Mystery Shopping Assignment (Art Institute of Chicago, told with usage of gifs)
Let me preface this by saying I am an introvert with mild social anxiety. I get my energy from spending time alone. Although I do like museums, I normally tend to go during the week day because I know that children are at school and most people are at work. When we received the assignment to go to the museum, I was anxious because I knew with my work/school schedule I would have to go on a Sunday.
So, on April 2nd, 2017 I enlisted my roommate and her boyfriend to join me as I went to the AIC for this assignment. Back home, there was a museum that I would go to on Tuesday mornings. It was the perfect time to go because essentially no one was there and I didn’t have to awkwardly maneuver around screaming toddlers, conceited millennials, or tourists.
I would say that I experienced 3/5 types of consumer engagement experiences while I was at the AIC, interaction, transportation and discovery.
When you’re at a museum, you’re forced to interact one way or another. When I first walked into the museum I had to walk to the counter to get my ticket. There, I had an interaction with the clerk that eyed me suspiciously when I said I was a student at Northwestern (didn’t know what that was about). From there I connected with my roommate and her boyfriend whenever we would see something that really caught our eyes.
There was one exhibit in particular (which I’ll discuss later) that really drew me in. I spent about 45 minutes in that one exhibit alone. It provided a sense of escapism and allowed me to try to imagine things like what it would’ve been like to live in that era.
I would say that I gained a considerable amount of insight while I was at the AIC. Being able to experience someone’s expressed form of art is always an enlightening experience for me. I feel like every time I go to a museum I learn something new that I might not have known before.
Excerpts From My Personal Diary While At AIC
I felt like after church was the best time for me to go to the museum. I figured that most people would be enjoying the nice weather and opting out of spending their time at the AIC. I was wrong. I drove to church so for starters, I was really annoyed that a. I had to drive downtown to get to this museum b. there was no provided parking.
I ended up having to park about a half mile away from the museum. Good thing I wore comfortable shoes. When we walked in, we had to wait in line for a ticket. There were about 6 clerks so it moved fast. When I got to the counter, I handed over my ID and requested a ticket. Unfortunately, I was met with a “why are you here?” glare. (I’m about 54% that’s because I was feeling anxious and projecting my feelings onto said clerk.)
After I secured my ticket, I headed downstairs to use the bathroom. Note to self: drink less water when you know you’re going to be doing something important. The bathrooms were really clean which is a big plus for me because it’s nothing worse than having to use a dirty bathroom. However, I encountered my first screaming child. This is going to be a long day.
I only successfully made it to two of the exhibits in the museum: Provoke and Thorne Miniature Rooms.
Provoke was a photography collection of Japanese protests dated between 1960 and 1975. It drew the connections between protests, photography, and performance in post-war Japan. I’m not sure why I was so drawn into this particular exhibit but I really admired the use of black and white photography. The pictures were just so full of raw expressionism that I stayed in this exhibit for about an hour.
From there, I spent time deciding where to go next. It seemed like everyone decided to go to the museum that day so it was really hard to find a piece of art that wasn’t hovered over.
I stumbled into the Thorne Miniature Rooms exhibit. Filled with tons of mini-homes from different eras. I am not ashamed to admit that I was an EXTREME fan of Barbies when I was growing up. I would spend all of my earned money on buying new homes and cars from my dolls. I’m not sure why but this miniature home exhibit made me think so much of just placing one of my dolls (because of course I still have them) in these homes. It also brought back memories of my childhood which was refreshing. The amount of details put into these homes was mind blowing. There were so many details in each of them that I just sat there amazed. This exhibit was mentally stimulating and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
After those two exhibits, I was at my wits-end. I was drained from the noise and traffic of the museum that I decided it was time to go. On the way out I noticed two things: an area where people could donate to the museum and across from it was a gift shop. I wanted to go into the gift shop but I was deterred by the flow of people. Luckily, I quickly Google’d and found that you can also shop online. Refreshing.
After leaving the museum, I was able to take a step back and allow all that I experienced to wash over me. Did I spend enough time in the museum? Should I have tried to see the exhibit that Professor Kolsky mentioned? I was overwhelmed with the shoulda/coulda/woulda’s.
I also thought about things like what prompted me to walk to certain exhibits and not others. When I got home, I wrote everything out and here’s what I’ve come up with:
I strongly believe that a catalyst for all of my decisions made at the AIC were the number of people in each exhibit. As I’ve mentioned, I am an introvert and get anxious when I’m surrounded. I feel like that hindered me from seeing a lot of the other great things that the AIC had to offer.
However, I’ve previously been to the AIC when it wasn’t packed and had an amazing experience. So although I feel this time was a bust in terms of how many things I got to see, it’s not like that was my first time going. When I originally went to the AIC, it was because I’ve read so many great things about it. I’m the type of person to move to a new city and try to see both the tourist things and the things that only locals know about. This was like a 2-for-1 because a lot of locals suggested that I should see it.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time at the AIC. I got to see two amazing exhibits that I had not previously seen and had the opportunity to talk it over with my roommate.
I think in order to market to an individual like myself, it would be nice if the AIC had “Quiet Hours.” Basically, a time where guests would have to tread lightly in the museum. In other words, leave their kids at home and stop cackling in the walkways.
I know that I’m from the South so hospitality is a given but it wouldn’t hurt if the attendants were a little nicer/informative. Back home, whenever you go to a museum, employees are quick to walk over to you and strike conversation about something that you’re looking at or have interest in. Not only does that stimulate the guest and enable them to get a different perspective of something they’ve seen..it’s just a really nice gesture.
Also, there was a really weird smell on the bottom floor. I’m not sure if it always smells like that, if there was a spill, or if someone was eating. If that is indeed something that the AIC can fix, I would suggest doing so.
I think museums in general should have areas for children, especially if it isn’t a children’s museum. It’s so hard to keep children under control when they’re not doing things that stimulate them. It’s also disturbing to other guests when children are running around knocking into people *cough cough*
The Art Institute of Chicago doesn’t really have a specific demographic of people that attend the museum. It’s filled with artists, tourists, locals, students, teachers, kids, and hipsters alike. I would say that it serves people that are interested in the arts and like to experience it physically. I believe it adequately serves this market well.
I believe it’s also easily accessible. Though you have to pay to get in if you’re not a student, it’s not a ridiculous amount of money.
Once you walk in, everything is pretty much laid out for you to see. You quickly notice signs that lead to certain areas of the museum. Sidenote: THOSE STEPS ARE BRUTAL AND TELLING....I’M DEFINITELY OUT OF SHAPE.
Product Features: Paintings, photographs, sculptures, paperweights, construction, architecture, literature.
Emotional Benefits: Feeling enlightening, indulged, and an appreciation for art
Social Benefits: Consumers have the ability connect with other lovers of art.
Functional Benefits: There are easy-to-read signs everywhere in the museum marking which exhibit and where and so forth.
Experience Benefits: The ability to hang out in the common areas, take photos and tag the AIC, etc.
Work on my social anxiety/getting out more
Easily accessible from downtown (where I was)
I’ve already been so I know that it’s great
Getting my ticket to go to the museum
Provoke and Thorne Miniature Homes
Having to go at a time when there aren’t as many people
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to the AIC. I will definitely be back in the future.
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