Abstract
Participation as a method to engage children as visitors have become a well-established practice in most museums. But what kind of influence and impact can participation have on an art institution? In the research project Come Think With Us! we, the MUNCH museum, invite artists and children to co-create an installation with us. The title highlights the aims of the exhibition-series. “Come” is an invitation to someone outside the museum; we want to bring in external voices. “Think” marks that this is a place for research where new theories can arise. “With” refers to a participatory aspect where “us” signal to the fact that several people are involved. Developed through practice as research, using Participatory Action Research as a methodology and in close collaboration with contemporary artists, the museum wants to increase the understanding of what an art exhibition with children can look like. The paper reviews two case studies and present insights and findings from the ongoing research, with an aim to give an answer to the question “what does ‘with’ do?”.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2023 Special Focus—Museum Transformations: Pathways to Community Engagement
KEYWORDS
Participation, Collaboration, Co-research, Children, Visitors, Practice as Research, Contemporary Art
