The Art Engager

In today’s solo episode, I’m talking about how we can use slow looking to learn to love objects that you might find 'boring' or uninspiring.

We can’t possibly love everything in a museum’s collection. There are always going to be some objects or artworks that we are drawn to for some reason. Equally there will also be objects or artworks that leave us cold.

Equally, every museum or art gallery has its superstar or highlight objects. These are the objects or artworks that get far more attention than others. They are usually well positioned, even spotlighted and quite often have a space all to themselves.

So, as much as this episode is about how we as educators, guides and docents can learn to love so-called ‘boring’ objects, it’s also about how we can get our visitors to love objects that are less well known too.

Today I’m sharing examples of two objects that only came to life for me once I had spent time with them. I hope the examples will provide some inspiration for you to search out the ‘boring’ and ‘mundane’ objects in your organisations, and to fully embrace them.

Spending some time slow looking with objects that you’re not immediately excited by will, I promise, transform the way you see them.

At the end, I’m sharing the key takeaways from these two examples and how they can teach us to love boring objects.

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Vintage Dutch Bean Slicer (Snijbonenmolen)

The Great Pustaha Google Arts and Culture

Episode 2 What is Slow Looking (and How Can I Get Started?)

Episode 41 - 12 reasons to get started with slow looking

Today I’m delighted to be talking to educator, facilitator and newly published author Jess Vance about her work. We’re talking about how questions are her superpower and how we can cultivate the conditions for inquiry to thrive.

Jess and I met on Instagram a while back when we were discussing the importance of the question ‘what makes you say that’. Since then we’ve chatted regularly and I’ve watched her journey to becoming a published author with interest. 

I was honoured to be involved with reading some of the early chapters and thrilled to be asked to write a recommendation for the book too. I couldn’t wait to invite Jess to be on the podcast as I think we can all learn so much from her practice. It just so happens to coincide with the publication of her book too. 

Jess Vance is an enrichment and environment coordinator with a thorough teaching and leadership background - she’s a former IB PYP Educator & PYP Coordinator. 

After about a decade in the classroom, Jess moved into leadership roles. And she’s taken the things she learned inside of the classroom - such as her approach to questioning and listening as an inquiry educator into her role as a leader. 

In her newly released book, 'Leading with a Lens of Inquiry', she outlines the ways in which we need to support and facilitate teachers in the same ways in which we want them to engage with their students.

Her book is for teachers, leaders, coaches, coordinators, and anyone basically who is invested in cultivating the conditions for authentic and meaningful inquiry to thrive.

In today’s chat we talk about the values that drive Jess’s work and the connections we can find between her work and ours. What can we learn from her practice? We discussed how questions are her superpower, the role curiosity, listening and reflection play in her work and how mindfulness is the thread brings everything together. 

We had so much to talk about. So, here it is - enjoy!

LINKS

Support the Show

Join the Slow Looking Club Community on Facebook

Jess Vance's website-- downloadable resources, coaching and other professional learning offerings

Leading with a Lens of Inquiry on Amazon

Jess' Instagram-- giving you an insight into her professional practice and offering tangible ways to infuse curiosity and an inquiry mindset each and every day

Michael Stone - Awake in the World

Warren Berger - A More Beautiful Question & The Book of Beautiful Questions

Today I’m sharing a 'picture of practice' from art facilitator and English teacher Elisa Mosele.

We’re talking all how she uses thinking routines to overcome the fear of speaking a language and encourage all her students to participate. We also explore how she combines slow looking, church art and spirituality in her work as an art facilitator.

Elisa Mosele is a English language teacher and an art facilitator.  She currently collaborates with the Verona Minor Hierusalem Foundation. 

She introduced the concepts of VTM and thinking routines to the foundation and in 2020 initiated their first virtual sessions looking slowly and carefully at artworks from local churches.

Elisa wrote a blog for me in 2020 about her very first experience facilitating with thinking routines virtually and it was great to hear in our chat about how she is now facilitating sessions in person too. 

In today’s chat we talk about how Elisa uses thinking routines to develop vocabulary and how she combines Visible Thinking with spirituality in her work at the foundation. 

Links

Episode Web Page

Support the Show 

What I learned from my first virtual facilitation session with art

https://thinkingmuseum.com/2020/12/10/first-virtual-art-facilitation/

Elisa Mosele on LinkedIn

Home - Fondazione Verona Minor Hierusalem

Museo di Castelvecchio - Caroto e le arti tra Mantegna e Veronese: dal 13 maggio al Palazzo della Gran Guardia

Today I’m starting something new.

I know we are all busy and sometimes it can be hard to find the time to listen to a full length podcast episode.

So once a month I’ll be sharing a 'bite-sized' episode that will give you a quick win or something to think about in less than 10 mins. 

Today I’m going to share a quick episode that will help you to start defining your personal facilitator style.  

We'll look at what we mean by personal facilitator style and why it's super-important and then I'll take you through an exercise to help you to define your personal facilitation style.

A willingness to continue growing and developing is at the heart of our practice as museum educators, teachers and guides.

We are never ‘done’ with learning. There is always a strong desire to keep honing our craft.

Personal development keeps us motivated and pushes us out of our comfort zone. It helps us to keep innovating, experimenting and being creative.

But, what are the best ways that we can grow and develop personally?

Today I'm sharing 8 different ways to go from good to great…and can reach your full potential.

Way back in 2011, I discovered the magic of thinking routines and Visible Thinking whilst working at a museum in Amsterdam.

It was at this point that I started developing a new approach for educators, what became Visible Thinking in the Museum or VTM for short.

Visible Thinking in the Museum is an easy-to-follow method that allows educators like you to confidently design and lead engaging inquiry-led sessions with art, objects and ideas for any audience. 

But what’s it all about? And why should you use it? Today we’re talking about the foundations, principles and practices of the VTM method and 8 ways it can help you to engage your audiences.

Links

Episode Web Page

Visible Thinking in the Museum Online (VTMO) Course

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Today on our 50th episode, I'm launching a new series of episodes all about 'pictures of practice'. I'm really interested is in finding out how other museum educators around the world engage their audiences with art and objects. What are some of the practices that are really important to them? How might they use thinking routines, or slow looking, questioning or facilitation?

For our very first Pictures of Practice, I'm talking today to Gabrielle Grime is a Heritage Education Officer at Wanneroo Regional Museum in Australia. She believes museums can be places of sanctuary which foster wellbeing, as well as sparking creativity, wonder and connection.

Gabrielle read about the Peel the Fruit thinking routine on my blog and decided to give it a go with a group of primary school children. She speaks about this powerful experience in today’s chat and how it moved some people in the group to tears. She then followed my VTMO course last year and is now a member of my community of practice The Thinking Museum Membership. Gabrielle shares how she is applying a number of ideas from the course and the continuing membership classes in her work.

In this chat we talk about what values inform her practice, how she's going to use slow looking with Front of House staff in a pilot programme and what thinking routines she loves to use. Gabrielle also shares why she stays up until 11pm or midnight to attend classes!

We talk about questioning, facilitation and being part of a community of educators learning, exploring and sharing together. 

I know you’re going to love listening to Gabrielle - and hope her enthusiasm inspires you as much as it did me - enjoy!

LINKS

EPISODE WEB PAGE

Support the Show

Join the Slow Looking Club Community on Facebook

Visible Thinking in the Museum Online Course - starts 09 May!

The Thinking Museum Membership

Connect with Gabrielle Grime on LinkedIn

Wanneroo Regional Museum

Today I’m delighted to be talking to playwright, theatre director, teaching artist and museum educator Mary Hall Surface about her work. We’re talking all things creative and reflective writing through art.

As a museum educator, she uses both theatre and creative writing to expand perspective, uncover complexity, and deepen understanding. 

She is the founding instructor of National Gallery of Art’s Writing Salon in Washington DC, and a six-summer faculty member of Harvard’s Project Zero Classroom.  Her plays have been produced at major professional theatres, museums, and festivals throughout the US, Europe, Japan, Taiwan, and Canada, including 4 art-inspired productions at the National Gallery of Art.

During the pandemic, she has developed an online presence too - facilitating creative and reflective writing workshops and classes, all inspired by art for museums, schools, and arts centres throughout the US. 

Mary Hall and I have a lot in common and in today’s chat we talk about our love of close looking, thinking routines and how you can use artworks to inspire writing. 

We talk about a variety of projects that Mary Hall has been involved in at the National Gallery of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the different types of online workshops that she teaches.

Mary Hall shares 4 wonderful tips for how you can improve your writing through art - so make sure you don’t miss those. 

We really could’ve talked for hours and I loved our chat. So, here it is - enjoy!

LINKS

EPISODE WEB PAGE

Support the Show

Join the Slow Looking Club Community on Facebook

Masterclass with Mary Hall Surface 26 April: Inspire Your Memoir Writing through Visual Art

The SAAM Social-Emotional Learning Toolkit:

https://americanart.si.edu/education/learn-from-home

Link to Open Window, Collioure, 1905, Matisse

https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.106384.html

Link to Edward Hopper, People in the Sun, 1960, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc.,

https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/people-sun-10762

Mary Hall Surface - website and mailing list sign up: www.maryhallsurface.com

Upcoming Smithsonian Associates workshop: Mothering: A Reflective Writing Workshop

Upcoming Van Gogh/Mary Oliver Workshop: Springs’ Awakening: A Reflective Writing Workshop

Writers’ Studio on the Amalfi Coast

I’m back with a new episode today all about my favourite subject .

I'm talking about 'bad' questions, and specifically, 10 types of questions you should never ask (or at least try to avoid!).

Good questions can be many things: clear, simple and purposeful, but also relevant, concise and perhaps, even powerful.

But is there such a thing as a 'bad' question?

And if so, what types of questions are 'bad'? Why types of questions should we be avoiding on our museum tours and programmes?

To find out the 10 types of questions I chose, listen in to today's show! 

Resources

EPISODE WEB PAGE

SUPPORT THE SHOW

Join the SLOW LOOKING CLUB Community on Facebook

Other Art Engager episodes about questioning:

Episode 4 The 5 Golden Rules for Asking Brilliant Questions

Episode 10 10 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Asking Questions

Episode 15 How to Use Artworks to Improve your Questioning Skills

Episode 36 Quick ways to improve your questioning technique

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

Sign up for my weekly dose of carefully-curated inspiration The TM Weekly

As you may or may not know, I’ve recently had Covid (and you can probably hear it in my voice) I’m taking some time to recover. 

So as we’re approaching 50 episodes, I thought I would take the time today to revisit an episode from the back catalogue.

Today we’re revisiting an episode all about thinking routines that you can use for perspective-taking. This episode first aired in July 2021.

It takes a deep dive into what perspective-taking is, and why it matters.

Then I look at 4 essential perspective-taking thinking routines that you can use in your programmes - from the ever-so-useful Step Inside (one of my all-time faves), to new thinking routine Step In Step Out Step Back, via Circle of Viewpoints and little-known thinking routine Point of View.

If you are leading any type of programme with groups then you need to have a perspective-taking thinking routine in your repertoire.

As I say in this episode, perspective-taking is a crucial skill for all types of relationships - both professional and personal.

And I believe we have a responsibility to encourage perspective-taking - In doing so, we might not only serve our audiences better, but also model a kinder society.

LINKS

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Ellen Galinsky ‘Mind in the Making’