannotbesoeasily
interpreted. Anobservermustbemeticulous
inrecordingdetails,awareofthebiasesthey
maypossessandthelimitationstheymay
face,andopen-mindedtothevarious
hypothesesthatmayexplainthecomplex
learningexperiencesthatareunfolding.