Concepts, context, and curation : interpretation in modern and contemporary art museums

Pieces of modern and contemporary art in museums are often not accompanied by a\ud didactic label, in order to foster a more contemplative experience; however, when\ud the meaning of a piece is not immediately clear, visitors are left without guidance or\ud context. As museums move towards more visitor-centric models, many modern and\ud contemporary art museums are experimenting with providing more interpretation.\ud In this thesis, methods of interpretation that successfully engage a wide range of\ud visitors in modern and contemporary art museums are examined and evaluated. By\ud conducting a literature review and case studies of three museums, it is found that\ud modern and contemporary art museums are experimenting with more interactive\ud interpretation as well as new templates for exhibiting art. Finally, several\ud recommendations for how curators can collaborate with other departments to\ud design and implement successful interpretation methods are presented