Part of the enjoyment I have been getting out of our museum visits so far has been noticing the reactions of my classmates. This was particularly true today during the visit to the Art Museum of the Americas at the Organization of American States.

Art museums typically aren’t my thing. I can always find something to enjoy in any museum, but I’m definitely going to hit up a history or science museum if given a choice. Because of this, I find a lot of benefit  in creeping on fellow visitors in art museums, getting a sense of the quality of the exhibits through their reactions. While I sometimes need a crutch, for example, I can often manage without one, which means I can usually remain blissfully unaware of the accessibility shortcomings of buildings. Visiting museums along with classmates like Angela, who are not afraid to call out accessibility issues, has been eye-opening and invaluable. There are a multitude of valid reasons the AMA hasn’t kept up with the trend of greater accessibility: money, space, staff, a historic building. These don’t make the lack of proper seating or an elevator any less of an issue.

Likewise, because I am not usually interested in most installation art, I tend to pass off any confusion I might have as just my inability to “understand” contemporary art. Listening to two of my classmates vent about the lack of labels or visitor information of any kind in the Carolina Mayorga exhibit made me think about my experience a bit differently. Perhaps it is not that I don’t “get” installation art, but rather than I need some guidance in how to view it or participate.