Every single episode of The Art Engager Podcast

Welcome to the complete archive of The Art Engager podcast, your comprehensive resource for creating meaningful connections with art, objects, people, and ideas. The Art Engager is dedicated to helping educators, guides, and creative professionals create engaging experiences in museums and cultural spaces. Each episode explores practices that deepen connections with art, objects, people, and ideas, offering practical techniques to spark curiosity, foster dialogue, and transform how you engage with your audience.

How to use this list:

• Search this page (Control or Command F) by keyword to discover episodes on specific engagement techniques, museums, or projects
• Browse chronologically
• Dive in and let curiosity be your guide!

Whether you’re looking to enhance your guided experiences, make museums and cultural spaces more accessible, or simply find new ways to connect with art and ideas, this list puts all our content at your fingertips.

150 How to Create Meaningful Museum Engagement: 10 Best Practices from 150 Episodes

149 Art, Play and Joy at Compton Verney with Geraldine Collinge
148 How to create active engagement on guided experiences
147 She Shapes History: Building Community Through Women’s History Tours with Sita Sargeant
146 Slow looking in sacred spaces: Antwerp’s church-based Slow Art Day movement
145 Engaging museum visitors through escape rooms and immersive storytelling with Francine Boon
144 6 ways to create powerful connections in museum experiences
143 Uncertainty: Finding wonder in not knowing with Maggie Jackson
142 Building trust and psychological safety on guided experiences in museums
141 Art Crawl: Revolutionising infant engagement with art at the Clyfford Still Museum
140 Making museums accessible for children with barriers to education with Nicky McIntosh
139 Coaching in Gallery Spaces with Beth Clare McManus
138 Transforming museum experiences through drawing with Jessica Hartshorn
137 How to use The Universal Questioning Practice
136 What are Questioning Practices?
135 Building trust and making meaningful connections in museums with Anja Høegh
134 Applying Museum Education Skills to Organisational Culture with Rebecca Shulman
133 Facilitating dialogue and handling conflicts with Linda Norris
132 Slow looking and social interaction in museums with Sasha Igdalova
131 Stimulating the senses: using smell to engage visitors with Sofia Collette Ehrich
130 The power of inquiry, curiosity and questioning with Trevor MacKenzie
129 Slow listening and philosophical questioning in the museum with Cecilie Skøtt
128 Fostering curiosity and critical thinking on self-guided field trips with Kylie Neagle
127 Creating informal engagement with museum visitor teams with Dickon Moore
126 Slow looking at the Van Gogh Museum with Harma van Uffelen
125 How to build rapport in museum and gallery programmes
124 Get the Picture: How to engage with art with Bianca Bosker
123 The Art Bridge: Boosting Confidence through Visual Literacy with Sofie Vermeiren
122 Arts on prescription and museums: a conversation with Dr Tasha Golden
121 See Listen Talk: Slow Looking Approaches for Vulnerable Audiences
120 Values-Engaged Gallery Teaching with Andrew Westover
119 Bringing art to life in classrooms with Magic Lantern and Briony Brickell
118 How to engage participants in historic spaces through inquiry and facilitation with Dr. Stephanie Smith
117 Engaging and connecting with young people in museums with Leonie Delaey
116 Radical Rest: Beating Burnout in Museum Education with Kate Oliver
115 Exploring The Art of Noticing with Rob Walker
114 Help! My group doesn’t want to participate…
113 Activating the Art Museum for Healthcare Professionals with Ruth Slavin, Corinne Zimmermann, and Ray Williams
112 Engagement for All: SEND in museums with Sam Bowen
111 Getting Started with Inquiry-Based Learning in the Museum
110 Disrupting the art museum experience with Christine Murray and Rachel Nicholson
109 Trauma-informed practice in museums with Jackie Armstrong
108 How to prepare for the unexpected
107 Heart for Art: Engaging minds, transforming lives with Gundy van Dijk
106 What can museum educators learn from immersive art experiences?
105 Claire’s Favourites: Getting started with thinking routines in the museum
104 Claire’s Favourites: How to Read the Room
103 Claire’s Favourites: 12 Benefits of Slow Looking
102 Claire’s Favourites: 4 Powerful Questions to Supercharge your Museum Programmes
101 Claire’s Favourites: How to Cultivate Curiosity on your Museum and Gallery Programmes
100 Creating Cultures of Thinking in Museums with Ron Ritchhart
99 Striking the right pace in museum programmes: less is more
98 Radio Bart: Exploring Art with Blind Mediators with Bart van Peer and An van Hertum
97 Collect Connect Create with Denise Greany and Sarah Clarke
96 7 Ways to Make Time and Space for Silence
95 How silence is a superpower in museum and gallery programmes
94 Exploring Slow Art Day and Slow Looking with Phyl Terry
93 Slow Art and the Power of Slowing Down with Carl Honoré
92 Improving Mental Health and Wellbeing Through Art with Heather Thomas
91 3 New Thinking Routines to Try in Your Museum and Gallery Programmes
90 How to Create Intellectual Comfort
89 What if objects could talk with Hannah Cushion
88 How to lead playful museum programmes
87 How to ask more open-ended questions
86 How neutral do I have to be as a museum facilitator?
85 6 benefits of using thinking routines with art and objects
84 Why inclusive language matters with Margaret Middleton
83 Engaging with Teens in the Museum
82 Making space and time for slow looking
81 7 Ways to Refresh your Practice in 2023
80 How to design and lead engaging family tours with Sarah Ciacci
79 5 Thinking Routines for Comparing, Contrasting and Making Connections
78 Throwback Thursday: How to get over a ‘tumbleweed moment’
77 8 ways to show up in a resourceful state
76 The joy of engaging with objects with Dr Alex Woodall
75 How to Look at Art (Slowly)
74 How to enjoy art (without knowing anything about it) with Dr Ben Street
73 How to talk about climate activist protests in art museums
72 Reacting to art with our bodies with Rachel Ropeik
71 The Power of VTM: why I created a new approach to engaging with art, objects and audiences in the museum
70 Deconstructing the traditional guided tour with Hanna Piksen
69 How to use body language to create engagement
68 Looking at life like a work of art with Marina Gross Hoy
67 Mindset shift: how to embrace the power of information
66 7 Ways to Improve your Active Listening Skills
65 Making museums more accessible through art therapy & wellness programmes with Richa Mehta
64 4 Powerful Questions to Supercharge your Art Experiences
63 4 Slow Looking Exercises for Summer
62 Bitesize: 7 Ways to Be Creative with Thinking Routines
61 How mindfulness and drawing can help us to connect with art with Karly Allen
60 Bitesize: Learn, Unlearn, Relearn
59 9 Thinking Routines to Improve your Powers of Observation
58 How to Create Wow Moments with Mitch Bach
57 Bitesize: How to End Well – Creating a Strong Conclusion for your Programmes
56 Learning to Love ‘Boring’ Objects through Slow Looking
55 Cultivating the Conditions for Inquiry with Jess Vance
54 Pictures of Practice with Elisa Mosele
53 Bitesize: How to Define your Personal Facilitator Style
52 From Good to Great: Personal Growth & Development for Museum Educators
51 What is Visible Thinking in the Museum (and how can it help me to engage my audience?)
50 Pictures of Practice with Gabrielle Grime
49 Inspiring Creative Writing Through Art with Mary Hall Surface
48 Bad’ questions: 10 types of questions you should never ask
47 Throwback Thursday: 4 thinking routines for perspective-taking
46 What is Slow Art Day?
45 What we can learn from improv with Samantha Boffin
44 The 4 elements of a great introduction
43 Tips for facilitating meaningful discussions around sensitive subjects
42 How to Read a Group
41 12 Reasons to Get Started with Slow Looking
40 5 New Thinking Routines to Try in 2022
39 How to stay curious in your practice
38 3 Key Ways to Foster Curiosity in your Programmes
37 How looking at art can improve your mental health with Yaël van Loosbroek-Speck
36 Quick Ways to Improve your Questioning Technique
35 9 Ways Art Can Make you a Better Writer
34 3 Slow Looking Activities for the Holidays
33 Listening with Full Attention with Claire Bradshaw
32 6 Ways to Create Awe-Inspiring Experiences with Art and Objects
31 How to Teach with Objects with Jo-Anne Sunderland Bowe
30 Art and Dementia with Catherine Chastney
29 How to develop a reflective practice
28 How to Engage your Audience with Colour in Art Discussions
27 Slow Looking and Empathy with Kenia Santos
26 10 Easy Ways to Make your Guided Tours More Interactive
25 3 Thinking Routines for Slow Looking and Drawing
24 Using art and objects to learn wellbeing skills and improve mental health with Louise Thompson
23 How to get over a ‘tumbleweed moment’ (and avoid one in the future)
22 13 Tips for Getting Started with Thinking Routines
21 How to Use your Voice to Engage your Audience
20 The 6 core elements of my VTMO course (and why they’re important)
19 Success Factors for Leading Discussion-Based Programmes Around Art
18 Common Fears Around Leading Discussion-Based Programmes (and How to Deal with Them)
17 13 Ways to Make your Online Experiences More Engaging and Interactive
16 How to Use See Think Wonder in your Art Discussions
15 How to Use Artworks to Improve your Questioning Skills
14 5 Simple Slow Looking Activities for Summer
13 How to Use the Unveiling Stories Thinking Routine to Investigate Multiple Layers of Meaning in a Photograph
12 6 Best Practices for Sharing Information
11 Step Inside: Thinking Routines to Foster Perspective-taking
10 10 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Asking Questions
9 Creating a Great Group Dynamic in the ‘New Now’
8 How to use the ‘See Think Me We’ thinking routine to create personal and community connections with artworks
7 How to Develop a Daily Slow Looking Practice
6 6 Essential Thinking Routines You Need in your Repertoire
5 The Art of Facilitation
4 The 5 Golden Rules for Asking Brilliant Questions
3 The Magic of Thinking Routines
2 What is Slow Looking and How Can I get Started?
1 The moment when I first heard the words ‘Visible Thinking’