{"id":794,"date":"2005-11-02T08:19:29","date_gmt":"2005-11-02T16:19:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp\/2005\/11\/what_do_you_really_need_to_kno\/"},"modified":"2005-11-02T08:19:29","modified_gmt":"2005-11-02T16:19:29","slug":"what_do_you_really_need_to_kno","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/main\/what_do_you_really_need_to_kno.php","title":{"rendered":"What do you really need to know to connect?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mark Swed of the LA Times<\/i> poses some great questions in his recent Critic’s Notebook<\/a>. The core of the issue is this: how much do we really<\/i> need to know about an art work to connect with it? Says he:<\/p>\n


\nDo you understand a piece of music better if you know its secrets, or does illumination destroy mystery just as explaining a joke defuses its humor? Might audiences at classical music concerts be more receptive, not less, if they didn’t read program notes? Is there a reason why so many people who profess to believe in the Bible haven’t actually read it?
\n<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s a topic that’s come up before in this weblog<\/a> and will likely come again. Our answer to the question, as managers, informs how we market an exhibit or performance, how we inform it through program notes or signage, and how we measure our success in engaging an audience. Our default assumption seems to be that the more information we cram at an audience about the technical or biographical elements of a work, the better their experience will be.<\/p>\n

Louis Pasteur’s famous quote — ”chance favors the prepared mind” — could certainly apply to ”meaningful cultural experiences” instead of ”chance.” But does ”prepared” always mean ”educated” in the traditional sense? Couldn’t a particular life experience, sense memory, or emotional state also prepare us to be moved, even if we have no idea of the mechanics of the moment that’s moving us?<\/p>\n

Swed doesn’t offer many conclusions, except to describe two conceptually intense cultural events — one that was over-described the other under-described for his taste. And since the interest and benefit of such educational efforts varies by the individual, it might be best to offer opportunities<\/i> to learn more (through many paths of knowing), without preaching to the whole congregation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mark Swed of the LA Times poses some great questions in his recent Critic’s Notebook. The core of the issue is this: how much do we really need to know about an art work to connect with it? Says he: Do you understand a piece of music better if you know its secrets, or does […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-794","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-main","7":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/artfulmanager\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}