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Claire Bown: Hello and welcome to The
Art Engager podcast with me, Claire Bown.

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I'm here to share techniques and tools
to help you engage with your audience

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and bring art objects and ideas to life.

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So let's dive into this week's show.

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Hello and welcome to a new
episode of The Art Engager.

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I'm Claire Bown, and today's
episode is a little different.

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So in March, 2026, I traveled to
Atlanta, Georgia for the National

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Convening on Art and Social Connection
organized by the High Museum of Art.

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This was a two day event, bringing
together people from across the

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arts, public health research,
aging, social services, and policy

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sectors to explore one big question.

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How can engagement with visual
art help combat loneliness and

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build more connected communities?

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And if that sounds like
a broad question, it is.

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But what struck me about this
convening was how seriously and

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how practically it was tackled.

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There were researchers presenting data
on the health risks of social isolation.

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There were practitioners sharing real
programs with real participants and

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real evaluations, and there were honest
conversations about funding, about

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sustainability, and about what it
actually takes to do this work well.

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Now if you work in a museum, you'll
know that conversations about social

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connection, wellbeing have been
growing louder in recent years.

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More and more museums are developing
programs that respond to loneliness,

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isolation, grief, aging, and so on.

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But there are harder questions
underneath all of that.

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Like what does it actually take to do this
work well, as something an organization

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commits to genuinely, something that
IT resources and sustains and also how

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do we build the evidence that it works.

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Not just anecdotal evidence,
which I'm sure we all have from

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our experiences, but rigorous
evidence that stands up to scrutiny.

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And how do we make sure that the
wider world actually hears about it.

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Because museums are doing remarkable
things in this space, and too

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often it stays within our bubble.

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The health sector, policy makers,
funders, and the wider public, they

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just don't get to know or hear about it.

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So these are questions I've been thinking
about for a long time now, from doing

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this podcast for nearly five years,
from running workshops, from talking to

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museum professionals all over the world.

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And in March, I took these
questions with me to Atlanta.

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This convening gave me a lot
to think about in response.

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So in this episode, I want to take you
through what I heard, what I learned,

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and what I think it means for those of us
working in museums and cultural spaces.

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We'll look at the scale of the problem.

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We'll hear from some of the speakers and
panelists who were in the room, and we'll

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think about what it actually takes to
do this work well, evidence it, and make

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sure the wider world hears all about it.

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So the National Convening on Art and
Social Connection was organized by

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Laurel Humble, associate Director for
lifelong learning and accessibility at

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the High Museum of Art and her team.

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The High was founded in 1905 and
it's the largest art museum in

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the southeastern United States.

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It has built its reputation on being
not just a collection of artworks,

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but a civic institution, a museum
that takes its role in the community

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seriously, that reflects the diversity
of Atlanta and that thinks of itself as

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a place for people, as much as for art.

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And that came through in everything
I saw and heard during my time

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there from the staff I met, from the
docents, the speakers who traveled

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in to take part in the convening and
the visitors I met in the galleries.

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There's a real warmth to this
place and a real commitment to the

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kind of community centered work
that the convening was all about.

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So it felt like exactly the right setting.

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The convening opened with some
welcome remarks from the High's

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director Rand Suffolk, who explained
more about the work of the museum

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Rand Suffolk: at the High Museum of Art.

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We believe our museums must play an
active role in strengthening the social

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fabric of our communities and every day,
as we strive to be among the leading

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visual arts institutions in the nation.

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It's our goal to be a place where both
new and experienced museum visitors

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can discover opportunities for
connection, inspiration, and meaning.

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Claire Bown: And the High has been
building this kind of work for the better

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part of a decade through their programs,
their research, their partnerships.

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And we'll come back to some of
this throughout this episode.

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But first, let's talk about what this
convening was actually responding

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to; loneliness and social isolation.

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Now, we often use those terms
together or interchangeably, but

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they're actually not the same thing,
and the distinction really matters.

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Dr. Kathy Bruss, a clinical psychologist
and the former mental health lead at

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the US Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, explained it really

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clearly to us during the convening.

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Have a listen.

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Kathy Bruss: So social isolation is
really about the lack of relationships

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and infrequent social contact
activities or group memberships.

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So it could be somebody who lives
alone, doesn't talk with friends

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or other people very much, or just
doesn't have contact with people much.

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Isolation is associated with health
risks, even if people don't feel lonely.

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So that comes up a lot where it's
like, 'well, I'm not lonely, I'm fine'.

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But that makes a big difference.

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Isolation in and of
itself is at health risk.

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Whereas loneliness is the feeling
of being alone or disconnected from

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others, regardless of the amount
of social contact someone has.

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So that's more subjective.

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So even a person with a lot of
friends can feel lonely, and you

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can also feel really lonely in a
crowd or in a group of friends.

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And loneliness also reflects
the difference between how much

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social contact a person has and
how much they would like to have.

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So it signals a deficit that something is
missing, sort of like thirst or hunger.

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Claire Bown: And the scale of what Kathy
was describing is really significant.

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In his welcome, Rand shared
some statistics that it's worth

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pausing on for a moment here.

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He said that 31% of young adults, aged 18
to 29 say they're always or often lonely.

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Over a third of adults aged 50 to
80 report a lack of companionship.

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And 45% of Atlanta residents
report feeling lonely.

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That's about 5% higher than
the US national average.

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And roughly 45% of Atlanta households
are made up of just one person.

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And that's a factor that can really
contribute to social isolation.

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And I'm not quoting these here as
just abstract statistics and numbers.

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These reflect real people moving
through real stages of life; from early

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adulthood to midlife and later life.

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And loneliness and social isolation
can thread through a whole life in

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different ways at different times.

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And the health consequences
are really significant too.

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So social isolation increases
the risk of heart disease by 29%.

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Stroke by 32% and dementia by 50%.

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And as former US Surgeon General
Vivek Murt hy has put it, loneliness

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is far more than just a bad feeling.

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It harms both individual
and societal health.

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But here's the more hopeful
side of all of this.

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There's a real and growing body of
evidence that engagement with the arts

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is consistently linked with stronger
social connection across cultures,

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across lifespan, across populations.

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So a UK survey of nearly 6,000 adults
found that 82% perceive their arts

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engagement to be linked with social
connection at least some of the time.

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A long-term study from Japan found
that older adults who sustained

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arts engagement over three years
experienced lower loneliness.

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And a major English study tracking
adults over time found that frequent

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engagement with museums, galleries, and
exhibitions was linked with reduced odds

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of loneliness over a 10 year period.

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So we know the scale of the problem,
and we also know with real evidence

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behind it that what museums do helps.

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So the question isn't here
whether museums can play a role.

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It's more like what that role
should look like and what it

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actually takes to do this work well.

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On day one, we had a keynote from Vanessa
German, and I have to be honest, this was

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unlike any keynote I've ever experienced.

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It was much more like an art performance.

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There was singing, there was poetry,
there was real emotion in the room,

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and it set the tone beautifully
for everything that followed.

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Now for those of you who don't know her
work, Vanessa German is a self-taught

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artist based in Pittsburgh, and she
describes herself as a citizen artist.

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She works across sculpture
performance, communal ritual,

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installation, and photography.

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Her work is in collections all over the
US, including the High's own collection,

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and if you'd like to get a sense
of what she does, look up The Three

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Headed Girl from the High's collection.

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But what really came through in her
keynote was the way her work has moved

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out of the studio and into the community.

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And she talked about lots of
projects, but a particular one that

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she ran in her own neighborhood.

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This is, uh, Homewood in Pittsburgh.

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Um, and this project was
called The Art House.

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Now Homewood is a low income area
that has been deeply affected

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by poverty and gun violence.

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The Art house was a free, open community
art space where children and adults could

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come and make art together, where the door
was always open and anybody could walk

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in, and it was really a place where people
could sit down with each other and create.

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And it was where, as Vanessa put it,
adults would lose time where they'd

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start working on something and an
hour and a half later look up and

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say, I forgot what this feels like.

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So her central question at the convening
was this, how can art help people see

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and care for one another more deeply?

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And she said something during her keynote
that I've thought about a lot since.

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Have a listen.

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Here's Vanessa speaking.

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vanessa german: And I thought to myself,
we got bars and churches on every corner,

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but we've done so much research about the
benefits of art, but we don't actually

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live inside of the truth of that research.

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I was like, there could be
an art house on every corner.

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Yeah, just when the doors
open, you can come in.

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Claire Bown: So she talks about
having an art house on every

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corner, and I love that idea.

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And what Vanessa was really getting
at, I think, is that creative

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practice doesn't have to be something
that's separate from daily life.

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It doesn't have to be something you go
to a gallery for on a special occasion.

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It can be embedded in the
neighborhood, on the street, on

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the porch, part of how we live.

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Vanessa also talked about what she
called the 'violence of separateness'.

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The idea that disconnection
itself is a form of harm.

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And against that, she kept saying
about 'returning to wholeness'.

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'We are whole.

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The whole time' she said, 'not
broken, not in need of fixing', and

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one of the first places of social
connection she said is internal.

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So connecting with yourself
through creative practice, before

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you can connect with anyone else.

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Now that vision: art as part of how we
live, raises a really practical question.

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How do you actually do this work?

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Not in a kind of abstract
sense, but on the ground with

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real people year after year.

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And one person who's been thinking about
exactly that for 30 years is Anne Basting.

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Now Anne is a an artist, scholar and
professor of English at the University of

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Wisconsin Milwaukee, and she's the founder
and president of TimeSlips, a nonprofit

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organization she started back in 1995.

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TimeSlips began as a response to the
way people living with dementia were

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being engaged, or rather weren't
being engaged, in care settings.

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And Anne's insight was that you
could release people from the

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pressure of remembering and replace
it with the freedom to imagine.

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So TimeSlips uses creative storytelling,
often built around playful images

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and open-ended questions to invite
people into shared meaning making.

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And today TimeSlips has over 900
certified facilitators across 48

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US states and 20 countries working
in care communities, museums,

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libraries, senior centers and homes.

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And the way that this work is facilitated
has three really simple steps.

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Ask a beautiful open-ended question,
improvise with 'yes, and', accepting

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whatever the person offers and
building on it and then offer

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proof of listening by echoing back,
acknowledging what someone has shared.

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And I think if you are a facilitator,
you'll recognize the shape of that cycle.

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It's the foundation of any
good group conversation.

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Now, one of the other projects Anne shared
at the convening was called the Penelope

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Project, and it ran in a long-term care
community in Wisconsin over two years.

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And as an aside, Anne is a great
believer in long time horizons.

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She works in multi-year projects
because as she puts it, that's how long

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it takes for the 'yes, and' to grow.

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And the Penelope project used, uh,
homers Odyssey as a starting point.

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Staff, students, artists and residents
all working together over time to create

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a full scale theatrical production
performed throughout their care home

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residents played roles, they wrote
material, you know, they were the

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project, not the audience for it.

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And here's Anne talking about the
responses to that project in her talk.

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Anne Basting: My favorite response,
uh, with a woman who lived in

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the nursing home, 'did you enjoy
participating in Penelope?'

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'Oh, yes.

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It's the last important thing
I'll do', and it makes you realize

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what opportunities for important
things are we giving people.

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Or are we just giving them bingo?

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00:17:22,594 --> 00:17:30,589
How can we mobilize the social
capital and legacy potential of

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00:17:30,589 --> 00:17:35,539
all of the systems that we work in
to create something meaningful for

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00:17:35,539 --> 00:17:37,319
people to do, with their lives?

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Claire Bown: Anne also shared
what she called her gleanings from

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00:17:41,534 --> 00:17:46,034
this work, the principles that
have shaped how she approaches it.

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00:17:46,124 --> 00:17:50,634
And I think these are really useful
things to remember for us as we

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think about what this work could
look like at its best in museums.

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00:17:56,454 --> 00:18:02,079
So firstly, she said, be unified
by a slightly impossible goal,

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something that no single organization
can accomplish on its own.

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00:18:07,239 --> 00:18:12,699
Something that demands collaboration,
that demands you, bring others in.

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00:18:14,109 --> 00:18:17,949
Secondly, she said, we
need to hold uncertainty.

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00:18:18,279 --> 00:18:23,259
So start a project without knowing
exactly what it's gonna be and let

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00:18:23,259 --> 00:18:25,214
it become what it needs to become.

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00:18:27,804 --> 00:18:32,604
Next was to create ongoing entry
points because the people you're

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working with may not be ready
to join right at the beginning.

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00:18:36,834 --> 00:18:39,564
And trust takes time to build.

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00:18:41,274 --> 00:18:46,854
And the fourth is to recognize
and build on existing strengths.

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00:18:47,274 --> 00:18:51,894
So to look at the people and the
assets that are already in the room,

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00:18:52,194 --> 00:18:54,804
rather than starting from a deficit.

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00:18:55,524 --> 00:18:58,584
So those four things I
think are really useful.

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00:18:59,598 --> 00:19:04,938
So moving on from this, what does this
work actually look like in practice?

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00:19:05,418 --> 00:19:09,228
So, across the convening, I heard
about a lot of programs from

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00:19:09,228 --> 00:19:14,148
museums and arts organizations who
were responding to loneliness and

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00:19:14,148 --> 00:19:16,518
social isolation in different ways.

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00:19:16,578 --> 00:19:19,998
And here are a few that stayed with me.

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So the first is Meet Me at MoMA.

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00:19:23,749 --> 00:19:25,459
You may have heard of it before.

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00:19:25,819 --> 00:19:30,409
It's a program for people living with
Alzheimer's disease and their caregivers.

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00:19:30,409 --> 00:19:37,579
It was launched in 2006 and it's just
celebrated its 20th anniversary and

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00:19:37,759 --> 00:19:40,429
it's reach has been remarkable between.

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00:19:40,489 --> 00:19:47,989
2007, 2014 through the wider MoMA
Alzheimer's project, moMA staff reached

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00:19:47,989 --> 00:19:54,619
over 10,500 colleagues around the world
through training, workshops, conference

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00:19:54,619 --> 00:20:00,649
presentations, and resources for museums,
wanting to develop their own programs.

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00:20:01,309 --> 00:20:03,499
And they evaluated it in 2008.

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00:20:03,819 --> 00:20:08,739
And they found statistically significant
improvements in mood for both people

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00:20:08,739 --> 00:20:11,709
with Alzheimer's and their care partners.

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00:20:13,029 --> 00:20:17,229
So 20 years on, that's the
kind of longtime horizon Anne

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00:20:17,469 --> 00:20:18,619
Basting was talking about.

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00:20:19,864 --> 00:20:22,804
And what Lara Schweller shared
at the convening was where

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00:20:22,804 --> 00:20:24,454
the program is going next.

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00:20:24,454 --> 00:20:27,834
And they're designing a newer
strand designed specifically

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00:20:27,924 --> 00:20:29,574
for caregivers themselves.

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00:20:31,539 --> 00:20:36,399
The second program is Oasis
at the High Museum of Art.

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00:20:36,819 --> 00:20:41,709
It's a monthly program and it
weaves together art, spirituality,

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00:20:41,739 --> 00:20:44,079
conversation, and mindfulness.

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00:20:44,139 --> 00:20:46,239
And I was very lucky.

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I got to experience it for myself.

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It was on the day after the convening.

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Um, I saw yoga in the atrium, I took
part in sound baths in the galleries

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00:20:57,414 --> 00:21:02,694
there was mindful art making and there
was also a wonderful strand called

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00:21:02,694 --> 00:21:08,154
'Seeing with Spirit', which is a one
hour conversation with a single artwork.

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00:21:08,724 --> 00:21:13,464
And you look at it through the lens
of someone's spiritual practice.

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00:21:13,524 --> 00:21:16,794
So each month they invite a different
person, whether that's, you know, a

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00:21:16,794 --> 00:21:22,644
Baptist preacher or a Buddhist teacher,
and that person walks through the museum

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00:21:23,004 --> 00:21:28,314
chooses of work of art, and then they
create and build a conversation around it.

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00:21:30,639 --> 00:21:32,709
And on that day I experienced Oasis.

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00:21:32,709 --> 00:21:35,019
The museum was just buzzing.

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00:21:35,019 --> 00:21:40,689
It was full of people all ages, engaging
with the galleries, with the art, and

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00:21:40,689 --> 00:21:43,209
with each other in so many different ways.

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00:21:43,209 --> 00:21:44,979
And it was so good to see.

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00:21:45,339 --> 00:21:50,919
And I think this is what a museum can
be when social connection is built

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00:21:50,979 --> 00:21:53,439
into the way it opens its doors.

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00:21:56,049 --> 00:22:01,299
The third program is Art After
Loss, which is also at the High.

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00:22:01,779 --> 00:22:05,859
And this is a four week program for
people who have experienced bereavement.

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00:22:05,859 --> 00:22:10,179
It's run by specially trained
facilitators, museum educators,

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00:22:10,209 --> 00:22:15,099
not grief counselors, and they are
using art as a way to gather around

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00:22:15,099 --> 00:22:18,489
something that isn't the grief itself.

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00:22:19,025 --> 00:22:22,385
Now I'll come back to Art After
Loss because there's some really

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00:22:22,655 --> 00:22:24,935
interesting evaluation evidence for it.

293
00:22:27,350 --> 00:22:32,650
And the fourth one was Writing
as Seeing at the Louisiana State

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00:22:32,650 --> 00:22:35,800
University Museum of Art in Baton Rouge.

295
00:22:36,300 --> 00:22:41,880
And Callie Smith talked about a
series of poetry workshops designed

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00:22:41,880 --> 00:22:45,240
and led in three different settings.

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00:22:45,390 --> 00:22:48,060
One was a bereavement camp for teens.

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00:22:48,540 --> 00:22:52,770
One was a men's prison and one
was a professional development

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00:22:52,770 --> 00:22:54,750
day for school art teachers.

300
00:22:55,380 --> 00:23:00,000
And I think what Cali showed was
that impactful art experiences

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00:23:00,150 --> 00:23:02,520
really don't need to be elaborate.

302
00:23:03,030 --> 00:23:08,130
Sometimes it's just printer paper
and a few colored pencils, and a

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00:23:08,130 --> 00:23:13,560
willingness to sit with people in
places where art doesn't usually go.

304
00:23:15,330 --> 00:23:20,220
So four programs, four very different
shapes, and that's really only a

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00:23:20,220 --> 00:23:21,960
small slice of what's out there.

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00:23:22,410 --> 00:23:26,310
And it brings me to our next
question, which is how do we

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00:23:26,310 --> 00:23:28,980
actually know this work is working?

308
00:23:33,765 --> 00:23:37,245
So let's return to the
Art After Loss program.

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00:23:37,815 --> 00:23:42,225
So the High recently commissioned a
formal evaluation of this program.

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00:23:42,225 --> 00:23:46,815
It was carried out by the Georgia
Health Policy Center at Georgia State

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00:23:46,815 --> 00:23:53,325
University, and they use a validated
research tool to measure changes in

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00:23:53,325 --> 00:23:55,395
participant's sense of connection.

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00:23:55,635 --> 00:23:59,835
And that means connection to
themselves, to others, and to the world.

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00:23:59,925 --> 00:24:03,525
And they measured it before
and after the program.

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00:24:04,155 --> 00:24:07,785
And they combined that with
qualitative interviews.

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00:24:07,785 --> 00:24:11,025
So they had both the numbers
and the stories behind them.

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00:24:13,005 --> 00:24:15,675
And what the evaluation
found was significant.

318
00:24:15,675 --> 00:24:21,075
So participants reported meaningful
increases in their sense of connectedness

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00:24:21,075 --> 00:24:23,355
across all three dimensions.

320
00:24:23,925 --> 00:24:27,765
And one of the insights that came
in through the qualitative findings

321
00:24:28,125 --> 00:24:33,195
was that what brought participants
together wasn't the grief itself.

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00:24:33,555 --> 00:24:34,665
It was the art.

323
00:24:35,490 --> 00:24:39,780
It was looking closely at
artworks together, with a skilled

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00:24:39,780 --> 00:24:44,940
facilitator, gave them something
to focus on that wasn't their loss.

325
00:24:45,420 --> 00:24:48,990
And paradoxically created
the conditions for the most

326
00:24:49,080 --> 00:24:51,720
meaningful connections to happen.

327
00:24:52,530 --> 00:24:57,150
And in addition, under a new head
of research, that's Julia Forbes,

328
00:24:57,150 --> 00:25:02,220
the High are building research into
the fabric of the organization.

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00:25:02,880 --> 00:25:06,240
And during one of the breakout
sessions, I heard about a major

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00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:10,260
project measuring visitor wellbeing
across three different programs.

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00:25:10,260 --> 00:25:16,200
So they're measuring, Oasis, which we've
just talked about, their free entry Access

332
00:25:16,200 --> 00:25:21,750
for All Days for older adults and their
UPS Second Sunday, which is for families.

333
00:25:22,770 --> 00:25:27,970
And this research is using a framework
built on John Falk's categories of museum

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00:25:27,970 --> 00:25:34,420
value, that's physical, intellectual,
social, and emotional wellbeing.

335
00:25:34,690 --> 00:25:38,740
And they added a fifth category
of spiritual wellbeing.

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00:25:39,405 --> 00:25:44,205
So they're using Garmin watches to
measure physical wellbeing during visits.

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00:25:44,565 --> 00:25:49,005
They're doing surveys and interviews
for the social and emotional dimensions.

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00:25:49,485 --> 00:25:53,535
And for spiritual wellbeing they're
using participatory photography,

339
00:25:53,535 --> 00:25:58,485
inviting visitors to photograph
moments of awe in the galleries.

340
00:25:58,845 --> 00:26:02,415
And the findings excitingly
will be published in a peer

341
00:26:02,415 --> 00:26:06,075
review journal in May 20 26.

342
00:26:07,545 --> 00:26:13,905
And what this means is the High isn't just
doing the work, it's actually generating

343
00:26:13,905 --> 00:26:16,725
knowledge that other museums can use.

344
00:26:17,355 --> 00:26:19,335
And this really matters.

345
00:26:19,725 --> 00:26:24,885
Because I think one of the hardest things
about this kind of work, it's that so much

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00:26:24,885 --> 00:26:28,065
of it happens in silos or under the radar.

347
00:26:28,545 --> 00:26:33,615
Organizations develop programs, they
run them well, they get good feedback

348
00:26:33,615 --> 00:26:38,445
from participants, and then the
learning stays inside the building.

349
00:26:39,165 --> 00:26:43,035
But this work opens the conversation up.

350
00:26:43,980 --> 00:26:47,130
And I think this matters enormously.

351
00:26:47,130 --> 00:26:52,600
I think one of the hardest questions
facing museums doing this work is how

352
00:26:52,600 --> 00:26:58,120
to make the case for it to funders, to
policy makers, to the health sector.

353
00:26:58,570 --> 00:27:01,330
And without evidence, it's just a story.

354
00:27:01,650 --> 00:27:06,283
With evidence, it's a contribution
to a much bigger conversation.

355
00:27:07,288 --> 00:27:12,988
So let's come back to the three questions
I carried with me to this convening.

356
00:27:13,648 --> 00:27:16,288
What does it actually
take to do this work well?

357
00:27:16,738 --> 00:27:20,728
How do we build the evidence that
it works and how do we get the

358
00:27:20,728 --> 00:27:22,918
wider world to hear about it?

359
00:27:24,823 --> 00:27:27,223
So here's what I've come to think.

360
00:27:27,553 --> 00:27:30,583
Those three questions
aren't separate questions.

361
00:27:30,583 --> 00:27:34,903
They're all really kind of pointing
at the same thing, and that's not

362
00:27:34,903 --> 00:27:39,043
a program or a project or you know,
some kind of commitment on paper.

363
00:27:39,373 --> 00:27:40,303
It's culture.

364
00:27:42,043 --> 00:27:47,623
So the museums that are doing this work
best have built a culture around it.

365
00:27:47,773 --> 00:27:52,933
A culture where social connection and
wellbeing aren't side projects that

366
00:27:52,963 --> 00:27:58,543
the learning team runs when there's
funding, they're really part of how the

367
00:27:58,543 --> 00:28:02,263
organization understands its own purpose.

368
00:28:02,923 --> 00:28:07,933
So this is a culture where the director
speaks about this work in the same breath

369
00:28:07,963 --> 00:28:14,713
as exhibitions and collections, a culture
where research and evaluation are built in

370
00:28:14,833 --> 00:28:17,743
from the start, not bolted on at the end.

371
00:28:18,403 --> 00:28:21,163
And it's a culture where
programs are allowed to run

372
00:28:21,163 --> 00:28:23,863
for years, not just seasons.

373
00:28:24,733 --> 00:28:31,738
And finally, it's a culture where staff,
docents facilitators and visitors all

374
00:28:31,738 --> 00:28:35,013
feel that this is what the museum is for.

375
00:28:36,148 --> 00:28:39,328
And I don't think you can
fake a culture like that, and

376
00:28:39,328 --> 00:28:41,248
you definitely can't rush it.

377
00:28:41,938 --> 00:28:47,098
At the High it's taken roughly
a decade of consistent patient

378
00:28:47,308 --> 00:28:51,658
building, and that's a really honest
timeframe for this kind of work.

379
00:28:51,658 --> 00:28:56,518
And it's worth spelling out because it
really sets realistic expectations for

380
00:28:56,548 --> 00:28:59,068
anyone wanting to do something similar.

381
00:29:00,838 --> 00:29:02,818
And of course none of this is simple.

382
00:29:03,088 --> 00:29:07,288
Cultures don't change overnight and
they don't change because just one

383
00:29:07,288 --> 00:29:10,168
person or one team wants them to.

384
00:29:10,858 --> 00:29:14,968
But there are questions here
worth sitting with wherever

385
00:29:14,968 --> 00:29:17,068
you are in your organization.

386
00:29:18,613 --> 00:29:19,933
So think about this.

387
00:29:19,933 --> 00:29:27,223
Is this work visible in your institution's
values, strategy, and language, or does

388
00:29:27,223 --> 00:29:30,613
it mostly live inside one department?

389
00:29:31,813 --> 00:29:34,153
How widely is it talked about?

390
00:29:34,633 --> 00:29:35,803
And by whom?

391
00:29:37,843 --> 00:29:42,943
Are the programs you run funded
as short term projects, or are

392
00:29:42,943 --> 00:29:46,063
they built as ongoing commitments?

393
00:29:47,263 --> 00:29:51,223
And are you building
evaluation in from the start?

394
00:29:53,893 --> 00:29:58,903
And when you talk about this work with
people outside the museum, with funders,

395
00:29:58,903 --> 00:30:04,303
with health partners, with policy
makers, what do you have to show them?

396
00:30:07,078 --> 00:30:11,608
And I think if you're wanting to start
building that culture in your own context,

397
00:30:11,818 --> 00:30:18,178
here are a few simple things worth holding
onto from what I heard at this convening.

398
00:30:19,258 --> 00:30:23,938
So number one, work in
longer time horizons.

399
00:30:24,358 --> 00:30:29,638
So real relationships take real
time and trust builds slowly.

400
00:30:31,573 --> 00:30:34,273
Secondly, keep the bar high.

401
00:30:34,993 --> 00:30:39,463
Keep asking whether what you are
offering really matters to the

402
00:30:39,463 --> 00:30:41,233
people you are offering it to.

403
00:30:43,183 --> 00:30:49,993
Number three, find partners outside the
museum, academics, health professionals,

404
00:30:49,993 --> 00:30:54,368
community organizations, because
doing this work alone is harder

405
00:30:54,588 --> 00:30:56,648
and lonelier than it needs to be.

406
00:30:58,663 --> 00:31:03,433
And finally document and share
what you are learning so it doesn't

407
00:31:03,433 --> 00:31:06,673
just stay inside your organization.

408
00:31:07,063 --> 00:31:11,533
Because one of the ways this whole
field moves forward, is when we

409
00:31:11,533 --> 00:31:13,423
share what we know with each other.

410
00:31:15,763 --> 00:31:20,893
So before I wrap up, I just want
to say a huge thank you to Laurel

411
00:31:20,893 --> 00:31:25,843
Humble, to Andrew Westover and to the
entire learning team at the High for

412
00:31:25,843 --> 00:31:28,453
putting on such a wonderful two days.

413
00:31:28,843 --> 00:31:31,993
This convening really
practiced what it preached.

414
00:31:32,713 --> 00:31:36,583
Social connection was built
into the design of the two days.

415
00:31:36,613 --> 00:31:40,783
You know, there were icebreaker questions
on the tables in the breakout areas.

416
00:31:41,203 --> 00:31:43,963
There were reflective prompts
at the end of each day.

417
00:31:43,982 --> 00:31:46,202
And the pacing was generous.

418
00:31:46,382 --> 00:31:49,112
Plenty of breaks to
actually talk to people.

419
00:31:49,592 --> 00:31:51,842
And boy did I talk to a lot of people.

420
00:31:52,352 --> 00:31:55,862
It all sounds like small
things, but it really matters.

421
00:31:55,862 --> 00:32:00,962
You can't talk about social connection,
without enabling it in the room.

422
00:32:01,862 --> 00:32:05,882
And I really hope that this is the
start of something, a community, a

423
00:32:05,882 --> 00:32:08,732
movement, or an annual gathering.

424
00:32:10,367 --> 00:32:13,247
So I want to leave you with
two prompts that Laurel shared

425
00:32:13,247 --> 00:32:14,477
at the end of the convening.

426
00:32:14,477 --> 00:32:18,437
I think they're really useful,
especially if you've listened to all

427
00:32:18,437 --> 00:32:21,797
of this and you're wondering where
to begin, whether you're starting

428
00:32:21,797 --> 00:32:25,727
this work in your organization, or
whether you're trying to deepen what

429
00:32:25,727 --> 00:32:30,527
you're already doing or thinking
about how to make it more sustainable.

430
00:32:31,547 --> 00:32:33,167
The first question is this.

431
00:32:34,817 --> 00:32:38,897
'For me, social connection looks like...'

432
00:32:43,197 --> 00:32:44,757
And the second is this.

433
00:32:46,167 --> 00:32:48,987
'One thing I can do next is...'

434
00:32:50,387 --> 00:32:52,007
so sit with those for a moment.

435
00:32:52,007 --> 00:32:55,457
You might even want to
write down some thoughts.

436
00:32:56,147 --> 00:32:58,817
So one last thing before I sign off.

437
00:32:58,927 --> 00:33:00,607
Don't miss the next episode.

438
00:33:00,877 --> 00:33:05,287
There's an announcement coming and
that's all I can say about that for now.

439
00:33:06,292 --> 00:33:09,682
So thank you so much for
listening to this special episode,

440
00:33:10,192 --> 00:33:11,782
and I'll see you next time.

441
00:33:12,292 --> 00:33:12,622
Bye.

442
00:33:17,452 --> 00:33:20,122
Thank you for listening to
The Art Engager podcast.

443
00:33:20,182 --> 00:33:21,172
With me, Claire Bown.

444
00:33:22,792 --> 00:33:26,242
You can find more art engagement
resources by visiting my website.

445
00:33:26,817 --> 00:33:31,617
Thinking museum.com, and you can
also find me on Instagram at Thinking

446
00:33:31,617 --> 00:33:35,937
Museum, where I regularly share
tips and tools on how to bring art

447
00:33:35,967 --> 00:33:38,607
to life and engage your audience.

448
00:33:39,807 --> 00:33:44,007
If you've enjoyed this episode, please
share with others and subscribe to the

449
00:33:44,007 --> 00:33:46,827
show on your podcast Player of Choice.

450
00:33:47,757 --> 00:33:50,997
Thank you so much for listening,
and I'll see you next time.