You CAN Take Kids to Fine Art Museums When You Travel! Here’s How...

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Science and natural history museums are almost always fun for kids. But what about fine art museums?  

Are we really going to be in London and not go to the Tate? To Madrid and not visit the Prado? Well, maybe. But if we do want to go, we should be able take our kids and still have fun.

You may be tempted to try to recreate your adults-only style art museum visit with your kids in tow. Unless your kids are particularly precocious, this approach is not likely to work.  

Instead, play into the universal strength of kids of all ages...IMAGINATION! 

Here are a few approaches you can use:

With Portraits:

  • Tell them to find the weirdest, most mysterious, interesting painting in each room.

  • Ask them to imagine the story behind it. Major kudos for creativity. 

  • If you have multiple kids, you can award points for things like ‘strangest backstory’ or ‘funniest explanation’. Then, let them redeem the points at the gift shop on your way out of the museum. Our prizes tend to be pretty tiny, but that hasn’t seemed to matter at all.

With Statues:

  • Start by making up your own story...like, what if the statues were once alive, but an angry ogre/wizard/witch/elf turned them all into stone. 

  • Let them build on the story:

    • Why was the ogre angry?

    • What were the statues doing right before they were turned to stone?

    • What might make them come back to life? Wait…did that one just move?

  • To kick it up a notch, when you get back to your hotel help them write out the story they came up with. Then send it (or pictures of it) to your family and friends. Read them all the responses their story gets!

With Abstract Art: 

  • If you’re planning to go to a specific exhibit, look online with your kids to see what abstract pieces they have.

  • Have the kids pick out a few of their favorites so they can look for them when you get to the museum.

  • Bring sketchpads and colored pencils to the museum.

  • Look for the pieces your kids picked out online and find a spot nearby where they can sit.

  • Ask them to either draw what they see hiding in the abstract art or create their own version. Meanwhile, you can stroll around the room and take in a little of the exhibit yourself.

Tap into your own imagination to come up with other approaches to engage your kids. By playing into their creative strengths, the whole family can enjoy cultural experiences together. It also allows ALL of you to see art in a completely new and imaginative way.  

And lastly, keep it short. An hour is perfect. More than ninety minutes and you may be pushing your luck!