The Art Engager

Today’s episode follows on from a popular post I wrote on social media recently about how to talk about the recent climate activist protests in art museums with your participants.  I wanted to take t…

Today I’m talking to Rachel Ropeik about her work. We’re talking about how we can use our bodies to react to art & the many ways in which we can incorporate movement into museum learning.

Rachel Ropei…

Today I’m talking about why I created my method Visible Thinking in the Museum (or VTM for short) and who I created it for.

Why did I go and develop a new teaching method when there were plenty of met…

Today I’m so happy to be talking to Hanna Piksen about deconstructing the traditional guided tour and creating a completely new experience where guides are given free rein to design and lead the tour…

Body language is defined as ‘the conscious and unconscious movements and postures by which attitudes and feelings are communicated’.

When we talk about body language we’re talking about a wide range o…

Today I'm delighted to be talking to Marina Gross Hoy about how to look, and in particular, how to look at your daily life as if you were looking at a work of art.

Marina Gross Hoy is a museum studies…

Many of us are experts in our field - possibly art historians, historians or archaeologists - and want to share that incredible knowledge with the groups we lead in our programmes.

But sometimes havin…

Most of us think we’re good listeners. But are we really?

What does it mean to be an active listener in an art discussion, guided tour or educational programme in the museum? 

Listening is one of the …

Today I’m so happy to be talking to Richa Mehta about her work. We’re talking about what a mindful museum is, museum-based art therapy and how art can support the development and exploration of ident…

I don’t really like big lists of ‘good’ or ‘great’ questions - for example, 50 questions to ask about art. These lists are OK for a quick source of inspiration or for a boost now and again, but it’s …

 In an age where the average person checks their phone at least 85 times a day, our inundated brains are slowing down. ⁠ ⁠

We need to retrain ourselves to get better at sustained attention. And to lea…

When you get started with thinking routines, it’s worth getting to know a small handful of routines and using them repeatedly until you feel comfortable and confident using them. 

But once you have t…

Today I’m so happy to be talking to Karly Allen about her work. We’re talking about how mindfulness can help us to connect with and engage with art, how we can bring mindfulness practices to the expe…

There is a famous quote by Alvin Toffler that goes:

‘“The illiterate of the future are not those who can’t read or write but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”

As educators, you’re probably…

In today’s solo episode, I’m talking about observation skills - why they are important and I’m sharing 9 thinking routines that you can use to boost your observation and description skills.

As you’ll …

Today I’m so happy to be talking to Mitch Bach about what makes a great guided experience and how you can create wow moments in your programmes.

Mitch is one of those people you meet and instantly ge…

It’s time for another bitesize episode - a short and snappy episode that will give you a quick win or something to think about in less than 10 mins.

Today I’m talking about why endings are important …

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.…

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 cond…

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 encour…