Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Thesis - Restricted Access (SIA Only) - With Distinction

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Art Business

First Advisor

Brendan Burns

Second Advisor

Lawrence Motz

Abstract

In modern society, Art is often presented as a universal language, capable of crossing social, cultural and linguistic barriers. It should be a space allowing free expression, open to everyone, regardless of backgrounds or knowledge. This romantic and idealized vision is appealing, and certainly sincere. However, as I visited museums, galleries and even fairs, I started to feel some subtle but present exclusion mechanisms.   The first sign that made me realize this was the language used in art exhibitions I visited – especially for modern and contemporary art, the focus of my thesis. Exhibition mediation texts are usually written in a dense vocabulary, punctuated by theoretical or implicit historical references. This language can be an obstacle for a large part of the audience. Not only doesn’t this help the visitor to better understand the exhibition or the works but can create a distance between them. A symbolic frontier between the artistic institution and the occasional visitor, that can even discourage attendance. This observation was at first only mine, but it became clear through comparison with the experiences of others and via lectures and thoughts in diverse cultural contexts. Certain cultural places are sincerely trying to make art more accessible through their mediation, while others cultivate a certain form of elitism. This difference between institutions is not only language specific but also based on other aspects of the artistic experiences, like the curating framework or the space layout. All these aspects that in this thesis, we are going to call “mediation”. Here, the mediation refers to all the tools and strategies that connect artworks to their audiences within museums and art institutions. It includes wall texts, exhibition labels, audio guides, mobile applications, guided tours, and digital interfaces – and so then also the tone, vocabulary, and pedagogical choices that shape the visitor’s understanding of art. More than a simple transmission of information, mediation construct the narrative frame thanks to which the public accesses to the artwork. How the visitors are welcome in a place, the tools used to help their understanding, but also how readable and transparent the exhibition is, all play a role in shaping the visitor’s sense of inclusion – or, at the opposite, on their exclusion feeling. In this thesis, I will question whether modern and contemporary art made accessible, or not, to a broad audience, without definitively claiming that a certain type of art, or a specific artistic approach would be excluding.  This reflection raises broader and wiser questions: is this difficulty of access the simple effect of a way too much theoretical language or the symptom of a broader structure, socially and economically situated? If this thesis is stating as a starting point the exclusion feeling through the language used, it will explore also beyond that: how curatorial or institutional choices could ensure and maintain certain forms of exclusion?  And more importantly: who benefits from this logic and who doesn’t? What would the art industry and the society gain by including more people? Finally, this research is about digging into a possible solution: Artificial Intelligence. Can Artificial Intelligence be the solution to make the art institution more welcoming and inclusive? If so, to what extent?

Distinction

1

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