APT 2002 Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, Australia : Report

KIDS’ APT ‘SUMMER SPECTACULAR’ – ‘QUT MUSEUMS COLLABORATIVE’ PROJECT ANALYSIS – SUMMARY Barbara Piscitelli working with young visitors Storytelling, Kids’ APT ‘Summer Spectacular’ to complete Kids’ APT ‘Summer Spectacular’ Survey ‘Summer Spectacular’ offered a rich variety of activities for one and all. Children learned a great deal from their experiences at the Gallery through their exposure to new ideas and experiences. The purpose of this study was not focused on changes in the children’s ideas; rather, we focused on their choices and preferences. Even so, we noted many learning behaviours in their daily encounters with art, performance, story and action while at the Gallery. Their learning was seen in the following ways: playing with interactives, commenting on art works, exclaiming and reacting, talking with parents and other children, pointing, looking, stopping, asking, answering, solving problems, trying, revisiting, comparing, noticing, inviting another to interact, reading labels, watching others, using art vocabulary. The wide range of performances and activities provided families with choice— something for everyone and for all learning modalities – aesthetic, physical, sensory, auditory and kinaesthetic. From the children’s interviews, we learned that art works were very influential and made a strong impact on the children’s visit. They were affected by the strange, unusual aspects of contemporary art, and were excited by the interactive elements throughout the Gallery. Children, for the most part, understood that they were in an art museum and recognized the unique opportunities this visit offered them. Overall, they were respectful of the works of art, and found great value and pleasure in their observations of contemporary Asia-Pacific art. At times, they found it difficult to distinguish between what could be touched and what was off limits, but for the most part the Gallery staff and parent/carer guides offered helpful and supportive comments to protect the works on display. The following list identifies additional favoured aspects of their visits: • Children enjoyed the making and taking-home activities offered throughout the ‘Summer Spectacular’ program, and especially enjoyed the Kids’ APT activities. • Performances – The festival mascot, Bug Master , had a big impact on children (excitement, cuddles and laughter), and the Chinese Acrobats made a powerful impact on the large audiences who enjoyed their shows on the water mall. • The storytelling sessions were very popular. Our observations indicated that visitors were interested in seeing storytellers from different cultural groups, and listening to stories from Asian and Pacific cultures. • Activities and performances appealed to both children and adults. Parents were observed fully participating in activities with their children and family groups experienced high levels of enjoyment and engagement. • Parent/carers found that the labels and children’s activity book enhanced the visit by enabling them to engage children in talking about art. 101