| Title |
Control Mechanisms for Visitors in Museum Exhibition Spaces |
| Authors |
이민주(Lee, Min-Ju) ; 황희준(Whang, Hee-Joon) |
| DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5659/JAIK.2026.42.9.27 |
| Keywords |
Museum Space; Disciplinary Society; Burnout Society; Control Mechanism; Michel Foucault; Han Byung-Chul; Space Syntax |
| Abstract |
This study addresses limitations in museum space research that has relied primarily on Michel Foucault’s concept of disciplinary society by
introducing Han Byung-Chul’s Burnout Society to reinterpret control mechanisms in museum spaces. Both the disciplinary society and the
Burnout Society are redefined from the perspective of visitor experience as spatial conditions that generate coercion and autonomy. Based on
this distinction, an analytical framework focused on curation and circulation is established. Space syntax analysis is additionally employed to
examine structural differences. The findings show that the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) Deoksugung and
Mario Botta’s San Francisco Museum of Modern Art reflect disciplinary control mechanisms through forced circulation, whereas MMCA
Seoul and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art express Burnout Society mechanisms through interaction and diverse spatial
experiences. Several cases also demonstrate coexistence or conflict between the two mechanisms. The study reveals that museums function as
complex spatial systems where external coercion and internalized self-discipline intersect and therefore cannot be fully explained through a
single theory or physical element. This research expands the interpretive framework of museum studies, demonstrates the spatial applicability
of philosophical theory, and highlights the possibility of empirically examining museum control mechanisms through space syntax. |