Learning to look

It began with a group of friends who regularly participated in serious intellectual activity—readers, writers, critics, and scholars—but who often lacked formal visual education. We founded the group to facilitate a more sustained and disciplined way of encountering art.

We meet in museums, galleries, historic sites, and other spaces across New York City. Each session focuses on a small body of work. We spend time looking, talking, comparing, disagreeing, and trying to understand what the work is doing.

The goal of the group is to self-educate in visual art, improve our “eye,” have interesting discussions, and take advantage of the phenomenal artistic resources in New York City.

An open conversation

Close looking is our starting point. We bring our observations to one another, test interpretations, and return to the object. The only authority is the artwork.

The readings—art history, primary sources, theory, criticism, and literature—are offered as tools for conversation. They are curated as broadly and ecumenically as possible. There is no single school of thought or position that participants are expected to share.

A group of peers

The organizer is not a teacher, professor, or authority. They develop the syllabus, select artworks and spaces, gather readings, and convene the meeting—but everyone participates in looking and discussion.

You can attend one session or follow a whole series. No formal training, advance reading, or previous attendance is required. The Looking Group is always free; museum admission varies by venue.