Would You Look at That: Platteville Art Galleries to Celebrate International Slow Art Day

Twenty-seven seconds. According to researchers Lisa and Jeffrey Smith, that is the average time gallery visitors spent looking at a single piece of art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art before moving along to the next piece. Which raises the question: Are gallery visitors spending enough time with the art?

On April 11, galleries around the world celebrate Slow Art Day. This annual celebration challenges gallery guests to be mindful about how long they spend with a single piece of artwork to see if they notice a difference in their gallery viewing experience. This year, both the Harry and Laura Nohr Gallery at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and Rountree Gallery on Platteville's Main Street will celebrate Slow Art Day with slow looking activities.

The Nohr Gallery will celebrate Slow Art Day on Wednesday, March 25 from 2-3 p.m. with guided discussions with Dr. Tyler Ostergaard, UW-Platteville's Associate Professor of Art History. Visitors will have the opportunity to analyze and converse about five pieces from the university's permanent collection as a group for about ten minutes each.

"So often when we look at art, even in a museum or gallery, we quickly shuffle past the art without spending any real time looking. Slowing down, actually looking, pausing, thinking, and talking about what we're seeing allows us to think about art objects in a deeper way," said Dr. Ostergaard.

Gallery visitors will be welcome to contribute their thoughts and observations about the selected pieces during the guided discussions. By engaging with the artwork as a group, visitors should realize different points of view they would not have obtained otherwise, contributing to their observation experience. With guidance by Dr. Ostergaard, gallery guests will gain a few skills in art analysis and leave with a mindfulness of what they could find in a piece of artwork when they really stop to take a look.

"When we look closely, we begin to ask questions like 'what are we looking at,' 'what makes us say or feel that,' and 'what else can we see,'" noted Dr. Ostergaard. "These questions allow the art object to become more than a physical object and become a visual mode of communication shared by all of us."

Rountree Gallery will welcome visitors for a Slow Art Day celebration for the sixth consecutive year on Saturday, April 11. This year's theme, Look Like an Artist, invites participants to follow slow-looking prompts in an artist crafted zine using the language of working artists. The zine includes dedicated space for writing and drawing, encouraging guests to actively engage with the artwork in their current exhibits. This year's theme offers specific prompts designed to deepen the visitor's sense of exploration, so they may analyze the artwork like an artist.

"Rountree Gallery embraces Slow Art Day as an opportunity to encourage visitors to select just a few works and experience them more intentionally. Slowing down not only helps us see more deeply, but also brings the joy of discovery," said Heidi Dyas-McBeth, Rountree Gallery's Board Vice President.

Rountree Gallery's Look Like an Artist activities will take place from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, April 11. Gallery volunteer artists will conduct an hour-long guided session beginning at 11 a.m. Outside of that hour, participants are welcome to use the zine for a self-guided exploration of the exhibits.

More details about Slow Art Day at Rountree Gallery can be found at rountreegallery.org.