UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL & CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

Exam Paper Title: Thesis

At Home in the Museum

The effects of touch on visitor learning
Word count: 9,971

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of: Visual Anthropology MSc. I certify that this is my own work except where otherwise indicated. Date: 13.09.2011

Abstract This thesis investigates the effect of touch on learning in the museum. A gap in understanding about the learning outcomes of tactile interaction provided the stimulus. The study uses observational and interview data gathered in both a highly tactile museum environment and one which was predominantly visual. The results indicate that touch has important implications for learning about the form and function of objects. Touch is also seen to encourage a sense of informal interaction, which breaks with traditional museum rules, in effect making visitors at home in the museum. This implies that increasing opportunities for touch may be a way for museums to promote inclusion and benefit learning.

Acknowledgements I would like to thank Prof. Marcus Banks and Dr Inge Daniels for their supervision of this thesis. I am also grateful to the staff at the Geffrye Museum who made the research possible, especially to curators Eleanor John and Alex Goddard who substantially aided the project. The research for this thesis was conducted adjacent to a larger study for Dr Inge Daniels. We conducted a visitor reception study of the At Home in Japan special exhibition at the Geffrye Museum. Thank you to Inge for permitting use of part of the data for my own research.

Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS..................................................................4 LIST OF FIGURES........................................................................5 1 INTRODUCTION.......................................................................6 THE GEFFRYE MUSEUM......................................................................................8 THE GEFFRYE MUSEUM SCOPE
AND

TOUCH.....................................................................10

OF THE STUDY...................................................................................... 12

2 LITERATURE REVIEW..............................................................13 HISTORY

OF

TOUCH........................................................................................13

TRANSFORMATION...........................................................................................14 THE CONTEMPORARY MUSEUM ...........................................................................15 CATCH-22..................................................................................................16 EFFECTS

OF

TOUCH........................................................................................18 LEARNING
FROM

EVIDENCE

OF

VISITOR TALK............................................................21

SUMMARY....................................................................................................22 3 METHODOLOGY.....................................................................24 OBSERVATION...............................................................................................24 INTERVIEWS..................................................................................................24 ANALYSIS....................................................................................................25 LIMITATIONS.................................................................................................26 4 OBSERVATIONAL RESULTS.....................................................28 TIMES........................................................................................................28 BEHAVIOUR .................................................................................................30 VISITOR TALK...............................................................................................32 Conceptual Comments.......................................................................33 Perceptual Comments .......................................................................35 Affective Comments...........................................................................36 Connecting Comments.......................................................................36 Strategic Comments...........................................................................37 5 INTERVIEW RESULTS.............................................................38 FUNCTION
AND

FORM......................................................................................38

BREAKING RULES...........................................................................................41 AT HOME................................................................................................... 44 MEMORY ....................................................................................................45

AESTHETICS.................................................................................................46 6 DISCUSSION..........................................................................47 7 CONCLUSION.........................................................................50 BIBLIOGRAPHY.........................................................................52 APPENDIX................................................................................55

List of Figures

FIGURE 1. PERIOD ROOM 3 (FORNOVILLE, 2011)..........................9 FIGURE 2. VISITORS IN DINING AREA OF AHIJ (IMAGE AUTHORS OWN, 2011).............................................................................10 FIGURE 3. GENERAL LEARNING OUTCOMES (MLA, 2007).............20 FIGURE 4. CATEGORIES OF LEARNING TALK (ALLEN, 2002)..........22 FIGURE 5. SUB-CATEGORIES OF LEARNING TALK (ALLEN, 2002: 20) ...............................................................................................26 FIGURE 6. AVERAGE TIME SPENT IN ROOMS PERIOD GALLERY...29 FIGURE 7. AVERAGE TIME SPENT IN ROOMS AHIJ......................29 FIGURE 8. WALLPAPER DETAIL IN PERIOD ROOM 4 (FORNOVILLE, 2011)......................................................................................31 FIGURE 9. CHILDREN INTERACTING WITH FUTON IN AHIJ (IMAGE AUTHORS OWN)......................................................................32 FIGURE 10. PERCENTAGES OF TALK CATEGORIES.......................33 FIGURE 11. DINING TABLE IN AHIJ (FORNOVILLE, 2011)..............35 FIGURE 12. TOWELS IN AHIJ (FORNOVILLE, 2011).......................40 FIGURE 13. SHELVING IN AHIJ (FORNOVILLE, 2011)....................42

1 Introduction
No one has mentioned learning outcomes. Why are we using these objects? Is there anything beneficial coming out of this use of

objects? (Payton, 2009). Rob Payton, head of conservation and collection care at the Museum of London, posed this question at a workshop focusing on conservation and access - conservations so-called Catch-22, held in 2009 at UCL1. The focus of the workshop was to better understand the consequences of physical access to heritage objects and to discuss conservation practice and ways to facilitate access. Paytons comment highlights the need for research on the outcomes of object handling, especially the implications for learning which is a concept much talked about in relation to museums but difficult to measure (Falk and Dierking, 2000). This thesis investigates how tactile interactivity influences visitor learning in a museum. By focusing on the effects of touch on learning I attempt to show the educational relevance of object handling for museum visitors. Learning is considered one of the fundamental outcomes of the museum experience (Falk and Dierking, 2000). The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA, 2007) outline a broad and inclusive definition of learning: Learning is a process of active engagement with experience. It is what people do when they want to make sense of the world. It may involve the development or deepening of skills, knowledge, understanding, values, ideas and feelings. Effective learning leads to change, development and the desire to learn more. The hypothesis of this thesis is that tactile interaction with museum objects enhances learning. This study uses ethnographic methods to go beyond typical visitor studies methods which often rely on quantitative data, potentially missing rich qualitative observational data of visitors active inside the museum. Observation and interview techniques are used in the analysis of two distinct exhibition
1

The research cluster Cultural Encounters and Explorations: Conservations Catch-22 was part of the AHRC EPSRC Science and Heritage Programme, involving three workshops and a conference. Documents relating to the research can be found on the website: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/conservation-c-22/ (accessed 01/09/2011).

environments within one museum in central London the Geffrye Museum. Results are assessed in accordance with MLA guidelines for learning.

The Geffrye Museum

The Geffrye Museum, established in 1914, is the United Kingdoms only dedicated museum of the home. The museum comprises galleries displaying domestic interiors from the 1600s to the present day. The series of period rooms are arranged in chronological order, showcasing the changes that have occurred through the last four centuries within the English home. Visitors enter at the start of the period gallery, after which they reach the 20th century wing and stairs leading to the underground level where temporary special exhibitions are held. A typical visitor route is mapped on the floorplan included in the appendix (p. 53). The period rooms are viewed from behind barriers where text panels are displayed (fig. 1). There are also handheld information boards located in each room. Visitors engage with objects visually, however, there are layers of interactivity woven through the galleries, with information bays preceding each period room containing listening posts, touch boards providing samples of fabric, carpet and wood and also chairs to sit on. The period rooms are complete in the sense that they are detailed replicas with household objects, furniture and decoration from a specific period.

Figure 1. Period room 3 (Fornoville, 2011)

Between 22nd March 29th August 2011 the special exhibition was At Home in Japan (AHIJ). The exhibition aimed to address the myth of the minimalist Japanese home by recreating a typical urban Japanese flat, complete with furniture and mundane household objects. A floor plan of the gallery is included in the appendix (p. 53). Visitors could physically interact with all objects on display as they moved through the gallery. Textual narratives explained everyday practices within contemporary Japanese homes. The rooms were complemented by life-size photography of home interiors. There were also screens playing slideshows of photographs accompanied by audio. After coming through the predominantly visual period galleries visitors arrived at AHIJ which offered more opportunity for tactile exploration. Figure 2 shows visitors in the dining area of the gallery which contained many objects and drawers which could be opened. This arrangement provided an opportunity to comparatively investigate visitor experiences within a reduced tactile setting and a

highly tactile setting.

Figure 2. Visitors in dining area of AHIJ (image authors own, 2011)

The Geffrye Museum and Touch

The Geffrye Museum must conform to all national standards for preservation of collections in order to fulfill funding specifications. According to curator Alex Goddard (2011), both preservation and access are paramount. Whilst handling objects in the central collection is generally restricted, the museum promotes access to its collections through multiple other avenues: their website, loans to other museums; publications; a public engagement programme; and

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their links with academic institutions. A handling collection, separate to the permanent collection, is available for use of the Education department for school visits. Objects are selected to complement displays in the permanent galleries or to correspond with educational themes. A large number of these objects are donated by the public and occasionally some are de-accessioned from the permanent collection. Sometimes an additional object is purchased for the handling collection when acquiring objects for the permanent collection. The museum organises touch sessions for blind and partially-sighted audiences, with the use of nitrile gloves and the close supervision of trained museum staff. There are occasionally exceptions to the notouch rule for fully-sighted visitors when touching a particular object is deemed especially useful for aiding understanding. The object must then undergo examination for stability by a conservator before handling can take place. The balance of conservation and tactile access is carefully negotiated at the Geffrye. There is occasionally scope for tactile exploration of objects, although at present the average museum visitor cannot touch objects of the central collection. The museums special exhibitions are an opportunity for more tactile displays. For example before AHIJ the special exhibition was Eco Home which contained interactive elements and explored how eco living influences domestic interior design. An evaluation report for Eco Home (Gonzalez, 2010) found that most visitors interviewed (199 in total) commented on their enjoyment of touching the materials display. 10% of visitors interviewed believed that it should have been more engaging for children, for example with chairs to sit on. 10% also believed that interactivity in general should have been higher, with some visitors suggesting object handling as a possible improvement.

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The highly interactive nature of AHIJ posed difficulties in the design stages of the exhibition regarding protecting objects from damage and loss (Daniels, 2011). However, most of the objects were considered robust and were of low monetary value, enabling visitor handling with the presence of a security guard as adequate protection. The only objects in the exhibition which were not available to touch were two dolls. These were displayed in glass cases because of their fragility and value, as is often the style of display in Japanese homes anyway.

Scope of the study

I begin with a literature review covering the history of touch in the museum, tracing the transformation that occurred during the twentieth century leading to increased tactile displays and the catch-22 situation currently facing museum professionals. I then outline studies into the effects of touch on learning. I progress to detail the methodology for data collection and analysis, and state the reasoning behind the design of the study whilst acknowledging its limitations. The results are split into observational data and interview data. Analysis is reserved for the discussion section, which looks at trends in the data relating to the hypothesis. I will argue that touch encourages visitors to feel at home in the museum which has implications for learning. Finally, the conclusion states the main findings and their implications for museum practice.

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2 Literature Review

In the museum context, touching of collections is usually reserved for professionals and even then often with the requirement of risk assessments and the wearing of gloves. Only on rare occasions can the average museum visitor physically handle objects, and often such artefacts are part of a special handling collection used with educational groups or disabled visitors. Generally museums restrict normal behaviour; they are places where special codes are to be obeyed under the ever-watchful gaze of the security guard or camera.

History of Touch
Museum history can be roughly divided into three periods: earlymodern, modern and post-1960s (Macdonald, 1998). The first, what Macdonald calls the early modern museum, grew from a widespread interest in private collecting during the Renaissance. There were opportunities for tactile engagement, with objects often within reach of visitors. However, visitors were generally members of the higher classes and collections were not easily accessible for the public (Candlin, 2008). The British Museum made its collection publicly accessible in the early nineteenth century, but a view that the masses would defile objects meant substantial restrictions for access (ibid.). The modern museum emerged during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century and was increasingly designed for public use and 13

civic education. It propagated a particularly modern and scientific way of apprehending the world from a distance, like viewing a picture (Mitchell, 1991). Touch was increasingly marginalized with the privileging of sight (Classen, 2007). However, touch had not been completely excluded from the museum visitors experience. Classen notes that as late as 1827 visitors to the Ashmolean museum in Oxford were allowed to handle objects, under the curators supervision (ibid., p.899), although this was likely to be restricted to those of high status (Candlin, 2008). Increased visitor numbers during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century meant that the distance between objects and visitors became wider, with conservation a priority for museum professionals (Classen, 2007. p.907). This was combined with the visual turn propelled by the development of photographic technology. The museum as an empire of sight (Classen and Howes, 2006, p.200; Stewart, 1999) was often designed around visually striking objects which would draw in visitors. In such an environment, an object tended to be stripped of the active multisensory role it once played in its original cultural context and instead the visual, museum model of the artifact is what in most cases entered the Western imagination (Classen and Howes, 2006, p.212).

Transformation
Integral to the modern museum were ideas of tailored education for lay audiences. Hands-on exhibitions which were both educational and recreational became increasingly popular. This took hold from the 1960s in the USA and the mid 1980s in the UK and Europe (Caulton, 1998), when new museums and education centres were purposefully built with these strategies at their core (Macdonald, 1998). The first example of such an institution was the Exploratorium in San Francisco, established in 1969 by the scientist Frank 14

Oppenheimer. The Exploratorium was created as an alternative to traditional science museums, hosting hands-on exhibitions in which the visitor was placed in the role of scientist, able to make their own discoveries and experience science through democratic empowerment (Cruikshank, 1996). The 1986 Management Plan for Londons Science Museum demonstrates the concern of curators over the changing and increasing demands of audiences, advising that successful exhibitions are ones which develop live demonstrations, provide participation, interactive displays, and give a quality of personal rather than institutional service to their visitors (Science Museum, 1986). The Science Museum was the first to open a completely hands-on centre in the UK, with the opening of Launch Pad in 1986. They have continued to make this kind of display central to their brand identity, as have many other educational institutions.

The Contemporary Museum

Black (2005: 266-267) offers succinct analyses of the pressures museums are now under: museums today must justify their existence much more effectively, must generate more of their own income, must broaden their audience bases, must reflect their communities, and must enhance their role as learning institutions (Black, 2005:266-267). The contemporary museums survival depends on its ability to meet the demands of todays audiences. Museum visits are a leisure pursuit and contemporary audiences have an increasingly wide choice of competitive leisure activities. Research shows that successful exhibitions are ones which appeal to families, combining both education and entertainment (Caulton, 1998). However, critics have warned that there should not be interactivity for its own sake, but there should be minds on as well as hands-on displays (ibid). Exhibitions should be designed so that hands-on elements lead to greater understanding of museum objects rather than being a distraction. 15

Many traditional museums have broadened their remit, taking inspiration from interactive education centres by weaving interactivity through their displays. Many also offer programmes reaching beyond their collections, including family activity days, workshops etc. However the core of the museum remains its collection and part of increasing visitor engagement during a museum visit includes enabling greater access to collections. It is still rare for fully-sighted visitors to have tactile access to the objects of central collections due to the responsibility of conservation that museums have towards their acquisitions. Some museums have taken the need for innovative sensory display to its limits. The 2005 Touch Me exhibition at the Victoria and Albert museum addressed contemporary design through touch, our most neglected sense (Victoria and Albert Museum, 2005). The exhibition featured objects and interactive elements designed specifically to be appreciated through touch. It showed how touch can be central in exhibition design, however, many of the elements were electronic and fragile, and by the end of the exhibition many were broken (Zimmer and Jefferies, 2007: 8). The museums central collection remained the preserve of visual appropriation, while Touch Me almost fetishised touch. Perhaps a mid-point between these two extremes should be sought.

Catch-22
Pressures to provide increased access to heritage objects whilst at the same time protecting them from damage creates a paradox affecting those responsible for heritage monuments or collections conservations Catch-22: Access to heritage objects brings social benefit Greater access brings greater social benefit Greater access brings greater damage

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Greater damage brings reduced social benefit (Pye, 2009). Debates over how best to prevent, identify and remedy damage are of concern to conservators and museum professionals. However, perhaps the definition of damage needs to be questioned along with the way that collections are viewed, with a move towards seeing objects as undergoing change as part of their biographies (Pearce, 2009). Pye (2009) argues that we should consider the damage done to todays audiences through tight restrictions on handling, asserting that museums may subsequently suffer from a loss of interest or even funding if they appear unsatisfying. In order to encourage support of heritage institutions, the public should not be excluded from intimate engagement with collections. One of the groups most vulnerable to exclusion from cultural institutions is disabled audiences. According to Weisen (2008) the issue of access to cultural heritage for disabled people is being widely discussed all over Europe. However, fully integrating policies so that barriers to learning are minimised is a slow and difficult feat. For example the information made available in museums for visually impaired people currently represents only a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of all the information provided by museums (ibid.: 247). Since 2001, policies issued by the Department of Culture Media and Sport have placed pressure on museums to be agents of social change, encouraging inclusion and equal opportunities (Weisen, 2008: 250). The Disability Discrimination Act of 2005, now largely replaced by the Equality Act of 2010 (Directgov, 2011) aims to ensure museums and other such institutions place an emphasis on the accessibility of their collections for disabled visitors, advocating the incorporation of more multi-sensory display. This has the effect of making a potentially more multi-sensory museum environment for everyone. There is a significant difference between having a token multi-

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sensory display within a visually-oriented museum to having a central collection which is accessible for all. It is understandable that parts of collections may never be suitable to be touched due to fragility, value or rarity etc, but there may be objects which could be removed from glass cases and put to more engaging use. Perhaps damage should be reclassified as acceptable compromise museums could make in order to enable greater access and move towards equality amongst disabled and able-bodied audiences.

Effects of Touch
Museums can increase their learning potential through tactile engagement whilst preserving the integrity of their central collection via the use of loan collections. Loan collections are one way to reach school groups who might otherwise have difficulty accessing museums and they are also a way of providing direct tactile experience. Studies have revealed that teachers are convinced of the benefits for learning of tactile engagement with museum objects in the classroom (McAlpine, 2002; TwewinnardBoyle and Tabassi, 2007). McAlpines study in 2002 evaluated school loans service of the Museum of Reading. 75% of teachers were found to already be using object based learning, providing their own objects. 92% of teachers viewed learning from objects as equally or more important than learning from books. Comments from students interviewed ten months later highlight benefits for memory and imagination (75% of students remembered what they had imagined during object handling): "With objects, its a lot easier [to remember] - you can imagine as well," said a primary school student in Berkshire. "You can actually feel them and see them" "We actually got a real feel of what it might be like from the

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objects," said another Berkshire primary school student. "If you look at pictures you imagine what it was like for them. But when you have the objects you imagine what it would be like for you and how you would feel" (McAlpine, 2002: 26-27).

Twewinnard-Boyle and Tabassi (2007), reporting on the Nottingham Loans collection, state that students were able to engage with objects and better understand their meaning and value. For example: actually holding an unfamiliar object such as a Victorian flat iron, and imagining what it would be like to use it, may prompt deeper understanding of what domestic work was like in the days before electricity (Twewinnard-Boyle and Tabassi, 2007:192). Comments from students included: (I have been) learning new things that I would probably not have understood if I had just been told them (Pupil, aged 1011). It helped me learn a lot of things while I was having funIf I wasnt having as much fun I probably wouldnt have learnt as much (Pupil, aged 9-10) (Twewinnard-Boyle and Tabassi, 2007:199). Evaluation of the programme was extremely positive, based on the Generic Learning Outcomes (GLOs) devised by the Museums Libraries and Archives Council (MLA, 2007). These learning outcomes will inform analysis of my own results. GLOs are recognised as increases or changes in the categories presented in the circles below:

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Figure 3. General Learning Outcomes (MLA, 2007)

Davidson (1991) reports on an exhibition which transformed from one of traditional diorama design to fully incorporating multisensory display. The exhibition, at Bostons Museum of Science, focused on animal adaptation to the environment. The re-design made use of sound, smell and touch along with traditional visuals of dioramas. After the re-design visitor time in the exhibition doubled and visitors demonstrated qualitatively richer learning. They could remember more details about content during post-visit questionnaires. This study is not specifically about touch as an isolated element, but about how multi-sensory display makes for better learning. Highlighting the benefits of tactile display is Isil Onuls research into her 2006 exhibition Tactual Explorations. This event focused on indirect tactile engagement with a bronze bust of Sophocles from the British Museum. Onul engaged ten artists to produce pieces which provided access to physical information about the object. The original bust was displayed in a glass case while the artworks 20

surrounding it enabled visitors to get closer to the object through tactile interpretation. Visitor feedback indicated that a majority of visitors felt that after interacting with the artworks they had interacted directly with the bust of Sophocles (Onul, 2008: 104). 93% had visited the exhibition because of its tactile nature and 100% would like to see similar initiatives in other museums (ibid.).

Evidence of Learning from Visitor Talk

The following study is not specifically to do with touch but investigates informal learning in the museum. It is discussed because its methodology influenced my own. The research was conducted at the Exploratorium between 1999 and 2000 by Allen (2002). Her goal was to categorise and quantify evidence of learning in visitor conversations at a particular exhibition. She looked at how learning talk varied across different types of exhibit with the aim to produce data which could inform museum design and strategy. Her methodology involved tracking and recording the conversations of visitor couples. She then analysed visitor talk using an emergent approach, i.e. letting the data set the parameters of analysis (Diamond, 1999). She devised five categories into which the comments could be divided: perceptual talk, conceptual talk, strategic talk, affective talk and connecting talk. Below is a breakdown of the terms: 1) Perceptual talk - when visitors draw attention to something related to what they are experiencing, i.e. identifying characteristics of an object, naming something or reading out a label. 2) Conceptual talk - cognitive interpretation of exhibits including interpretive statements and inferences of meaning or function of an object. 3) Connecting talk - drawing connections to other pre-existing knowledge or experiences outside of the exhibition context. 4) Strategic talk - statements about a visitors own activity, including comments about interactivity.

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5) Affective talk - expression of feelings including pleasure, displeasure and intrigue. Allen found that there were high instances of learning talk within the exhibition 83% of comments made whilst stationary at exhibition elements were classified as learning talk, displayed in the graph below. Allen focuses her discussion on conceptual talk which was recorded at being 56%. According to Allen this indicated that visitors came purposefully for a learning experience. These results were seen as being heartening to museum professionals who often experience difficulties when trying to assess the learning outcomes of exhibitions. There is little analysis of perceptual and affective talk, despite these being the two highest categories.

Figure 4. Categories of learning talk (Allen, 2002)

Summary
This chapter summarised the history of touch in the museum including the transformation which saw the museum go from being regarded as a store for precious objects to becoming a learning environment serving the public. This brought the discussion to the

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present situation, specifically how museums are addressing conservations catch-22 by finding ways around the tensions of conservation and access through loan collections and innovation in display. The chapter concluded on a study which influenced my own methodology.

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3 Methodology
Research was conducted in the period gallery and AHIJ. The 20th century wing was not included in the research as visitor behaviour became unpredictable once the end of the period gallery was reached as it opened out to the caf, shop, and childrens area.

Observation
15 sets of visitors were tracked in AHIJ, 10 of these were in groups of two or more and 5 were alone. 11 sets of visitors were tracked in the period gallery, again predominantly in groups. Visitor movements were mapped on a floorplan, along with the time spent in each area of the exhibition. Visitor talk and general behaviour were also noted. Recording equipment was not used as I was able to note down conversations unobtrusively through shadowing. I had ethical concerns about the lack of informed consent for the shadowing, only gaining consent after the shadowing had taken place. On one occasion this format was experimented with and a visitor was asked if they would give permission to be shadowed which they agreed to. They afterwards expressed that they wished they had not been aware of the researcher following them as it interfered with their museum experience. Therefore, it was decided to only gain consent during the interview following the visit, when the study could be explained fully.

Interviews
Interviews were conducted with 17 sets of visitors after shadowing their visit to AHIJ. Visitors were only interviewed after they had exited AHIJ and not after the period rooms because at this point they would have experienced both the period rooms and the special exhibition. 2 sets of visitors who were shadowed subsequently did not want to be interviewed. 4 sets were interviewed but not shadowed because whilst shadowing others I noted that they were 24

particularly active within the exhibition. The interviews focused on visitors thoughts about being able to touch objects and how they felt this compared with their experience of the period gallery upstairs. In addition, questions were asked about their favourite objects and areas of the exhibition. The interviews were semi-structured and I encouraged flowing conversation in order to let visitors express naturally arising opinions. The questions used to shape the interviews can be found in the appendix (p.52).

Analysis
Time spent in the upstairs galleries was analysed in terms of differences between the info bays and period rooms. Time spent in individual rooms in AHIJ was also compared. Finally, the total amount of time spent in each exhibition was compared. Differences of time are likely due to a multitude of factors (not least because the entrance to AHIJ is the last thing which visitors arrive at having walked through the rest of the museum, therefore increasing the possibility of visitor fatigue). Variation in time spent in each gallery may also be down to gallery design, for example people may feel like they cannot linger in the corridor leading through the period rooms which is the only thoroughfare, whilst they may be more relaxed in AHIJ where there is more space and thus their visit may be longer. Behavioural data was analysed to look for patterns including what things were being touched, who was doing the touching, and any simultaneous visitor talk. Transcribed visitor talk was analysed and comments were assigned to a category depending on content. A model developed by Allen (2002) was used, consisting of 5 distinct categories of visitor learning talk: perceptual, conceptual, strategic, affective and connecting. Definition of each category was outlined in the literature review above, but the terms were further subdivided by Allen into 16 subcategories. Whilst these subcategories are not 25

used in my analysis, they are useful to aid the identification of a comment to one category or another.

Figure 5. Sub-categories of learning talk (Allen, 2002: 20)

Interview data was analysed by dividing responses into categories using an emergent approach (Diamond, 1999) these were sought from the data by looking for trends and themes connecting certain comments. This resulted in five categories: breaking rules, learning, at home, aesthetics, and memory. The categories will be explained in the results section. As learning is notoriously difficult to measure, I have not tested visitors knowledge in an attempt to quantify differences in learning between the two galleries. I have instead taken the GLOs outlined by the Museums Libraries and Archives Council (MLA, 2007), as a guide to assessing the benefits of touch.

Limitations
The period gallery and AHIJ were not directly comparable field sites and there were many differences in their design, content, tone and layout which could influence visitor behaviour. It is difficult to isolate

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touch as a main cause of patterns appearing in the data. However, preliminary discussions with visitors revealed that the opportunity to touch was considered the biggest difference between the two galleries. Visitors were animated whilst talking about their experiences of touch in AHIJ and many appeared to relish the opportunity. It is on this basis that touch is considered to be a major distinguishing factor between the galleries in this study. In terms of practical difficulties, the recording of visitor talk via shadowing and noting overheard comments meant that some data was lost when visitors talked quietly amongst themselves. Only comments that were clearly audible and identifiable to a particular visitor were recorded.

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4 Observational Results

This section outlines the observation results, i.e. times, behaviour and visitor talk. Some interpretation is offered however analysis of how the results relate to the hypothesis is left for the discussion chapter. Tables containing the data can be found in the appendix (pp. 55-71)

Times
The average total time for visitors in the period gallery was 25 minutes and 32 in AHIJ. The graphs below present the time spent in each individual section of the galleries in typical visitation sequence. A trend apparent in figure 6 is that the time spent in the info bays was greater than in the period rooms. This may be due to the increased interactive displays in the info bays and the higher prevalence text panels. The time spent in the period rooms was on average slightly over one minute and this remained generally constant throughout. Time in the info bays started at a peak of just over 4 minutes in the first room, consistently dropping to about 2 and a half minutes by the final room and averaging 3 minutes in total. This follows a common trend observed in visitor studies where visitors speed up their visit as they approach the exit (Falk and Dierking, 2000).

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Time (min)

Figure 6. Average time spent in rooms Period Gallery

Figure 7. Average time spent in rooms AHIJ

In AHIJ rather than visitor times dropping off as was to be expected, the final room was actually the area in which most time was spent,

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as shown in figure 7. Visitors spent an average of 7 and a half minutes in the dining/kitchen area, however the range was large (between 2 and 19 minutes). The widest range of values was for the living room area, with one visitor spending 27 minutes compared with another who only spent 1 minute there.

Behaviour
Movement mapping in both the period rooms and AHIJ indicated that most visitors followed a similar path, with not much variation in terms of stopping points and sites of interactivity. A typical route is indicated on the floor plans in the appendix (pp.53-54). Nearly everyone who entered both galleries touched objects. It was only on the very rare occasion that a visitor would go through without touching any of the displays. In AHIJ the main room for touch interaction was the living/dining room area. This contained the most objects and therefore was a site of intense interactivity. In the period galleries the info bays provided the only opportunity for visitors to touch, which most took advantage of. Nearly all observed visitors interacted with the touch exhibits in the info bays. Unexpectedly there were a couple of instances of touching in the period rooms too. This occurred in room 4 which had particularly detailed hand-painted wallpaper (figure 8). Two sets of visitors touched the wallpaper and a number of others scrutinised it closely without touching.

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Figure 8. Wallpaper detail in period room 4 (Fornoville, 2011)

Children were highly mobile in the galleries, interacting with many objects. They often encouraged their guardians to touch and engage with the exhibits, drawing them over to particular objects. Children were more likely than adults to have intensive engagement with exhibit elements for a prolonged time in AHIJ. For example by unfolding the futon and lying on it, as can be seen in figure 9. In this image we see two young boys (aged about 10) interacting with the futon while their guardians look on from the room threshold. The boys shoes are removed and lie on the mat outside the room which reads: In Japan people never wear shoes on tatami mats. The behaviour of the adults was replicated by a number of other visitors, possibly because of a reluctance to step inside with their shoes on whilst also not wanting to remove their shoes.

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Figure 9. Children interacting with futon in AHIJ (image authors own)

Visitor Talk
I now detail observed visitor talk, starting with a discussion of the categories which were most contrasting in the galleries.

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Percentage

Talk Category

Figure 10. Percentages of talk categories

Conceptual Comments Conceptual talk was the highest category for AHIJ at 36%, whereas only 10% of conceptual comments were made in the period rooms. The info bays had 26% conceptual talk. This indicates that there was a difference in the kind of learning taking place in the galleries, analysed further in the discussion chapter. Visitors offered their own interpretation of the use and function of items. The futon in the Japanese style room provided a starting point for conceptual discussion about how and why it might be used and its level of comfort. A young girl (about 10 years old) lay on the futon whilst asking her guardian do people actually sleep on this? The guardian talked about how it was a good idea to have a bed which could be rolled up to make more space in a small flat. Another visitor asked his friend Do they really expect people to get down on the floor to sleep? to which his friend replied Well I guess that it must be ok after yoga practice. In both these cases the conceptual

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talk showed wider and deeper cognition than purely responding to the object in a perceptual or affective way. Below are examples of conceptual visitor talk: "They've got very big seats. Well I guess they had very big clothes, you had to balance yourself" commenting on a replica chair in an info bay This pan is so light, it must be aluminium. Youd get Alzheimers using this - commenting about a cooking pan, whilst picking it up. I think these are childrens chopsticks said by a young girl (aged about 12) whilst picking up chopsticks from the table. In the period galleries the info bays provided stimulus for conceptual talk. The chairs which could be sat on were particularly effective at this and touch panels provided stimulation for conceptual talk such as "presumably this one is cheaper" (the rush matting compared with the carpet). On one occasion a visitor made conceptual comments about an object which was in a glass case in one of the info bays. In this instance she imagined bodily interaction with the object: "that's a big salt pot. Maybe it's because you would take out the salt with your fingers". It was interesting to note that the photography in AHIJ also engaged visitors in conceptual discussion. These images conveyed a sense of space and encouraged a sense of actually being in a real Japanese flat: In Japanese homes there is no space so much stuff, said whist looking at an image of a cluttered bookcase.

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Figure 11. Dining table in AHIJ (Fornoville, 2011)

Perceptual Comments 27% of comments in the period rooms and 28% in the info bays were perceptual in nature compared with only 11% in AHIJ, suggesting that more perceptual cognition was going on in the former galleries. Comments were about the physical nature of the rooms and objects on display, such as: "Isn't it dark, the furniture?" "It's painted wallpaper!"

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 "Oh look at the chess board" The period rooms were highly visually stimulating, with many objects on display. Perhaps this encouraged visitors to state what they were seeing so as to single out particular objects for attention. Distinct changes were visible in the rooms as visitors progressed through the gallery, therefore visitor talk may have tended to state visual differences perceived. Affective Comments Affective talk scored highly for all three types of exhibition space. The period rooms scored 37%, the info bays were 31% and AHIJ comments were 27% affective talk. These comments were mostly expressions of pleasure at the displays with comments such as these being very common: "Oh, I love this room and this wallpaper. Beautiful but it's a bit much. I love that vase" "I love that chair, that's great. I love the tassels and fabric" Did you see the tatami room? It smells good.

In AHIJ a photograph of a child at a window next to a cat in a cage elicited many responses (mostly affective). A large number of visitors went further than affective comments for this image and made suggestions about whether the cat was allowed out sometimes, and guessed at reasons why it was in a cage. The affective comments show that people got personally involved in the exhibitions. These responses are highest for the period rooms, possibly because of the increased number to things to look at which elicit responses of whether they are to their personal taste or not. Connecting Comments Connecting talk was about the same percentage for the period rooms and AHIJ, at 22% and 20% respectively. The percentage was

36

low for the info bays at 8%, perhaps because of the nature of the displays in those rooms being densely packed information on text panels and labels which required attention. These elements encouraged a more formal educational atmosphere rather than drawing out visitors pre-existing knowledge. Examples of connecting talk from both galleries include: "My friend has a table like that with lots of drawers - you can tell it's antique" "I've seen rooms like this. The last one looked like my grandmother's best room that you never used" "This is something I'm more familiar with. My great-aunt had a sitting room with the same kind of table with glass on it and a plant on top. All ladies played a piano like this. And they usually had something under glass like that. When I was a child we used to go to Mrs. Parsons and they didn't have electricity, only gas lighting". Strategic Comments The smallest category contained comments related to visitors actions within the galleries. Both the period rooms and AHIJ encouraged 5% strategic talk and the info bays 3%. This type of discussion was rare in both galleries, however from the examples below we can see that the comments were often to do with tactile activity, even in the non-tactile period rooms. Strategic talk included such examples: "Chess! I want to play that chess. I just have to get over." Adult: "No, you're not allowed" - boy (about 5 years old) wanted to climb over the barrier to play with the chess board. "Let's sit on this chair because you're allowed to!" a visitor commenting about sitting on the replica chair in the info bay, echoing the corresponding label which gave permission for

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visitors to sit. Daddy, put these ridiculous shoes on! girl (about 10 years old) in AHIJ trying on Japanese shoes. Strategic talk indicates visitors consider their own action inside the exhibition in a purposeful way. As this category was, in most cases, linked to tactile interaction one conclusion may be that touch encourages visitors to take control over how they experience the exhibition.

5 Interview Results

Interview conversations were analysed by looking for themes and trends. The five emergent categories for comments were: Function and Form, Breaking Rules, At Home, Memory and Aesthetics. A majority of comments were made for the 'Function and Form' and 'Breaking Rules' categories, followed by At Home, which had roughly half the number of comments than the previous two, and finally 'Memory' and 'Aesthetics', which had even fewer. Interviews were qualitative - these semi-structured conversations were not conducted in a manner which translates well to statistics, therefore below visitor responses are discussed in terms of many and few instead of percentages. A table displaying the breakdown of comments is included in the appendix. In the discussion section I shall analyse these categories further in relation to my hypothesis.

Function and Form

Numerous responses alluded to the benefits of touch for understanding an objects form (especially material composition) and function. Some of the utensils in the kitchen area of the

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exhibition were unfamiliar to visitors. It is these objects that the visitors said they liked to be able to touch to better understand their usage. Touching objects helped visitors to understand their function. One visitor stated that she touched a chopstick holder to better understand it, another said the same about a whisk which looked particularly unusual. One visitor also took out a kimono from the drawer after reading about their diminishing use and wanted to see how easy it would be to wear. After examining the kimono she thought it looked rather comfortable and was surprised that it is not still commonplace to wear them in Japan. Touch can enable understanding of the material properties of an object. Visitors reported that sometimes materials look misleading (i.e. objects made to look like wood but made of plastic, or towels [figure 12] which were much thinner than expected). Another visitor commented on the kimono, saying that she was disappointed that it was printed fabric and not embroidered - a detail she could only know through touch. Visitors also commented that knowing the weight and feel of objects was important to their learning experience and that they got more from touching than from looking alone.

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Figure 12. Towels in AHIJ (Fornoville, 2011)

Many visitors expressed the opinion that the At Home in Japan exhibition would be especially good for children because of its interactive nature. This was sometimes said by visitors who had brought children along who appeared to especially enjoy the exhibit. At other times it appeared that visitors made the association between interactivity and childrens learning environments, possibly due to the contemporary prevalence of such places. One interviewee expressed joy that the exhibition made her feel like a child again because she was encouraged to explore everything through touch. Another stated that both adults and children benefit from learning through practice, which is what he suggested the At Home in Japan exhibition offered. I heard of examples of learning through practice, for example when two female visitors in their seventies described how, whilst sitting on the sofa, they observed how the coffee table was low to the ground and wondered what it must be like to sit on the floor on cushions (which were positioned around the table) as Japanese

40

people do. They remarked that it must be comfortable for Japanese people because they have been doing it for their whole lives, but for non-Japanese people it might be uncomfortable. They suggested that sitting on the floor may be the key to healthy hip joints! Through this engaged bodily experience of sitting on the sofa they were encouraged to think about the Japanese home in a more embodied way.

Breaking Rules
The design of galleries at the Geffrye Museum, recreating whole rooms, and in the case of AHIJ, a whole flat, encourages visitors to think about their visit as a way of stepping into another period/culture through placing themselves in someones home. I believe that the interactivity in the latter exhibition only extended this effect as there were drawers which could be opened and personal objects which could be more closely scrutinised than upstairs (as shown in figure 13). This intimate access caused many people to feel as though they were breaking the taboo of respecting privacy in a strangers home, commonly reported during interviews in a conspiratorial manner as being a good experience.

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Figure 13. Shelving in AHIJ (Fornoville, 2011)

One visitor said that she had been to Japan on holiday before but had only stayed in Western style hotel rooms and had therefore never seen the interior of a Japanese home so she found it particularly interesting to be nosy and see what things are really like. There were many comments about how the visit felt like snooping around someones home, being nosy and browsing through other peoples stuff, looking through private objects. As one visitor described, this process of active looking allowed her to make her own discoveries as (she) searched through the flat. One visitor said that she particularly liked being able to open drawers and touch the objects inside. She said that it was good that there was no Plexiglas covering the objects and that no alarms sounded when objects were touched - something that went through

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her mind as she examined the objects. Another appreciated the opportunity to sit on the sofa and look through the photograph albums. In some National Trust properties she had encountered chairs with pinecones placed on them to deter sitting, so this was a welcome change. By being given full access in AHIJ, visitors were allowed a sense of autonomy and indeed one visitor mentioned the sense of control she had whilst in the exhibition. Instead of following a prescribed route and maintaining a distance from the objects, visitors did not have many usual museum rules to contend with and this was experienced as a new found freedom, but for some this was tainted with the expectation that they were going to be caught breaking rules. For example, one visitor described how a security guard walked past as he sat on the sofa and he thought he was going to be told off. He said that the upstairs galleries were look-donttouch and he was still in that mindset. Another visitor reported that she expected to be required to take her shoes off at the entrance, but she didnt because she didnt see anything telling her to. When she came to the tatami room she was reluctant to enter because there were signs informing her that Japanese people would never wear their shoes in the tatami room. This reluctance to enter was a behaviour observed in a number of visitors. This sentiment was echoed by a Japanese woman who did enter the tatami room with her shoes on, but she said that upon entering she felt guilty and said that at that moment she realised she was genuinely Japanese! This taboo may be cultural for the Japanese visitor, but for other visitors I feel it had more to do with not wanting to break museum rules, and being uncertain as to what was allowed. Despite the signs encouraging people to touch objects, visitor behaviour was heavily influenced by what visitors observed others to be doing. For example, one visitor said that she picked up a bowl, 43

but she did not see anyone else touching objects so she was unsure if she should and thus put it down. Of course, there are individuals who like to touch items for the very reason that they are out of bounds - one visitor said that she always tries to touch objects in museums and galleries when she is not supposed to, with the risk of being told off. The general consensus was that some things in museums are precious and cannot be touched. If an object is fragile or valuable then it is understandable that handling has to be restricted. One visitor said that the objects in some of the period rooms reminded her of objects from her childhood which she was not allowed to touch, and were for display only. The objects in At Home in Japan were seen as being different in some way and alright to touch. One visitor said that he didnt mind touching the objects because he felt like he was not going to damage them. The ropes dividing visitors from objects in the upstairs galleries were reported to be distancing and gave a very different experience, with one visitor describing it as similar to viewing dioramas because you can only look from a distance. There was a sense of surprise at being given such freedom to touch in AHIJ and an overall ambivalence towards breaking rules, with some visitors reporting that signs encouraging visitors to handle objects gave reassurance, and others expressing that they still had expectations that they might be reprimanded.

At Home
Having the rule dont touch lifted in AHIJ encouraged people to feel relaxed and more at home. As one visitor explained, it is human nature to explore and people in this exhibition might behave as they do in antique shops interested in all objects and touching everything. The theme of home is central to the Geffrye Museum, therefore there were bound to be comments relating to the homely feel of the galleries. 44

A contrast between the period rooms and AHIJ was noted by visitors, who said that the latter felt more like a home and less like a museum. Because visitors didnt feel detached from the objects, they were able to behave in a usual way, as they would outside the museum context. Opening drawers and other intimate interaction encouraged a feeling of participating and real life. One visitor explained that you feel like youre in it the visitor is fully immersed in the exhibition. This was said to be aided by the audio track in the flat playing the sounds of a family talking and kitchenrelated sounds. AHIJ was described as more modern than the period gallery and it felt like walking through someones house. This familiarity fostered by the contemporary flat layout and the display of mundane objects impressed on visitors a feeling of informality and ease. Perceptions of different levels of formality may be down to the period rooms displaying typical middle-class parlours with furniture of high quality and design from the respective periods, compared with AHIJ displaying furniture from IKEA and mundane objects such as food packaging.

Memory
A number of visitors, especially those who had been to Japan, talked about objects in terms of the memories they evoked. For these visitors certain objects held nostalgic familiarity. One visitor said that he was able to remember more through touching as the objects brought back memories when he held them. Another visitor who had not been to Japan claimed touching an object invoked a different kind of memory, the memory of its past owner - when you hold something you come close to understanding why a person might have this object. Personal memories rub off on an object. Other visitors commented that their experience in the exhibition would be more memorable and they would be better able to recall information they had learned because they were able to engage with the objects

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in a tactile manner. This made the whole exhibition more impressive.

Aesthetics
During interviews some visitors displayed more of a visual than tactile mode of engagement. One visitor stood out because of the rarity of her response, saying that she did not want to interact with any of the objects. She asserted that she is a looking not touching person and that looking is fine as she enjoyed the photography in the exhibition. She said that she had been to a similar exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum where interactivity was encouraged, but she said even there she looked but did not touch. In terms of the sample of visitors I interviewed this was an exceptional stance, however some visitors did take particular interest in the visual side of the exhibition. One visitor said that the photography was the most successful part of the exhibition especially the large scale of the images and the way that they set the scene. She also mentioned the aesthetics of the photographs and complimented their composition and tone. Some visitors talked about the beautiful serving pots and crockery, and took photos of items which were most visually pleasing. The Tatami room was described as beautifully arranged with the tatami mats on the floor and the decorative altar. The neat arrangement of object on shelves and in drawers was also commented upon. Individual tendencies towards being more of a touch or vision oriented person played a part in how people experienced the exhibition, however most visitors seemed to combine the two.

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6 Discussion

This section focuses on how the results relate to the hypothesis that tactile interaction benefits visitor learning. It also outlines how the results correspond with previous research. The results suggest that touch informs about objects in ways that sight does not, increasing general learning outcomes as defined by the MLA (2007). Visitors reported being better able to make sense of objects through touch. High levels of conceptual talk in AHIJ is further evidence of deepening understanding, with visitors more likely to make complex inferences about objects they could touch. I shall now present a summary of the key findings and their implications. Individual variation in visitor movement through the galleries was uncommon, possibly due to both galleries having limited possible routes. However, in AHIJ some visitors said that they liked to freely wander, even though their course was the same as most other visitors. This effect could be due to the high level of freedom and choice in what was to be interacted with in the gallery compared with in the period gallery. A high level of personal freedom has

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been linked with increased learning: learning is at its peak when individuals can exercise choice over what and when they learn and feel that they control their own learning (Falk and Dierking, 2000: 138). The opportunity to freely touch objects may have had the effect of making visitors experiences of AHIJ as a whole seem more unique and not routine. Whilst the period rooms form the core of the Geffrye Museums collection, visitors spent less time there than in other areas. The longer periods in the info bays and AHIJ suggest that that interactivity encourages a longer visit. This may be due to the time spent touching objects, especially so in the dining/kitchen area which also contained the most tactile objects, but it may also be due to an increase in attention to other display elements, for example texts, images, and increased discussion with other visitors etc. Perhaps the higher availability of tactile objects increases visitors attention which gets transferred to other exhibition elements. The high level of perceptual comments for the non-tactile period rooms compared with the lower levels for the info bays and AHIJ leads me to assume that highly visual displays encourage perceptual talk, possibly at the expense of conceptual talk and therefore perhaps restricting deeper learning. Whilst perceptual talk does indicate learning, it is about surface details rather than deeper meaning. Stimulation of connecting talk seems unaffected by touch. However, an explanation could be that visitors tended to be more familiar with the English homes presented in the period rooms than they were with the Japanese home, meaning a higher likelihood that personal memories would be recalled. Japanese visitors to AHIJ did make connecting statements such as its like a real home, like my mums home. Connecting talk suggests that visitors are building on their already existing knowledge - something which has been linked to successful learning (Falk and Dierking, 2000). 48

Figures related to visitor conceptual talk are most relevant to the hypothesis. The prevalence of conceptual talk in AHIJ indicates that complex cognition was stimulated more than in the period gallery, possibly because of the option to touch. Visitors articulated thoughts which went beyond stating what was in front of them, instead making complex inferences about objects. Of course, internal dialogue of this kind may occur more frequently but this would be very difficult to record. Complex learning occurring in AHIJ is supported by interview data of visitors reporting an increased ability to learn about the form and function of objects through touch. This was the strongest theme running through the interviews. The second most substantial theme of interview responses was breaking rules. This suggests that AHIJ was different to most visitors expectations of an exhibition. This category is relevant to learning because the lack of boundaries between objects and visitors meant that they were freer to engage in the way they chose a condition which has been linked to increased learning and enjoyment (Falk and Dierking, 2000). I believe the breaking rules category is interlinked with the third most substantial category of interview data: the at home theme. By at home I refer to the informal participatory nature of the average visit to AHIJ compared with the more distanced experience in the period rooms. The ability to wander and pick up objects of their own choosing encouraged visitors to AHIJ to feel included, in control, and engaged with the exhibit. Visitors said they felt more relaxed and as if they were in someones home and not in a museum at all. Comments about the exhibition being like a home naturally arise from the design of the gallery as a home, but I believe that if the objects had been in glass cases and visitors were not permitted to touch they would have felt less like they were in a home and more alienated. The reduction in distance between visitor and object 49

induced a sense of informality and encouraged visitors to make their own discoveries. They could learn about objects as they might in everyday life - handling objects to assess material qualities and to closely scrutinise. Being at home in a museum appeared to benefit visitor learning and was reported to be greatly enjoyed. There have been numerous metaphors suggested for how we should think about a museum during exhibit design and evaluation, for example as a temple, a school, a department store and a supermarket (Macdonald, 1998). These models offer different frameworks within which museum professionals consider the workings of exhibitions. I propose the metaphor of a home, made literal by the Geffrye Museum, as a useful model. The museum as a home encourages visitors to partake in active learning through touching objects and a high level of free choice as they might in their own home.

7 Conclusion

The data supports the hypothesis that tactile interaction with objects increases visitor learning. The ways that touch influences learning are complex and multifaceted, but the data suggests that touch encourages complex cognition, specifically regarding the form and function of objects, and is reported by visitors to be highly rewarding. Visitors were keen to touch, as demonstrated by the high level of observed tactile interaction in AHIJ and the period gallery info bays. During interviews, visitors were overwhelmingly positive about the possibility to touch. AHIJ was reported as being more interesting

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than the period gallery because of its interactivity and some even brought me back into the exhibition to show exactly what had interested them most. It would have been interesting to conduct similar testing of learning as in Davidsons (1991) study outlined in the literature review, by questioning visitors upon their exit of both the period gallery and AHIJ on specific aspects of the exhibitions. In this way I would have been better able to comparatively assess levels of learning. However, I made the decision not to put visitors in a test situation but to have open discussion. This is a possible line of enquiry for future work. A key observation which has implications for exhibition design was that visitors were highly influenced by other visitors when it came to tactile interaction. For example seeing someone interact with an exhibit often made others follow in a similar manner. On two occasions visitors spotted me wearing slippers which were available at the entrance. They then went back to the entrance, removed their shoes and put slippers on. This indicates that tactile interaction is encouraged by a social environment. Exhibits designed to encourage social interaction, for example with enough space for a number of people to stand together at an exhibit, may prove more effective at facilitating learning through touch. Learning in the museum context has previously been shown to have a socio-cultural dynamic (Falk and Dierking, 2000). The broader implications of the results are that touch should be better integrated through central collections where possible. This might be an important step towards making museums more inclusive for both able-bodied and disabled audiences and for increasing learning outcomes of museum visits. The results suggest the kind of objects most suitable for tactile interaction are ones which have unexpected material properties or functions which are difficult to assess by sight alone. 51

Visitors want to touch, to explore, and to actively participate in learning. By doing so they transgress the distance once traditionally maintained in a museum between visitor and object. They experience the museum as an extension of their normal interaction in the world, unimpeded by glass cases. A museum environment in which objects can be handled with informality creates a sense of being at home in the museum.

Bibliography
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Black, G. (2005) The Engaging Museum: Developing Museums for Visitor Involvement Oxon: Routledge Candlin, F. (2008) Chapter 1: Museums, Modernity and the class politics of touching objects in Touch in Museums: Policy and Practice in Object Handling. Helen J. Chatterjee (ed.) Oxford: Berg Classen, C. 2007 Museum Manners: The Sensory Life of the Early Museum in Journal of Social History, 40 (4), pp. 895-914 Classen, C. & Howes, D. 2006 "The Museum as Sensescape: Western Sensibilities and Indigenous Artifacts" in Elizabeth Edwards, et al. (eds.). Sensible Objects: Colonialism, Museums and Material Culture. Oxford: Berg Publishers Cruikshank, B. (1996) Revolutions within: self-government and selfesteem in A. Barry, T. Osborne and N. Rose (eds) Foucault and Political Reason: Liberalism, Neo-liberalism and Rationalism of Government, pp. 241-52, London: UCL Press/ Chicago: Chicago University Press Davidson, B. (1991) New Dimensions for Traditional Dioramas Multisensory Additions for Access, Interest and Learning. Boston: Museum of Science Daniels, I. (2011) Personal Communication Diamond, J. (1999) Practical Evaluation Guide: Tools for Museums & Other Informal Educational Settings. California: AltaMira Press Dias, N. 1998 The visibility of difference in Sharon MacDonald (ed.) The Politics of Display, pp. 36-52 London: Routledge Directgov, (2011) Disability and the Equality Act 2010 (online) Available at <http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/RightsAndObligations/ DisabilityRights/DG_4001068> (Accessed 28.08.2011)

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Falk, J.H. & Dierking, L., 2000. Learning from museums, Altamira Press. Fornoville, M. (2011) Sunshine_Maggys Photostream (online) Available at: <http://www.flickr.com/photos/sunshine_maggy/with/5780236008> (Accessed 3.09.2011) Goddard, A. (2011) Personal Communication Gonzalez, M. (2010) Eco Home Exhibition Evaluation Report. London: Geffrye Museum KirshenblattGimblett, B. 1991 Objects of ethnography in Karp, I. and Lavine, S. D. (eds.) The Poetics and Politics of Museum Display, pp. 386-443. London, Washington: Smithsonian Institution press Macdonald, S. (1998) Exhibitions of power and powers of exhibition: an introduction to the politics of display in Sharon MacDonald (ed.) The Politics of Display, pp. 36-52 London: Routledge McAlpine, J. (2002) "Loan Star" in Museums Journal, 102 (1), pp.2627 Mitchell, T (1991) Beyond the Glass Case: The Past, the Heritage and the Public in Britain, Leicester and London: Routledge MLA (2007) Inspired Learning For All (online) Available at: <http://www.inspiringlearningforall.gov.uk> (Accessed 22.08.2011) Onul, I. (2008) Tactual Explorations: A tactile interpretation of a museum exhibit through tactile art works and augmented reality in Touch in Museums: Policy and Practice in Object Handling, pp. 91106. H. J. Chatterjee (ed.), Oxford: Berg Payton, R. (2009) Workshop 1 Report (online) Available at: <http://www.ucl.ac.uk/conservation-c-22/workshop_1/report_1> (Accessed 03.09.2011)

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Pearce, S. (2009) Close Encounters with Heritage Objects (online) Available at: <http://www.ucl.ac.uk/conservation-c22/conference/susan_pearce> (Accessed 20.08.2011) Science Museum: the National Museum of Science and Industry (1986) Management Plan, London Stewart, S. 1999 From the museum of touch, in Kwint, M. (ed) Material Memories, pp. 17-36, London: Berg Publishers Twewinnard-Boyle, T. and Tabassi, E (2007)Learning through touch in Pye, E. (Ed). (2007) The power of touch: handling objects in museum and heritage context, pp. 191-200, University College London Institute of Archaeology Publications. Left Coast Press: Walnut Creek, US Victoria and Albert Museum (2005) Touch Me: design and sensation (online) Available at: <http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1376_touch_me/exhibitio n.html> (Accessed 23.08.2011) Weisen, M. (2008) How Accessible Are Museums Today? in Touch in Museums: Policy and Practice in Object Handling, pp. 243-252. H. J. Chatterjee (ed.), Oxford: Berg Zimmer, R and Jefferies, J. (2007) Accessing Material Art through Technologies of Mediation and Immediation in Futures of Art 39 (10), pp. 1178-1190

Appendix

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Interview Questions 1 Did you handle any of the objects, sit on the furniture or open drawers? 2 What was the most memorable object? 3 Did you have a favourite area of the exhibition? 4 How does At Home in Japan compare with the period gallery upstairs? 5 Did you engage with the interactive displays in the info bays? 6 How do you feel about touching objects in a museum?

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Floor Plan Period Gallery

Floor Plan At Home in Japan

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Table of Data: AHIJ

Introduction Area

Action

Code

She touched the lucky display and said this decoration on tree probably T (T=simultaneous touch) means something.maybe other visitors have written these messages. Conceptual

Regarding the house demolition practice in Japan the man explained to his companion that his does not apply to all dwellings the older buildings, for example from the 18th century, would be preserved. Connecting

Entrance Hall He pointed the floor, saying You would expect there to be a raised bit here connecting

Regarding the lucky charms: I dont remember them, but he said maybe they are protecting against spirits of smelly shoes. connecting, conceptual

in Japan wearing slippers is seen as being restful and healthy. They saw my shoes along with the others and the friend said so we have to take off T T our shoes here? before both removing their shoes. Mom, Im rockin these shoes! connecting, strategic strategic

Talking about shoe removal: Its quite tricky as you have to do it whilst not putting your bare foot on the lower level and keeping your shoes off the upper level. T Daddy, put these ridiculous shoes on! Removing shoes is such a performance connecting, conceptual strategic conceptual

Western-Style Room

hmmm, I dont think much of the commentary! Later she elaborated that she was not in agreement with the seemingly unfair gender roles portrayed and felt that a modern Japanese woman should not have to wait on her husband hand and foot. affective,

Looked inside Kimono drawer the child said look its a kimono!

perceptual

the image of the bookshelf caught her eye and she looked at it for a while, saying In Japanese homes there is no space so much stuff. conceptual

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Regarding the kimono drawers set into the photograph in the Western T style room I like this affective

Oh, I was hoping there would be some kimonos. Opens kimono drawer: T Ah, here they are! perceptual

Japanese mother explaining Japanese text to son (from text within bookcase photograph) Three trees means forest. connecting

Japanese mother about the dolls: look, you have one of these to celebrate boy day. son: Where is the girl one? mother: I dont know. connecting

Bathroom Toilet: it has got buttons for jets of air! I thought it was a disabled toilet, how weird. perceptual, affective, conceptual

Japanese visitor: toilet: these are really common You step down into the toilet Is this like a walk-in shower? T Look at those boots!

connecting conceptual conceptual perceptual

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Japanese-Style Room

In Japan the room is designed around the tatami, to which his friend responded so when you lived there did you have tatami mats? He responded that he did not. connecting

I suppose we should have our shoes off in here.

strategic, conceptual

I remember halls after halls of pre-packed gifts Conversation about futon

connecting perceptual, conceptual

Regarding the futon the girl asked do people actually sleep on this? She then lay down on it as it was already laid out. The mother talked about how it was a good idea to have a bed which you could roll up to make more space in a small flat. conceptual

Do they really expect people to get down on the floor to sleep?, Well I guess that it must be ok after yoga practice., Did you use anything like that when you were there?, No. conceptual, connecting

Living Area

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Listening to the audio track of film: isnt that a kettle boiling? LDK. Love it! Regarding the photo albums: I dont like looking at these because they T are too personal.

perceptual perceptual, affective

affective

The girl commented: I find it weird, who are they!? She said that it felt T weird to be looking through someones personal family album. Amazing, look at that print! referring to print on kimono in wedding T photo album affective affective

I like this (exhibition) because it is really interactive oh, Ikea!

affective perceptual affective

T 5 out of 7 Dining-Kitchen

its quite nice this sofa its from IKEA.

the lid on the bowls can be used as a dish for soya sauce and wasabi. this pan is so light, it must be aluminium. Youd get Alzheimers using

conceptual

this!

conceptual

They do quite well to make things look like the real thing this is plastic T made to look like lacquered wood its less expensive. affective, conceptual

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Recycling poster: this is fascinating. Then the wife showed the husband the contents of one of the drawers adding, look at these utensils holding up a pan for him to see. daughter picking up chopsticks saying: I think these are childrens T chopsticks. conceptual affective

lack of a physical sink in the kitchen area and said where do you think they wash up to which the other friend replied look, here it is and the cooker, pointing at the photograph on the wall. T Drawers: We really are nosing through it! Maybe the cat is allowed out sometimes. I like the girls pigtails and the trees in the garden. what is this and then suggesting that it could be for roasting nuts and T heating sesame seeds. conceptual conceptual, affective conceptual, perceptual strategic

food packages - Japanese visitor: Oh! This is my favourite! Its sponge T cake so nice, so soft!. affective, connecting

Im not so sure about the cowboy boot referring to toothpick holder Its tempting to just take these bowls

affective strategic, affective

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one woman asked the Japanese woman about the contents of one of the kitchen drawers: are they napkins? to which she replied No, they are T envelopes for sending money. conceptual

she also asked: are they everyday mugs for tea? the Japanese woman confirmed that she used mugs like this for drinking tea. conceptual

Japanese woman: This is very like a home, like my mums house! Although I have never seen a cat in a cage before. I like that big bowl on table Ive seen these before mugs connecting, conceptual affective connecting

T 1 out of 9

I wonder if you could get it in Muji thats gorgeous pottery.

connecting, affective

Other cted book)

areas interaction/visitor

(garden/corridor/unexpe

roll-up curtain window lightbox: I couldnt be bothered to roll it up, I like ones that you can just pull up and down. affective, conceptual

cat in a cage photo Its awful. Obviously shes allowed out. Did you see the tatami room? It smells good.

affective, conceptual affective

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home-made curtained in the corridor, one of the women said isnt that what you wanted to do with your windows? I think slippers are a theme of the photography connecting conceptual

I dont know how they manage to move around its so cluttered! comment whilst watching film of home interior. conceptual

He commented on the lightbox of the window in the corridor saying they dont have just rice paper. conceptual

Table of Data: Period Gallery

Overview Room 1

Time

Behaviour

Comments

Code

Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3

2 2 5 Listening post

Regarding chair (but did not sit down): "You would have to sit with an incredibly straight back." "Beautiful plates"

conceptual, affective

Visitor 4

Touching fabrics, listening post.

"Doesn't it feel great?" - "that's a big salt pot. Maybe it's because you would take out the salt with your fingers" - "Look at the size of that spoon!" - "glasses haven't changed much, I can't believe those are so old."

affective, perceptual, conceptual, conceptual

66

Visitor 5 Visitor 6

6 3

Sat on chair, listening post Listening post

"It's alright this chair, it actually makes you feel important." - "It just looks like a normal plate".

affective, perceptual, conceptual

Visitor 7 Visitor 8

12 4

Sat on chair, listening post

Chair: "sit in it and feel important" - "Well it's shorter than most, maybe it was for short people?" - Material (whilst touching): "I always thought dimity would be thinner than that" "Let's sit on this chair because you're allowed to!" Touching material: "I'm reading George Elliot and she keeps mentioning demask fabric" - pointing to building in photograph: "I know that building"

perceptual, conceptual, conceptual strategic

Visitor 9 Visitor 10

4 2

sat on chair, touching fabrics

connecting, perceptual

Visitor 11 Average time

3 4.36363 6364

Sat on chair, took photo of chair,, touched fabrics,

Comparing materials: "Soft, strong, softer" - Chair: "because it's so short, you have to sit upright" "you look very important"

perceptual, conceptual, perceptual

Room 1 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7

Time 1 1 2 1 1 1 2

Behaviour Read paddle

Comments

"Isn't it dark, the furniture?"

perceptual

Read paddle

67

Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10

2 1 1

Read paddle

"I like the table - all the wood" Talking about another exhibition. Listening to audioguide - pointing at objects as they were mentioned.

affective connecting

Visitor 11 Average time

2 1.36363 6364

Overview Room 2 Visitor 1

Time 2

Behaviour

Comments

Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4

4 2 8

Read newspapers on wall

Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

3 2 3 2 5 3 3 3.36363 6364

Read newspapers on wall Listening post

"I know someone with chairs like this"

connecting

Listening post Listening post Read newspapers on wall

"I like these cane chairs" "I love that chair, that's great. I love the tassels and fabric" Discussed layout of the house whilst looking at house cross-section drawing.

affective affective

perceptual

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Room 2

Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11

Time

1 2 2 2 1 1 2 1 1 1

Behaviour

Comments "What a great big table - lots of space"

perceptual

Read paddle

"My friend has a table like that with lots of drawers - you can tell it's antique" "Very simple looking. The chairs aren't though they're very intricate. Oh I love it" Talking about other things

connecting perceptual, affective connecting

Average time

2 1.45454 5455

Listening to audioguide

Overview Room 3

Time

Behaviour

Comments

Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4

3 1 3 Listening post Listening Post They then skipped the rest of the galleries to go to the caf

"The cups don't have handles"

perceptual

69

Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9

2 2 2 2 10

Listening post

Touch the Jappaning process wood

"I love lacquerware" - then discussion about process of making it whilst touching

affective, connecting

Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

2 3 3

Touch the Jappaning process wood

Talking about other things "The tables got smaller and there are finer things"

connecting conceptual

Room 3 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

Time

Behaviour Visitor left exhibition at this point 1 2 1 1 2 1 2 1 Read paddle

Comments

"I like the tea caddy" - they noticed the text paddles for the first time and said "we'll read the paddles on the way back"

affective, strategic perceptual, affective perceptual, connecting

"Tea bowls without handles, that's interesting" "Oh, biscuits!" - then discussed food in the past

3 1.55555 5556

70

Overview Room 4 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7

Time

Behaviour

Comments

3 2 1 1 2

Listening post Touched carpets

Touched carpets Touched carpets "They've got very big seats", "well I guess they had very big clothes, you had to balance yourself" conceptual, perceptual

Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

1 3 2 3 2 Touched carpets Touched carpets Touched carpets

"I don't like those style of paintings on vases"

affective

"This one is much finer" - Rush matting: "Horrible, I hate this one" - "So, we're only talking a difference of 50 years" - "presumably this one is cheaper"

perceptual, affective, conceptual

Room 4 Visitor 1 Visitor 2

Time 1

Behaviour

Comments

71

Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1.22222 2222 Read paddle Look closely at wallpaper

"Oh wow, I'd love a rug like this." Carpet: "It's quite big" Whilst pointing to image of room next to text: "Quite a large space" - "I like the wallpaper, quite a feast for the eyes "It's quite nice. The carpet is lovely - priceless!" "I like the mirror, and the wallpaper" "It's so busy, I couldn't manage it. But it feels warmer than the last one because of the carpet and wallpaper" - "even the flowerpot matches" "It's painted wallpaper!"

affective perceptual perceptual, affective affcetive affective, perceptual perceptual

Overview Room 5,6&7 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5

Time 2 3 3

Behaviour Sat on chair Listening Post, sat on chair Sat on chair

Comments

"Is it comfy?" - "I think I'd like one of these. Do you think we'd be able to get it on the train?"

affective,

Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8

4 2 3

Close reading of texts Sitting on chair: "Not very comfortable, my knees are going to ache." - "I like these rustic

Sat on chair

affective,

72

Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time Room 5 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5

4 1 2 2.66666 6667 Time 1 1

Sat on chair Sat on chair Touched the picture next to text, sat in chair

adornments". Discussion about Mrs Beeton "Oh this looks very comfortable!" - sitting down: "ah!", friend: "I'll wake you up".

affective

Chair: "luxurious"

conceptual

Behaviour

Comments

Boy (about 5): "Chess! I want to play that chess. I just have to get over." "No, you're not allowed". Needlework: "we could easily do that ourselves" "if my dad could decorate the house it would be like this" - "is this just painted blue?"

perceptual, strategic

Touched and examined the wallpaper

perceptual, connecting

Visitor 6 Visitor 7

1 1

Pointed to chess board and commented Read paddle Needlework: "They're mostly decorative, but if you were sitting on the sofa you could hide behind one if you were talking to a friend" - "I like the wallpaper pattern butit's overly fussy" "that's a rather pretty picture" "I like the mood of this room, it's very calm" Discuss her own home dcor. "I like that colour of blue, that's a nice room." - "Mind you, you could get depressed, all that blue" "Oh look at the chess board" "There are games and things to do"

Visitor 8

Conceptual, affective

Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

2 1 2 1.55555 5556 Took a photo of room

perceptual perceptual

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Room 6 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7

Time 1 1

Behaviour

Comments

1 1 1

"the wallpaper is so 60s."- skirting board: "I love that" Pointing at the cushions: "I've just made a cushion cover - I was so proud of myself" "This is something I'm more familiar with. My greataunt had a sitting room with the same kind of table with glass on it and a plant on top." "All ladies played a piano like this" - "Look the mirror is over the mantle now" - That's a beautiful desk gorgeous" - "And they usually had something under glass like that" - "When I was a child we used to go to Mrs Parsons and they didn't have electricity, only gas lighting" Curtains: "Oh the lace, I love it!" - "I like these two paintings" "That's very similar to our carpet" "Ah, this is so nice"

conceptual, affective

connecting

Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

2 2 1 2 1.33333 3333

connecting, affective affective connecting affective

Room 7 Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3 Visitor 4 Visitor 5

Time 1 1 1

Behaviour

Comments

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Visitor 6

took a photo

Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11 Average time

1 2 2 1 2 1.33333 3333 took a photo

"I like it" "I've seen rooms like this" - "The last one looked like my grandmother's best room that you never used" - "We've got a rug like that" - "I like the mirror" "Oh, this feels much more fresh" - "this big piece is similar to what was in their house" - "they admired oriental things - those paintings are Japanese" "Oh, I love this room and this wallpaper. Beautiful but it's a bit much. I love that vase" "This is arts and crafts"

affective

connecting affective, connecting, conceptual affective conceptual

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