III. THE RESPONDENTS’ ASSESSMENT OF THE PROJECT CONCEPT INNOVATION

One of the survey tasks was to identify to what extent the visitors could “read” semantics of the exhibition on the whole and of each section in particular[1].

Table 12

The exhibition uniqueness in visitors’ view

(% of the respondents)

Do you think that the exhibition differs from museum expositions of this kind?	%
1. Yes	74,5
2. rather yes, than no	20,0
3. rather no, than yes	0,4
4. no	0,4
5. no answer	4,7
Total	100,0
Average value	1,4

The fact of the project being different is recognized by 94,5% visitors (see table12).

Its uniqueness is treated in wide terms: «the most unique exhibition»; «unusual theme»; «novel content delivery»; «unconventional design»; «non-typical organization, opportunity to touch everything»; «new direction, new format»; «modern, novel approach»; «unique because it is modernity - oriented»; «no idea, it is just unusual».

Reflections on the uniqueness are mainly associated with visitors’ awareness of creativity underlying the exhibition organization, what exactly is realized: «Novel ideas»; «A lot of creativity, a new way to present content, one can conceive the depth and meaning»; «Creative, interactive, wildly twisting»; «Creative ideas. Special approach to both design and theoretical exposure of exhibits»; «brave and free solutions».

Visitors realize the projects concept of dialogic interaction, the concept of active visitors’ participation. They point out  «a lot of involvement, everything is accessible»; «you can not only see but be involved»; «A visitor can contribute, take part in traveling»; «you create the world of travel by yourself»; «it is “live” and mobile»; «participation of all, want to bring exhibits»; «to do something: to write, to play, to share, etc. to choose interesting halls, to comment»; «engage in exhibition creation»; «opportunity to add to and change displays».

Guest understand quite well that active dialogue realized in the form of every guest participation provides for «visitors’ involvement into active cognition»;  «viewers engagement in the exhibition atmosphere», creates «opportunity to became a part of what’s going on through participation”.

The exhibition innovation is seen as interactivity, which makes it possible to create the atmosphere of freedom, openness, informality, co-creation. They note: «atmosphere of co-creation»; «new ideas, openness, interaction with other quests»;  «interactivity, view from different angles»; «interactivity, opportunity to take part, interest, vivacity»; «informality, interactivity»; «Modern. Enticing. Interactive»; «very agile, bright»; «never met such an atmosphere that conveys the thematic. It is indeed travel».

Visitors recognize the new format of their participation; understand that many stereotypes of museum behavior do not work, and that they have to react to this new situation in a different way. Openness of exposition space, their responsiveness and interaction, opportunities to  touch exhibits generate favorable conditions for cognition, empathy, intellectual insight: «closeness and empathy»; «to hold in your hands, to touch is to tune to other people mood and their objects»; «hosts of opportunities to share your thoughts and dreams with those who care»; «makes you dream, try yourself, to communicate. You can touch everything, leave your trace. Super!»

Visitors also realize a deeper underlying idea of the exhibition concept, the one that is likely to have been implemented successfully – man-centered nature of the project: «for me it is traveling to myself. Interaction, emotional contact with the exhibition subject; «the exhibition is aimed at me»; «exhibits are not distanced from visitors»; «full immersion in an interesting and absorbing project let sense novelty of the world»; «Vitality. There are people, alive, healthy, confident...».

Guests feel: «visitor-oriented approach»; «contact with viewers»; «one can read care about the visitor, not a formal “tipped” event, that is why you just want to unfold   a mat and lie among all these suitcases. In a word, you feel at home».  It is a very significant indicator of the project effectiveness for its curators.

Viewers get it right that humanistic pathos and man-centered characters of the project were included in the very process of its creation and consist of «broad participation of markedly different people who are (as well as their experience) highly respected by the museum curators».

Visitors realize that serous efforts on the part of the project authors were required to achieve such complex effect. Viewers single out complexity and originality of the expositions design «non-linear exposition, having made a tour round you can see things you have not noticed earlier»; the use of play element in the space organization: «a form of game»; «you do what you like, touch the objects, it’s like play a game. More interesting than a museum»; «it is not an exhibition it is a travel game!»

Some sophisticated visitors tend to analyze the specifics of exhibition dramaturgy in terms of exposition build up’ logic, meaning translation, type of content/visitor communication:  «I like the logic of expositions arrangement. First we see the green color and the road we have to step on, then, go through two “preparatory” halls to find ourselves in a labyrinth which brings us to our native Ural and we see it from a different angle. Generally, a road is an archetypical image of transformation, transition from one state to another… the structure of the exhibition resembles a ritual…».

The problem of temporality while putting together in a whole of it with the help of a certain viewers’ route is also reflected upon: «the rhythm of exposition: at the exhibition - 6 big halls – a peculiar space rhythm is specified. Moving from one hall to another tension  accumulates: dreams of travel, routes variations, expectations and preparations, first step on a strange land, coming back home... At last emotional and visual space subsides in the last hall of travel reflections and memories».

The exhibition integrity as a top-to- bottom event is also clearly recognized:  «the exhibition “The art of travel” is not just an exhibition. It resembles an art-house film or a book. It has the subject (not to be confused with the plot) and ideas a visitor arrive to walking around the exposition. The same happens when we see a film or read a book: roughly speaking, we go along the subject and come to the underlying idea (a kind of travel). That is why I cannot single out a particular section: to mark a section means to tear off a page from a book or cut off an episode from a film».

Viewers contemplate on temporary aspect of the exhibition content, harmony in combining exhibits of the past and present: «Unique effect of exhibits retrospective»; «appropriate proportion of the past and modernity».

Visitors state the curators’ efforts to reach different segments of target audience: «the exhibition provides opportunity for children participation and creativity»; «it develops children interest in traveling».

As for negative comments and criticism they were formulated and reported by expert community representatives.

«too much textual information. Some of it is interesting, some is boring. To read everything is exhausting». «I find too many texts and small details, on the other hand, the exhibition lacks monumentality and terseness».

«…the exhibition build is not dramaturgical enough. A feeling is that all the creative efforts were spent on the first hall while the rest of the exposition does not have enough of it».

«Dynamics and perception laws are not taken into account. The massive information is not always “packed” so that it can be processed with ease” along the route".

«The corpus of factual material is amazing. But story telling in this format seems to submerge under the burden of too many stories of too many unknown to you authors. Maybe, a kind of induction is required, some meta-level which will push you above your experience ad experience of other people…».

 «Country file seems a bit strange. Few European, American countries, no Turkey but Tibet and China are present».

«The diversity of travel is not expressed. It is all about hikes, extreme ad low-cost tourism».

«the exhibition is rather emotional than practical.. not enough information to choose a certain destination, truly useful tips for the future».

«…the project might have been even more successful if the halls had differed more in design, or colors, then separate halls’ themes would have been more articulated».

«Demo video is not labeled. No idea, what it is, who has made it and where”

 

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