What Is Interpretation？
There are many versions of a definition of interpretation.However,the following statement sums up what interpretation aims to achieve.
“Interpretation enriches our lives through engaging emotions,enhancing experiences and deepening understanding of places,people,events and objects from the past and present.”[2]
It was in the 1950s in the USA that people began to consider how best to explain the significance of the National Parks and how to get people to value them,to change their behaviours to help protect and preserve them.Freeman Tilden wrote“Interpreting Our Heritage”in 1957 from which most interpretive theory derives today still derives.
What Tilden wrote about wasn't a new idea.Ever since we've been able to communicate we've been trying to explain things to each other,whether it's how to light a fire,catch a meal or perhaps to try to understand why we are here!
Tilden tried to describe this process of explanation,enabling what he saw as best practice to be shared more widely,to help people like him get their message across.Of course today,cognitive psychologists,visitor studies researchers and the like are all contributing to this“school”of interpretation,helping us to understand visitor behaviour and motivations during a non-learning heritage visit.
As more and more people gain the ability,i.e.get wealthy enough,to visit heritage attractions,then it becomes more and more important to communicate well with visitors.(https://www.daowen.com)
As society grows richer,as technology improves,as our visitors become more discerning,have greater expectations as to how they spend their leisure time and money,and as more and more leisure time activities compete for these audiences,heritage can't be left behind simply because we are unable or unwilling or uninformed as to how to meet these demands.
An example of effective interpretation is found at the Eden project in the UK.In 2017 the Eden Project received over 1 000 000 visits.It's one of the UK's most successful visitor attractions;set in a former opencast mine,Eden aims to connect people with the living world,exploring how we can work together for a better future.
It comprises of a stack of buckets and water containers,six laminated sheets of paper and some well-chosen words.The interpretation does not rely on multimedia displays,mobile phone technology or expensive graphics.
How does this make you feel?It's certainly a very powerful message about our planet.This is a big issue,is it not?How we manage where we all live?Look at the context of the message it's placed in which is,from Northern European perspective,some exotic rainforest plants.Maybe it's a cry for help against deforestation.
Clearly,for a successful visitor attraction with a global message of conservation,even the simplest piece of interpretation is a highly considered and thoughtful message contributing to their ambitions.It made me stop and think.I've used this example because it is a good example demonstrating the principles or core lessons of interpretation.