Transformation of Museum Communication through Art Mediation: The Case of the 4th Ural Industrial Biennial of Contemporary Art

Abstract

Current museum studies have attracted research attention to changes in communication between museums and viewers, which is increasingly acquiring a hierarchical character. A notable example of such transformation in Russia was an art mediation project realized under the auspices of the Ural Industrial Biennial of Contemporary Art. This article is focused on the experience of art mediation excursions at the 4th Biennial, which took place in the fall of 2017 in the city of Yekaterinburg. Mediation is considered as a set of methods that allow the traditional viewer to be transformed into a certain form of involved audience. A new view on the museum audience is presented from the standpoint of current international and Russian museology. It is shown that the institution of Russian contemporary art is currently experiencing a surge of interest. Aims and objectives of the art mediation project carried out during 4th Biennial are analyzed. Visitor practices during art mediation are reconstructed using both quantitative data (self-assessment after excursion) and qualitative data (17 in-depth interviews with mediators) collected during field research at the 4th Biennial. Three ways of visitors’ participation in mediation are revealed. The author suggests that the visitor’s influence on the experience of the mediator should be considered as the most significant evidence of changes in museum communication.