I began this Substack almost exactly one year ago thinking I would take you with me as fellow ‘curators.’ It was a pleasant idea and I certainly have plenty to say. However, world events demand a different call to action. I found I was no longer as concerned about teaching people how to look at art. Other things seemed far, far more important. Yet recently, as I read another art professional’s writing, I was reminded why it’s time to return to this topic: Because learning to look at art teaches us critical thinking.
And as individuals, I’d like to believe critical thinking is our superpower.
Start With The Unknown
Let’s begin with a piece of art we hate or don’t understand.
We start our exercise with an assumption: If it’s in a museum, it must have some value. Some powers greater than ourselves have deemed it ‘worthy.’ Perhaps it has been singled out for breaking norms? If so, we can learn something, see something different in its uniqueness. Yet, at first, we don’t really know exactly what we’re looking for. How do we begin?
Even though we may hate it, we have to start by telling ourselves, “It’s in the museum for a reason. Now what the heck is it?” We may never know the criteria by which it was judged worthy of inclusion. Therefore, we’ll need to find it for ourselves. Here begins discovery! When we ask ourselves ‘why’ we begin our journey of critical thinking.
This is not unlike other decisions we make in daily life. For instance, when buying a car, we may initially be drawn to its aesthetics. But practicality often plays a larger role in our final choice. Similarly, a sofa may not be our favorite in appearance, but we prioritize comfort and functionality. These decisions reflect a critical sense developed through observation, experience and comparison—a process we often take for granted.
How many bad decisions have we made because we lacked information or relied solely on superficial judgments? Think about the impulsive relationships, the ill-advised purchases. They become lessons teaching us the value of looking deeper, of asking questions. Art is exactly like this. Except we don’t have to buy anything. We get to do this purely for our own benefit!
A Mirror To Decision-Making
If we set fifteen minutes to stand before a painting, we know if we like it or not in the very first minute or two. Personal opinion always comes first. I encourage my students to start there: If you don’t like a piece of art, let’s talk about why. These discussions often uncover much more than if they had initially liked it.
From our subjective negative reaction, we move to the next layer, “What is it we don’t like about it?” That one object sticks out too much, or the style? The color? These are opinions. Perhaps instead, let’s ask ourselves: What about it is interesting? What are we seeing? What are we observing? Seeing and observing are distinctly different acts. We see a tree using our eyes. We observe what kind of bark, the season because it has no leaves, it appears old. It’s intersects the painting oddly. In these instances we use our mind. Science relies on observation as a fundamental method and so should art analysis and appreciation. Observation reveals angles, tones, textures, shapes and compositions evoking sensations and emotions. One comes before the other. For instance:
Do the edges extend beyond the frame or stay contained within it?
How does the use of light and shadow create a sense of depth or flatness?
What shapes are repeated and what patterns emerge?
Is there something calling our attention to it more than anything else?
Elements may trap us within the frame or convey expansiveness. They may lead us by association to symbolisms, metaphors and trigger personal associations—connections not only enriching our viewing experience, but our interest level and understanding, as if we were solving a puzzle.
The Material Journey
Children ask ‘why’ incessantly. While it can seem tiresome, it is the foundation of critical thinking. Learning to ask and exploreWhy unlocks layers of meaning and connection. For example, consider the classic question, “Why is the sky blue?” The answer touches on color theory, light wavelengths, planetary motion and atmospheric conditions. Similarly, asking ‘why’ about art often leads us to unexpected places—history, philosophy, psychology or even links to our own personal memories. Suddenly we may find ourselves saying, “I like this area because…” when at first we thought we hated the whole thing.
Beyond composition, we next consider materials and execution. This is the ‘How.’ Very often the most interesting part to delve into is how was it created? What made the artist choose their method? Their materials? This leads to the even more important question: Why were these materials used in this way? For even the ‘How’ leads to yet another ‘Why.’
We may wonder how on earth we’re expected to know ‘How’ an artist did something. Sure, we can research method on YouTube to death. But while we stand in this museum together today, let’s look more carefully at the surface. Is it smooth? Is it textured? The museum label will tell us what medium it is. From here we can start to imagine more about the How. As we do, looking from an angle, seeing layers, individual strokes, blending… maybe there was masking! Oh, we never noticed this before. Suddenly, we like it better because we are starting to understand it, and it is more precise than we thought.
I guarantee, no matter how much we may dislike a piece of art, we can find something somewhere in the ‘How’ to admire. We just have to look more closely.
Testing The Answer
Critical thinking involves breaking things down into possible approaches, testing them and finding our coherent answers. This journey—even when it leads to uncomfortable or unexpected conclusions—is where real value lies. So why not practice on art? By teaching ourselves to look at art critically, we cultivate the skills to look at life critically. In a world increasingly driven by superficial judgments and instant gratification by hitting the ‘like’ button, this is one of the most important disciplines we can possibly develop.
So, the next time we are in a position to view art in a museum, let’s start with the assumption the artist created it to solve a problem. We’ll remind ourselves it wasn’t merely to produce something ‘pretty’ or else it wouldn’t be here. In this way, it’s not about whether we ‘like it or not.’ From this launch point, we are compelled to ask, “Then why?” and off we go!
…And when we find ourselves starting to ask ‘what’ questions the artist may have posed to themselves—
They stand off a bit from the artwork, gazing contemplatively, “Hmm… Now what made her do that?”
— We suddenly realize we sound like we really know what we’re talking about!
We have come full circle; All my own views and opinions— no references, just our brains!
Lovely piece thank you 🙏🏻
love this! as someone that intuitively appreciates art deeply, I still struggle with conveying or furthering my language of appreciation. so I found this article really helpful 🌞 willl be saving it and coming back to it on my next gallery trip!