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"Do they read? Oh, yes, they do," was the conclusion of a paper identifying the proof of label use in visitors' in-gallery conversations versus the difficulties of observing them reading. This paper -methodologically refines this research question by asking how exactly exhibit labels are used. Answers are derived from an empirical study that analyzed viewing behavior both before and after the reinstallation of a museum's collection through mobile eye tracking (MET), subjective mapping, and questionnaires. As the introduction of interpretive labels was one of the major changes implemented, the paper demonstrates differences in visitors' responses to the artworks with or without contextual information. Analytical emphasis rests on the exploration of patterns in the process of decision making (differentiating between visitors' reading affinities); visual engagement (analyzing the combined activities of looking and reading); and memory (echoing label texts in visitors' artwork reflections). Our findings show that all visitors read, albeit to very different extents, the majority being medium-affinity readers; that the basic viewing pattern "art-label-art" becomes more complex with more text and more -visitors on-site; and that art interpretations deepen and differ through additional information. The power of labels to guide eyes and thoughts suggests their intentional use in museum and curatorial practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Undergrounds and urban railways have become significant places from a cultural point of view, real distinctive signs of cities and their development. In this context, the Neapolitan capital (Italy) was among the first cities in Europe to understand the importance of building stations with high artistic and architectural standards. The desire to create an impressive infrastructural and architectural project, the strong innovative drive and the vision at the basis of the metro city project have been adopted, over the years, also in the planning of new underground lines such as Line 6. The purpose of this paper was to continue the narration of this visionary design idea by describing one of the most representative new station "Chiaia" of the Line 6, designed by the British artist Peter GREENAWAY. Furthermore, in order to quantify the impact of the Art Metro on the city and its citizens, a mobility survey was also carried out aimed at quantifying the number and type of visitors and tourists of the works of art widely exhibited in the overall Neapolitan metropolitan system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On April 22, 1965, Hong Kong's signature airline, Cathay Pacific Airways, launched the multicity tour of an art exhibition— Contemporary Art in Asia —in Singapore. Consisting of about 130 pieces of artwork, the exhibition toured Kuala Lumpur, Bang-kok, Jesselton, Manila, Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and Taipei before returning to Hong Kong. The exhibition was mounted as a commercial promotion for Cathay Pacific's flight network in Asia, but it represents an instance of an Asia-wide art exhibition, something that was rare at that time. This paper situates the exhibition in a broad historical context. By examining city networks, Asian art, and representations of air hostesses from the perspective of Hong Kong, I argue that this corporate-sponsored "tour of the Orient" exhibition reveals diverse imaginations of Asia and its modernity beyond the Orient–Occident binaries of the 1960s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines creative uses of video games. The starting point of the article is an observation of the inherent interconnection between play and art. The demise of the play element, as observed by Johan Huizinga, has been overturned by critics pointing to an increasingly ludic contemporary culture. The sphere of art, however, so far has been largely excluded from this discourse. Three in-depth cases of video games created by artists are presented and analysed. The critical capabilities of computer games are discussed: how artists use them to comment on society, culture, art and gaming itself. A closer look at recent exhibitions featuring artistic games and a discussion of the art world's apparent embrace of the new medium follows. I will argue that artistic video games can be dotted to a longer tradition of art bonded with a heavy element of play, such as Fluxus and performance art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the collaboration with Maya artisans during the exhibition, Crafting Maya Identity: Contemporary Wood Sculptures from the Puuc Region of Yucatán, Mexico. The exhibition called into question the applicability of Western systems of value and classification to the aesthetic works of other cultures and also explored notions of contemporary Maya identity in the context of the local tourism industry. The artisans' presence during the exhibition and their engagement with the public during organized events created opportunities for visitors to learn more about the artisans and their work. This paper takes a critical look at the exhibition's successes and shortcomings by way of feedback from the artisans and the public and offers recommendations for future collaborative projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fate of "Beautiful Istanbul", one of the sculptures erected in a public space in Istanbul for the 50th year celebrations of the Turkish Republic under the joint initiative of Istanbul State Academy of Fine Arts, State School of Applied and Fine Arts and the Istanbul Municipality is not only a display of the relationship between political authority and art in Turkey, but an indication of the problem of representing and exhibiting the nude in Turkish culture. "Beautiful Istanbul", a sculpture dating 1974 by Gürdal Duyar was taken down by authorities on the grounds of the Ministry of Interior decision that it represented "Turkish mothers disgracefully", and that the artistic level of the Turkish people could not yet accepts such sculpture. Becoming a focus of hot debate in the political and cultural arena at the time, the "Beautiful Istanbul" became the site where different political ideologies collided. Comparing "Beautiful Istanbul" with other representations of the body both within art and popular culture in Turkey at the time gives us clues as to how the body is conceived in Turkish culture. This paper aims to show, through an art historical example, of how certain boundaries have been set in Turkish culture in relation to the body. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The British Galleries project at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) involved a major redisplay of approximately 5000 objects. One of the star objects provided an ideal opportunity to re-evaluate the presentation and shape of an important eighteenth-century dress known as the Christie Dress. A paper on this object had been published previously in Studies in Conservation 23 (1978) 1-I4, but at that time little material analysis was carried out. Since the late 1970s the mantua has been on almost constant display. The authors describe the technical research, materials analysis and conservation, and re-evaluate previous reconstructions carried out on the dress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reviews the 2014 Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, featuring several artists including Alex Jovanovich, Gary Indiana and David Robbins.