The Museum Voice Needs to Die

You know that hushed, reverent tone people use when they talk about art? The one that makes everything sound like a religious ceremony? Yeah, that needs to stop.

I spend my days trying to get people excited about looking at things differently, and half my job is deprogramming them from this idea that art appreciation requires a monastery mindset.

“The artist explores themes of temporal displacement through juxtaposed symbolic narratives…”

What if I told you that same painting is actually about how your childhood bedroom felt huge until you visited it as an adult? Or how traffic lights look like alien flowers if you squint? Would that be less “serious”?

The museum voice isn’t making art more important - it’s making it smaller. It’s wrapping wonder in bubble wrap and sticking warning labels on everything. “Caution: Deep Meaning Inside. Handle with Academic Gloves Only.”

But here’s what I’ve learned after thousands of hours watching people discover art: the good stuff hits you before your brain gets involved. It’s the moment when someone stops mid-sentence and just… looks. When they forget they’re supposed to have an intelligent opinion and just let their eyes do what eyes do.

That’s not dumbing down. That’s tuning in.

So let’s try this: next time you’re looking at art, give yourself permission to just be curious. Notice what catches your attention. Notice what feels familiar or strange. Notice where your eyes want to go.

The painting doesn’t need your reverence. It needs your attention.

And for the love of all that’s visual, speak normally. Art survived the Renaissance without corporate jargon - it can handle your regular voice too.