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Opportunities in Liminality: An Inquiry into Museum Narratives and Structures as Catalysts for Culture

Meister, Lauren L
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3598-5140
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1623166529808358

Abstract Details

2021, MARCH, University of Cincinnati, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture.
Museums as learning institutions have been around for centuries, originating as personal collections within private homes and extending to open exhibitions that anyone may attend. The ritual of attending a museum, similar in manner to other ceremonial activities, is parallel to that of a reverential experience with an additional facet of learning. But how will the postmodern museum look and function? What are strategies developed by museums and cultural centers that will best heighten the overall experience and perspectives gained by visitors? While there are various models of learning and identities that help define typical museum visitors and why they visit, there needs to be a more modern lens applied to this methodology to understand guests in the 21st century, especially in light of recent events including the Covid-19 pandemic. Such places need to be more resilient and flexible to respond to issues presently or imminently existing and not simply to preserve previous moments in time. By reflecting on previous practices and understanding the present need of institutions such as these, this thesis will explore scenarios in which a modern museum is combined with an academic complex and community cultural center serving a variety of demographics. The goal of having such a place as a one-stop destination would be to create a large overall snapshot of the University of Cincinnati, Clifton Heights, and greater Cincinnati area communities, engaging diverse groups of people at various levels. A building and surrounding urban design layout are envisioned in proximity to UC’s campus, presented in models and drawings, and described in an in-depth essay extrapolated primarily from research on the narrative experience and relevance of physical museums. The physical nature of the museum will challenge preconceived notions of what these buildings should offer, showing a holistic perspective of what they can grow to be. The investigation also shows how a postmodern museum/cultural center can be associated with other institutions (such as universities) to encourage community conversations. As a result of this thesis project, UC and the Clifton Heights Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation will have a set of contemporary, critical, architectural images which reflect the opportunities available by creating a public learning center that encourages community dialogues while celebrating artifacts and research collected by the University throughout the years. Also, architects, museum curators, exhibition designers, and people associated in other related disciplines will have access to this methodology for making museums and similar cultural centers more participatory and meaningful for the users, locally and globally.
Elizabeth Riorden, M.Arch. (Committee Chair)
Michael McInturf, M.Arch. (Committee Member)
56 p.
Architecture
architecture; museum design; liminal spaces; exhibition design; urban design; cultural center

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Meister, L. L. (2021). Opportunities in Liminality: An Inquiry into Museum Narratives and Structures as Catalysts for Culture [Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1623166529808358

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Meister, Lauren. Opportunities in Liminality: An Inquiry into Museum Narratives and Structures as Catalysts for Culture. 2021. University of Cincinnati, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1623166529808358.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Meister, Lauren. "Opportunities in Liminality: An Inquiry into Museum Narratives and Structures as Catalysts for Culture." Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2021. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1623166529808358

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1623166529808358
58
© 2021, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Opportunities in Liminality: An Inquiry into Museum Narratives and Structures as Catalysts for Culture by Lauren L Meister is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.