What might you discover if you spent 5 minutes with this artwork?
Hello. I’m Claire Bown.
I believe every museum visit has the potential to spark wonder and create lasting connections.
I help museums, galleries, and cultural organisations create participatory experiences that invite visitors to look closely, think deeply, and connect meaningfully with art and objects.
Contact me for TRAINING | CONSULTING | SPEAKING requests.
The Thinking Museum® Approach in Practice (ONLINE)
This live online course explores the 8 Practices of the Thinking Museum® Approach, set out in full in my book, The Art Engager.
Meeting once a month from January to June 2027, we’ll go deeper into one Practice each time through live exercises and discussions around artworks and objects, with time in between to try things out with your own visitors and share what happened with the group.
Whether you’re growing in confidence with inquiry-based approaches or taking work you’ve already begun further, you’ll build practical tools for designing and facilitating guided experiences, in good company with docents, guides and educators from around the world.
Booking opens on 10 November. Join the interest list to receive the booking link first.
The Art Engager: Reimagining Guided Experiences in Museums
In my book The Art Engager, I share proven strategies and practical tools for transforming guided experiences.
The Art Engager is your comprehensive guide for designing meaningful, interactive museum experiences. You’ll discover how to create inquiry-led discussions using tools like the 10 Questioning Practices, the CHOOSE framework, and the Discussion Cycle.
Full of well-researched insights and practical strategies, this book is valuable for both newcomers and seasoned professionals in museums, galleries, cultural organisations, and historic sites.
Available worldwide through your favourite online platforms and retailers!
WORK WITH ME
I partner with museums, galleries, and cultural organisations worldwide to help them create more meaningful, participatory experiences for visitors.
I bring fresh perspectives and practical strategies to help you engage audiences in new ways. Book me to consult on a project or exhibition, design and facilitate workshops and training for your team, or speak at your conference or event.
- Training & Workshops – The Thinking Museum® Approach, slow looking techniques, The Art of Engagement, facilitation skills
- Consulting – Programme development, exhibition interpretation, educational content creation
- Speaking – Interactive keynotes, workshops, and slow looking interludes at conferences, professional gatherings, and staff development events.
Available online, in-person, or hybrid formats.
THE THINKING MUSEUM® APPROACH
Over the past 15 years I have developed an approach with engagement at its core, for educators, guides, docents and teachers to easily use on guided experiences.
The Thinking Museum® Approach is a way to engage audiences with what they are looking at, who they’re with and where they are.
It fosters meaningful connections: between educators and participants, amongst the participants themselves, and with the artwork or object being explored.
THE ART ENGAGER PODCAST
The Art Engager Podcast explores how we can create more meaningful and engaging experiences in museums and cultural spaces. Across solo episodes and conversations with inspiring guests, I explore ideas and approaches for engaging people with art, objects, ideas and each other — from slow looking and curiosity to conversation, participation and wonder.
The podcast ended in April 2026, but the complete archive remains available as a rich resource for museum professionals, educators and anyone interested in creating more engaging museum experiences.
Find out more about The Art Engager podcast in this interview for AAM.
And here’s a link to every single episode of the podcast in the archive.
Listen to The Art Engager on your podcast player of choice.
