Layered Looking: Making Sense of Art
March 10, 2026 — July 19, 2026
Mary and Charlie Babcock Wing Gallery
What if looking at art felt more like playing a game, or solving a puzzle, or turning on a song you forgot you loved?
Layered Looking: Making Sense of Art invites you to move through Reynolda’s collection not with a guidebook or a lecture, but through sound, touch, memory, movement — even making things with your own two hands. It’s an exhibition about what happens when we give ourselves permission to engage art with our whole bodies and our full curiosity.
Instead of spotlighting one artist, period, or theme, the exhibition is organized around different ways of doing art appreciation — looking closely, listening deeply, striking a pose, building a bridge between your life and what you see. In one space, hear a saxophone solo as you reflect on brushstrokes. In another, you might sketch a mystery scene left unfinished by a painter two centuries ago. Around every corner, you’ll find playful provocations and gentle invitations to imagine more.
There’s no one right way in. That’s the point.
Whether you’re a first-time visitor or a lifelong art lover, you’ll walk away with a set of tools for seeing — tactile, sensory, reflective — that you can carry into any museum (and frankly, any moment of daily life). As G.K. Chesterton once said, “The true object of all human life is play.” We believe art is asking the same of us: Show up curious. Stay long enough to be inspired.
Layered Looking Events
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Apr 25, 2026, 2:00pm — 4:00pm
Minnie Evans: Draw or Die is a visually rich documentary exploring the life and work of Minnie Evans (1892–1987), a self-taught African American artist whose intricate, dream-infused art emerged fro…
May 1, 2026, 10:00am — 12:00pm
Any artwork can be an opening to conversation and fresh seeing. With both guided and independent looking, participants will practice engaging with works of art slowly. The invitation is to discover wh…
May 16, 2026, 2:00pm — 3:00pm
Join Exhibition Curator and Director of Teaching & Learning Julia Tanner for an inside look at Layered Looking: Making Sense of Art. Reynolda’s spring exhibition reimagines how we experience…
May 19, 2026, 11:00am — 12:00pm
In 2026, museums nationwide are commemorating the bicentennial of Hudson River School painter Frederic Edwin Church. Join Reynolda curator Allison Slaby as she offers a deeper look at Church’s The A…
May 22, 2026, 6:00pm — 9:00pm
Enjoy an evening at the Museum with art, cocktails and music during Reynolda’s “Drinks at Dusk” event. For ages 21 and up.
Jun 2, 2026, 11:00am — 12:00pm
Often called the father of video art, Nam June Paik created Leonardo da Vinci, an amalgamation of technology and found objects, which will be on view in Layered Looking: Making Sense of Art after unde…
