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

ACTIVITY BOOKS & LABELS The Gallery had designed some interpretive devices for young visitors, including an activity book and children’s labels that were used throughout the exhibition. Parents were asked to comment on the usefulness of these interpretive materials. Regarding the activity book, 50.9% used the book and 42.1% did not. Of those who did not use the book, many said they would be using it later on at home. In general, the comments about the activity book were very favourable and highlighted the assistance the activity book gave to parents, and the value of the book as a communication device: “Gave my children a fair idea about art…” “It helped to identify what the artist was trying to achieve.” “Explained in simple fun terms; very visual with activities to do.” “The book helped the kids focus on different pieces of art which we could discuss with them.” “It turned art into fun.” “Made art more real to them.” Of those who did not use the book at the gallery, many claimed they were too engaged at the Gallery to use the book, but claimed they would use it at home as a memento of their trip and as a way of continuing the conversation about art. Regarding labels, 70.2% of parents said they used the interpretive device with their children, claiming these benefits: “Told us about the artist and the painting.” “Explained how art is made.” “It helped me explain what material it was made from, age of the artist, nationality and so on…” “We discussed where the artists are from, the kinds of societies and art in those places, and what the specific art work was about.” “The labels helped us explain specific details about the art.” ART It was interesting to note that there was not a direct correlation between the children’s comments and views and those of their accompanying adult carer/parent. For example, children often selected their first preference as being directly in conflict with what their parents thought they likes. The discrepancies are not outstanding, yet they show that parents do not always reflect the interests of their children with accuracy. This is an interesting finding and indicates that children should be consulted more widely to gain ideas about the impact of their cultural experiences (see Appendix D for parent questionnaire responses 5 & 6). On the matter of art (Question 5), parents and children did not agree on 1 st , 2 nd and 3 rd preferences. For example, parents thought their children liked certain works more than others, but when correlations were drawn, children actually selected different works. Parents, for example, ranked 1: Narcissus garden, 2. Soul under the moon (Infinity Room) , 3. Who am we?. Children, however, selected different priorities (see Part 1 – Art above). PERFORMANCE Parents/carers indicated that children preferred the following performances: 1) Acrobats , 2) Bug Master , and 3) Perlie Shellz . These performances were also the top three selected by children; however, the parents’ selection does not reflect the children’s clear preference for the Bug Master. The reason for this could in part be due to Acrobats and Perlie Shellz being performances that appealed to adults as well as children. SENSORIMOTOR The following table provides a comparison of the preferred sensorimotor activities—parent/carers’ perceptions of children’s preferences and children’s stated preferences. The children’s ranking was derived from tallying 1 st , 2 nd and 3 rd preferences. Parent /Adult Carer Children Ping Pong Portraits 1 2 Mirrorama 2 3 Squirts 3 & 4 1 Swarming Locusts 3 & 4 4 & 5 Scent Detectives 5 & 6 4 & 5 Flying Angel 5 & 6 7 Film Festival 7 6 109