Getting the Most from Your Visit

The easiest way to have a FUN, PRODUCTIVE visit is to really look at and think about what you see. There are many ways to discover information about a piece of art.

• Look at the label located next to the piece of art. These labels will have the name of the artist or culture that produced the work of art, the country that this culture or this artist is from, the dates of the artist's life, the date the work of art was produced, the materials used to create the work of art, how the Museum acquired the piece of art, and the work of art's accession number (which helps the Museum keep track of all of the pieces of art).
  
  
• Ask yourself questions about the piece of art.
  
  

  What is happening in the painting or sculpture?
  

  Does this work of art look realistic or not? Why?
  

  What do you see first? Why?
  

  What do you think the artist is trying to tell you? What does (s)he use to help you figure out the meaning?
  

  Does this work of art look like anything that you have seen before?
  

  Does this work of art look similar to anything else around it?
  

  How does this work of art make you feel? Why?
  

  Do you like this work of art? Why or why not?
  
  

• After your museum visit, read more about the artists and cultures you discover. Go to your school or local library and find information about the artists and cultures you encounter during your visit or visit the World Wide Web. We recommend webmuseum.com or the many art musuem websites. Often, learning about art is a great way to learn about other subjects like geography, science, history, music, and math. Visits to other museums can also be helpful and fun!