In Plain Sight - Ep. 1: "Look Longer"

10 snips

Jul 24, 2025

Dive into the transformative power of art through personal experiences at a museum. Discover how emotions and details enhance connections to artwork. Explore the critical role of staff in making the art world more accessible and welcoming. Learn about the impact of social media in bridging the gap between fine art and the public. Experience the difference between viewing art in person versus reproductions, and how that shapes lasting memories and appreciation. This exploration invites you to look longer and deeper at every piece.

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INSIGHT

Museums: Thrilling Yet Intimidating

Art museums are grand and imposing spaces that can simultaneously thrill and intimidate visitors.
The experience depends heavily on who accompanies you and how the art resonates personally.

INSIGHT

Museum Staff as Psychologists

Visitor experience reps act like museum psychologists, reading visitors’ moods and needs on arrival.
Their role goes beyond directions to crafting personalized art experiences for each visitor.

ADVICE

Social Media Makes Art Human

Use social media to make art approachable and connect with people lacking art history knowledge.
Share relatable, human moments to draw new audiences into art appreciation.

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"There are different levels of looking. And it's exciting to bring people to the different levels." - Estelle Quain, docent, National Gallery of Art

How do YOU feel when you walk into an art museum? Is it familiar? Intimidating? Do you have a guard trying to shush you, or an overly-enthusiastic friend trying to tell you what to like? Are you joyful? Are you sad? Are you… bored?

You’re not alone. Whether it’s your first time in an art museum or your 10,000th, everyone’s going to respond differently. That’s why we made this podcast.

In June of 2024, I was honored to be the Storyteller-in-Residence at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. I spent a week in the museum talking to and recording as many people as I could: curators, museum staff, visitors. We talked about what brought them to the museum, and what keeps them there. We talked about what makes the museum experience transcendent, and, bluntly, what can get in the way of that - what stands in the way of connecting with an artwork, what makes them feel like they never learned the secret knock to access this world. After all, in order to make a space inviting, you have to understand why some people can feel left out.

In this three-part series, a collaboration between the National Gallery of Art and The Lonely Palette, we’re going to explore the idea of what it means to open yourself up to an art museum, one artwork, or conversation, at a time. And how the tools to do this have been here for you all along, literally in plain sight, just waiting for you.

Today, in the first episode of our series, I talked to various museum staff about preconceived notions of art that visitors bring with them to the museum. We discussed how their jobs are to meet visitors where they’re at, and to encourage them to go further. To look longer.

Learn more.

See the images.

Music Used:

The Blue Dot Sessions, “Brer Rhetta,” “Greylock,” “Alustrat,” Vela Vela,” “Caprese,” “Setting Pace,” “Our Fingers Cold”