A team of guides – all contemporary art experts, art historians or working artists – are on hand throughout the exhibition space to provide the keys to an understanding of the installations and help visitors to apprehend the work of each featured artist. Our multilingual guides are there to share their personal enthusiasm and knowledge,  answering questions, providing information, discussing the works with visitors, and guiding them according to their personal interests. The guides' deep knowledge of the artist's work as a whole, the installations presented, and their wider artistic context helps them to provide all the information needed for a successful and enjoyable visit.

Richard Serra, Alfred Pacquement & the mediators - Photo MCC/Didier Plowy

MONUMENTA's commitment to visitor services and cultural mediation promotes a friendly, convivial atmosphere and a direct, uncomplicated relationship with the works presented. The personal accompaniment available throughout Richard Serra's 'itinerary of the senses' is a tailored service adaptable to each visitor's individual needs. Visitors are free to follow their own path, experiencing the sensations provoked by the confrontation of the body and Serra's gigantic steel blades, within the spatial context of the installation, before discussing their impressions and ideas with a guide. The sculpture's subject is not the work itself, but rather the visitor, who discovers and experiences the new space created by the artist, in his or her own way.

For Monumenta 2008 Promenade, the individual guides act as mediators and 'promenaders'. They are on hand to walk with visitors through the space of the installation, if they so wish – a chance to take time to approach the artist's spectacular work at your own pace. Mediators are available to accompany each visitor for a time, during their personal 'Promenade', exchanging ideas and discussing the artist's aims, his career, the materials he uses, and the themes traversed and highlighted by his methods.