My Top Art Museum Tips and Tricks:
Does the thought of visiting an art museum with your kids fill you with delight or terror? If terror is your answer, I am here to help! I have done art museum field trips with large groups of students and with my own two kids, starting when my son was 2 months old, and I have picked up a few tips and tricks along the way that I would love to share with you.
Now, let me start out saying that I know all these tips and tricks won’t be perfect for all kids. Few things irritate me more than suggestions that lump all children into one large group. You know your children better than anyone, and you know what they are ready for and what experiences with which they may need a bit more time. This post is meant as guidance for anyone looking for some fun ways to share more art with your kids and is not indeed in any way to shame anyone whose kids need different ways in which to engage with art. I hope it will serve as encouragement that if and when you and your kids are ready to hit an art museum in person you might have some extra tools in your tool belt to make the experience more enjoyable for all of you.
Build a Look Book:
The thing that I have found that works better than any other thing I have ever done with my kids is making a “look book”, ahead of time for the museum or exhibit. Most museum websites will provide you with information on specific works of art that will be featured in an exhibit. In addition, museums with large permanent collections will offer information on the particular pieces in those collections. This is where I start for the “look book”. I find images that I think will be most interesting to my children, either because of the image itself, something in the art they like, or something about the period of time I can use as a hook to get them interested. I then print off an image of the art and write the title, date, artist, art movement, interesting fact(s), etc. on the paper. Once I have a group of these pieces of paper, I laminate them. (so worth getting an inexpensive laminator if you do not own one. (Basic Laminator). Once I have my sheets laminated, I punch holes and link them with a split key ring. (Key Rings)
The “look book” is great to make ahead of time and let your kids explore it like they would any other book. This is especially great for toddlers and preschoolers so they start to become familiar with the images. When my kids were pre-readers, I still wrote the title and artist on the work just like words would be on any book. We would sit with the book and talk about the art. I would read them the title, the artists, etc. and then ask them questions about the images. Looking at art and talking about it with your kids is such a simple, fun way to develop vocabulary. Of course colors, shapes, etc. can be discussed, but so can deeper content such as feelings. Don’t worry if you don’t have an art history degree or all of the answers. Just start with talking about the art.
Once it is time to head to the museum the “look book” can be handy for many things. With younger kids, the book can be used as a scavenger hunt game. This is particularly helpful if you are in a huge museum. On our last trip to The Art Institute of Chicago, I had the book arranged by room (again information provided on the museum’s website). This kept my two going way longer than if we had just expected them to tag along. When we would get to a new area, I would say: “O.k., where are we in the book? Who can find such and such painting first? Does it look like you thought it would?”, etc. For older the kids, the book can be used for deeper exploration. For the Picasso exhibit, I included some images of art that had influenced Picasso and images of other art they had seen in person to compare and contrast. For example, I had an image of Picasso’s Mother and Child paired with an image of a Romanesque Virgin and Child that could have influenced his work (all information provided on the museum’s website…so now worries if art history is not your speciality). We discussed how different the two works of art are.
So from toddlers to teens the “look book” can serve many purposes. I used to take a carabiner and hook the book to the stroller. Now it hooks on my purse and is easy to hand back and forth to the kids as we explore. Many images are copyrighted, so unfortunately I can’t just share my “book” in a format for your use, but it is easy and fun to put one together with your kids.
Explore Other Books:
Besides your “look book” hit your local book store or library and stock up on good kids’ books about art and artists. Most artists have the most fascinating stories and it is usually easy to get kids to engage in their stories with a good book. My two favorite series are: Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists and the Who Was? series. The Who Was? series is geared towards 8-12 year olds. The Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists series is listed as for children 8-9, but I used to read many of these books in this series to even my Kindergarten students. I will say, with some things art, you may want to read the books first for any content you may find you are not ready yet to discuss with your kids. With our own kids, I share (age appropriately), pretty openly about most content in the books, but I always recommend screening even kids’ art books first.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=getting+to+know+the+world%27s+greatest+artists&crid=3MAQ62H1C5ZOC&sprefix=getting+to+know+the+wo%2Caps%2C183&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_22
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=who+was+series&crid=2Z8MHWWVLDI2S&sprefix=who+was%2Caps%2C190&ref=nb_sb_ss_midas-iss-sm_1_7
Find the Hook:
What makes your child excited? It is his or her favorite color, his or her favorite subject, his or her favorite toy, his or her favorite sport? Whatever it is, find some way to tie that to what you will be seeing. Maybe you do a scavenger hunt for all things red. Maybe you are at a large museum and you can take your little ballerina on a hunt for all things Degas. Some exhibits and museums are easier than others. For example, I have a feeling most kids visiting the recent Eric Carle exhibit were familiar with images from their favorite books. Some exhibits will be a bit more challenging to find the “hook” that gets your child excited, but you can do it.
With the Picasso exhibit I was a little worried I was going to lose my non-art loving tween, so I had to get really creative. Our son loves history, particularly WWII history, so I tied in some content in the “look book” just for him. We looked at paintings Picasso painted while living in occupied Paris. I had him study the dates of the paintings and compare what he knows about history and what was going on while Picasso was painting these paintings. We looked at The Supplicant and what Picasso must have been thinking while painting that and living through war. I even included a picture of Picasso’s large Guernica with a person standing in front of it to give my son an idea of the scale and get him interested in learning even more about Picasso’s story after the exhibit.
Now, discussing a WWII timeline with your 3 year old isn’t gong to keep him or her engaged, but what is the hook? There are several paintings in the Picasso exhibit that explore movement Woman Throwing a Stone for example could keep a young child engaged for a while trying to even figure out where the stone is. Where is the stone going? Why is the woman throwing it? Then you’ll have lots of time to think about: “Where is her head?” Ha! The Acrobat is another fun piece in the exhibit to discuss with younger kids if they are old enough to remember having been to the circus. What is the acrobat doing? Is the acrobat right side up or upside down? So many questions.
So no matter the age of your child or the level of the exhibit, try to find that “hook” that will get your child engaged. If it is simply count how many red things you find, that is great! You will get to the compare and contrast stage soon enough. Your goal should be having fun and exposing your child to art. Don’t worry if it isn’t more complicated than that.
Play The Part:
O.k. Truth, we only have one person in our family who likes to dress up. It is not me. If your kids like that though, use it to your advantage. What fun shirt can you make or pick up? Can you all wear a certain color? I saw several people at the Picasso exhibit with berets and stripped shirts. Our kids thought it was great! I unintentionally wore a stripped shirt to the exhibit. Maybe my subconscious stepped in to guide my inner Picasso. Dressing the part is not our thing, but I can say that if it made my kids smile, your kids who like to dress up may really get into this. Whatever it takes to build the excitement.
Be an artist. If the museum allows and your children are old enough, bring a drawing pad and some paper. Many museums will allow visitors to sit and sketch in the museum. I wouldn’t let a 2 year old loose with a sharpie, but you get the point. Check before arriving what you can bring into the museum. Our daughter likes to play photographer. Many museums will also allow non-flash photography. It can be as simple as letting your child use your iPhone to capture images they like. Then you can even assemble a post-exhibit look book.
Plan, Plan, Plan:
O.k. now to all of the obvious stuff. I have always found the more prepared I am going into a museum experience, the happier my kids are. I don’t blame them. No on wants to stand around trying to figure out what to do next or where to go. So, I personally plan our family art museum trips as if I were taking a group of students with me on a field trip. Now this doesn’t mean I don’t leave lots of wiggle room. If the kids want to spend 20 minutes looking at a painting I know nothing about, that is great. I let them guide the movement once we are in the flow. Now that our kids are older I do set some higher expectations too that if mom or dad want to look at something for a minute longer they can be patient and wait. I do want the experience to be engaging, memorable, and fun however. So, what I do plan are all the nuts and bolts and expectations. For example:
Where will we park?
How far will the kids need to walk?
Will there be spots for breaks?
When did we eat last and when will we eat again? (some things never change no matter the age of your kids)
Do I have something bright and recognizable on?
Do we have on comfy shoes? Do we have on layers for different temps? Museums can be chilly.
Is there a kids area for play?
Will there be listening devices?
Are there other resources for kids?
All of these things and all the other parenting hacks you have are important to think through with any museum visit. The last thing you want is someone melting down over something preventable. Of course, there are lots of unpreventable things along the way of parenthood, so give yourself lots of grace if something goes awry. I know (mostly) what I am doing at an art museum and something almost always goes off script for us. Also ignore those people staring at you for having kids at an art museum. Art is for all. If they don’t want to be around kids they can attend an adults only night. Ha!
Finally, a few FYIs specific to our recent visit to see Picasso Figures. Of course we are living during a pandemic so there are some obvious differences to this experience.:
You will of course need to wear a mask.
You will need to purchase a ticket for a specific entry time.
We went on a Friday evening and while the museum was not what I would consider crowded, it was definitely the most people I have been around indoors in a while. We felt like the Frist was taking precautions and necessary safety precautions, but if you or your family are more at risk, you might want to consider visiting during a less popular time.
Plan ahead if you want to visit ArtQuest. There are limited hours and tickets available.
If you want to listen to the audio, you will need to do so from your phone. While the woman at admission desk said we could listen without headphones, I would plan on bringing headphones as to not disturb others. Bring wireless headphones if wanting to share.
Speaking of audio…you may want to screen audio or perhaps not use that part for younger members of your party. As an art educator I feel like I kind of should’ve seen that one coming, but there is a good bit of content you may not be ready to address with your kids. We talk openly (again age appropriately) with our children about human sexuality, but there were a few things like affairs and affairs with underage women that I wasn’t quite ready to address just yet. Perhaps that is why my tween wrote that he really enjoyed the experience. He certainly heard a lot before I could hit pause. So, in full disclosure, I have figured out quite a few tips on visiting a museum with your kids, but like any parent I certainly haven’t figured it all out yet. Ha! I hope this helps with some fun tips and tricks on your next art outing. I would love to hear your tips and tricks as well as your experiences sharing art with your kids!
Happy Art Exploring! - Melissa
