Activating the Art Museum

Ruth Slavin has thirty years of leadership experience in art museums, most recently as deputy director for education at the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) where she initiated partnerships with faculty in medicine, nursing and social work. Since 2009, she has designed gallery experiences, workshops, and elective courses with and for physicians, residents, and medical students on topics including empathy, complexity and ambiguity in medicine, personal narratives in medical education, and mindfulness. Ray Williams has established robust partnerships with medical educators and clinicians as the director of education at both the Harvard Art Museums and, since 2012, the Blanton Museum of Art at The University of Texas at Austin. He participated in the American Academy of Medical College’s committee on integrating the arts and humanities in medical education and has consulted to the Kern National Network for Caring and Character in Medicine. His work with health professionals in museum settings has focused on interprofessional teamwork, empathic communication, religion and spirituality, and wellbeing. He has a particular commitment to supporting clinicians dealing with grief and loss. Corinne Zimmermann has been a museum educator for thirty years. Through Corinne Zimmermann Consultancy, she custom designs trainings and workshops for the health professions and business organizations focused on improving communication and team dynamics; cultivating leadership skills and empathic capacities; mitigating biases; and promoting well-being. She is a founding co-director of the Harvard Macy Institute’s Art Museum-based Health Professions Education Fellowship and co-founder of VTS@Work, which offers interprofessional training and certification in the Visual Thinking Strategies.

In this timely and inclusive new work, Slavin, Williams, and Zimmerman provide a holistic look at how thoughtfully designed art museum experiences are fostering well-being, empathy, and humanity among healthcare professionals, patients and museum practitioners. The creative and affirming personal narratives and practical applications in each chapter illustrate the value of art museums at a time when their innovative thinking and resources are needed more than ever.

• List of Figures AcknowledgementsForeword: Lisa Howley, American Association of Medical CollegesPrefaceChapter 1: Why Art Museums? Chapter 2: Thinking in the Art MuseumChapter 3: Cultivating EmpathyChapter 4: The Power of StoryChapter 5: Strengthening Interprofessional Teams Chapter 6: Confronting BiasChapter 7: Caring for the SpiritChapter 8: Nurturing WellnessChapter 9: Practicing MindfulnessChapter 10: Building a Community of PracticeAfterword: Kaywin Feldman, National Gallery of Art Recommended ReadingAbout the Authors