MEX Students Visit Sarasota
This semester, Museum Education and Visitor-Centered Exhibitions (MEX) students taking the ARE 5930 Visitor Studies class applied research at our partner museum, the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Florida. They conducted a visitor study related to The Ringling’s fall special exhibition, Royal Taste: The Art of Princely Courts in Fifteenth Century China. The study incorporates gallery observations, exit surveys and interviews, and interpretation prototypes to better determine what visitors know about Asian art, would like to learn more about, and how to engage visitors with artworks in the museum galleries. The study’s findings will be presented to Ringling staff members on Friday, December 11, 2015. The FSU Department of Art Education hopes that the study’s results are beneficial to the museum staff as they prepare for two upcoming Asian art exhibitions and the opening of the new Center for Asian Art in February of 2016.
Three MEX students conducted internships in the education department at The Ringling this semester in addition to the Visitor Studies course. Victoria Eudy worked closely with the docent program, educational program writing, and Bayfront Garden interpretive materials. Maghan Stone also aided with family and adult programs during her internship.
The following are photos taken during their internship experience:
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- Sarah Graves and Aja Roache prepare for visitor interviews in the permanent collections of the Ringling.
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- Victoria Eudy and the Visitor Studies class in the permanent collections of the Ringling.
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- Maghan Stone, MEX Master’s student leads a family activity.
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- Ecology activity in the Bayfront Gardens (releasing ladybugs in the rose garden).
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- Maghan led a paper making activity at the popular Thursday night event Ringling Underground on Thursday, November 5. Live music was featured while Maghan managed long lines for art making.