Experience or interpretation: the dilemma of museums of modern art

Abstract

In an age where culture is consumed by a wider public than ever before, galleries and museums are no longer just repositories. They are sites of experience where the mind is often engaged as much as the eye. This work is an account of the changing attitudes to the way art is presented in the modern museum of art. The author examines the relationship between the artist, the public and the curator. He takes the reader into the artist's studio, itself a paradigm of display, and then on a wide-ranging international tour of museums, galleries and installations. He provides an expert view of the ways we can expect art to be displayed in the 21st century.