A #MetKid feeling the paint on an artist's palette in one of The Met's programs for visitors who are blind or partially sighted. Photograph by Marina Zarya
«Have you ever wondered what a painting would feel like if you touched it? Or how the tools an artist used to sculpt a marble statue might feel in your hand? In our Access programs, we're constantly exploring news ways to connect with art through multisensory activities. In other words, we're always looking for ways to experience art using different combinations of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. »
Sometimes a flower in a work of art looks so real you want to reach out and pick it so you can bury your nose in its sweet smell! While we can't touch the art in the Museum's galleries, we can handle an artist's palate, rough with dried paint. This gives us an idea of how layers of paint might feel on a canvas. Taking the pose of a sculpture can help us understand what the artist is trying to communicate through their artwork. Moving our bodies makes the art come alive because we can feel how dynamic and powerful it is!
Visitors posing in a Discoveries event. Photograph by Christina Vanech
Looking at the 19th-century painted mirror case below, you might wonder where artist Zain al-'Abidin gained his inspiration. Did he have a garden where he spent most of his time enjoying a medley of different fragrances? Or maybe a vase of flowers in his home that he could smell from his studio anytime there was a breeze? We can use common scents like ginger to connect us to the smells that might have surrounded the artist in the past.
Painting by Zain al-'Abidin. Mirror case, A.H. 1206/ A.D. 1844–45. Exterior: pasteboard, papier-maché; opaque watercolor, gilded and lacquered Interior: mirror; Ht. 9 1/4 in. (23.5 cm) W. 5 5/16 in. (13.5 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Catherine and Robert Harper, in memory of Drs. Grigor and Arax Acopian, 2009 (2009.170)
The next time you explore a work of art or create your own, think about the different ways you can use your senses to make a new experience.
A #MetKid smells a paper flower during Senses of Springtime, a museum-wide festival for all ages. Photograph by Don Pollard
Watch #MetKids—Is There More Than One Way to See a Work of Art? (subtitles/closed captions available) below to learn more about the different ways of looking with Nestor, age 10.