Today, art museums, galleries, and other institutions around the world are marking the annual Slow Art Day with a wide variety of tours, activities and events that all encourage visitors to take more time with art. The concept is quite simple, by spending more more time with works of art we can make a more mindful connection. The annual Slow Art Day is the brainchild of Phil Terry who founded the event in 2009. Terry was motivated by the trend by museums towards blockbuster shows that herd visitors through exhibitions like cattle without providing time to engage with the art. He got the idea for a slow art day while visiting New York City’s Jewish Museum, where he spent an hour with Hans Hoffman’s painting Fantasia. 

Over the last decade, Slow Art Day has been embraced by hundreds of institutions and has inspired events across the globe, even in Antarctica. Terry describes the slow art movement as an “open-source idea” that museums and galleries can build on.

Once again, this year hundreds of venues have committed to participate in Slow Art Day. Check out the website to find one near you.