Actionable Inspiration: Visitor Experiences of Creative Impulse in Art Museums

Authors:

• Amanda Rodgers and Shylee Wheeler, Museology Graduate Program
• Chair: Jessica Luke
• Daniela Rosner
• Jeanine Ancelet

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Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of an art museum experience on an adults’ creative impulse through an analysis of two key questions: 1) To what extent and in what ways do people feel an art museum exhibit inspires them in general? And 2) To what extent and in what ways do people feel an art museum exhibit inspires them to create specifically? Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 182 participants at Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), Detroit, MI; The Walters Art Museum (The Walters), Baltimore, MD; and the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA), Cleveland, OH. Results show that participants did feel a sense of general inspiration, as well as inspiration/motivation to create or make something specifically. Explanations of participants’ feelings of inspiration fell into several categories including a) their interest in creating something themselves, b) their interest in the artistic process, c) inspiration that was unrelated to creativity, and in some cases, d) their barriers to transforming inspiration into creative outputs. We believe that this study could benefit other researchers who are trying to solidify the link between inspiration, creativity, and self-actualization in museum settings.