“Mom, take a photo quickly!” » In front of Van Gogh’s famous self-portrait, which is on display at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, Kathia, Lélio’s mother, agrees. Determined, she makes her way to the mysterious painting and holds up her cell phone. The picture is in the box. Excited, the duo sets off to tackle the next work to be photographed, leaving room for a number of other excited photographers. This scene in the museum has a touch of déjà vu. Between zooms, selfies and raised arms: the use of mobile phones by visitors has now become almost systematic.
These connected objects have even become problematic for the successful exhibition “Van Gogh in Auvers-sur-Oise, the last months,” which has just ended. “We have received complaints from visitors who disrupt photography and selfies. “This is something new compared to the permanent collections.” states Pierre-Emmanuel Lecerf, general director of the Musée d’Orsay.
In the middle of the exhibition, between the vertically positioned devices, tempers heated up: “People push us to take their photo instead of looking with their eyes. We don’t see the works anymore! “, one mother complained angrily.
After selfie sticks and tripods have been banned by law since 2015, the employees of the Paris museum are now thinking about new educational devices: “With information in the queues and the broadcast of a film in the square, we remind you in a humorous tone of the rules of good coexistence so that everyone can enjoy their moment,” foresees Virginie Donzeaud, deputy general manager.
Ban phones?
Although amateur photography in museums is not new, it has evolved over the past fifteen years with smartphones. This led to an outright ban by the Musée d’Orsay between 2010 and 2015. The digital tool has now been approved again in the facility and is now common practice. This is evidenced, for example, by the fact that Internet users have declared #MuseumSelfieDay, the international museum selfie day, which is set on the third Wednesday of January every year.
Sharing photos on digital social networks is also seen as a blessing: “It is a popular use and cultural democratization that encourages people to view the works and should not be burdened,” argues David Cascaro, director of audiences at the Center Pompidou in Paris. In this sense, Pierre-Emmanuel Lecerf specifies that in Orsay “60% of people are first-time visitors”for some thanks to the sharing of images on networks.
However, everyone agrees: photography has its flaws. “When we focus on our device, we pay less attention to what surrounds us. “This can be annoying for others or even dangerous for the plant,” explained David Cascaro.
“A visual trophy”
For the art sociologist Florence Andreacola: “The photo is a sign of interest in the work because it pleases, asks questions, touches or makes you laugh.” Everyone creates their own museum with their smartphone. “The photo marks the creation of a visual heritage, it is a very strong gesture of appropriation,” believes Benoît Labourdette, artist and art consultant. “It’s also about sharing the photo and enjoying social recognition”adds Florence Andreacola.
Sophie Limare, art theory teacher, even talks about one “visual trophy” : “We no longer go to the museum to see, but to prove that we have seen. » Therefore there is a risk of “Reduce painting to a cleaned-up image”from “Lose concentration” and beyond,“Forget thinking”.
Digital technology is omnipresent in our societies and logically also in museums. For professionals, it is therefore a matter of supporting this use or even turning it into a mediation tool. QR codes to blink to access more information, invitations to participate in photo competitions, exchanges with “chatbots” (conversational robots) to understand this or that visual detail… Professionals demonstrate ingenuity and “Usage must activate knowledge and creativity”says Benoît Labourdette happily.
At the moment, however, it does not seem to be a question of rethinking an entire museum to make it “photogenic”, although immersive and spectacular exhibitions lend themselves well to photography. “These new spaces primarily serve to strengthen the relationship between the work and the visitorNuance Florence Andreacola. The phone remains, at least for now, a peripheral location. »
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The most “instagrammable” works
Van Gogh’s “Self-Portrait” in the Musée d’Orsay (Portrait of the artist1889) is the star of visitors, especially foreigners.
Photographic interest is concentrated in the Center Pompidou more about Frida Kahlo’s self-portrait, The frame (“The Frame”, 1938).
Finally, the emblematic star of the Louvre Museum, The mona LIsa by Leonardo da Vinci attracts between 15,000 and 20,000 visitors every day, many of whom immortalize their visit with a selfie with the world’s most famous painting.
