Use your senses

Ideas for starting a conversation about art (for all ages)

Looking at art can engage all the senses

Here are some example questions we’ve used to get children and young people talking about art. Use them in the gallery or at home with the online collection. Choose any picture, sculpture or art installation and try these prompts to help learners analyse what they see.

Imagine we’ve jumped right inside the picture…
 

  • Where is this place?
  • What can you see in front, behind, below and above you?
  • What can you smell?
  • What can you hear?
  • Is there anything you could taste?
  • What can you touch? What does it feel like?

 

How will we get out of the picture and back home?

Here are some pictures you might want to talk about…

La Joie de vivre [The Joy of Life] Max Ernst
Fantastic Landscape Paul Bril
White Painting (with Red, Blue, Violet and Ochre) Margaret Mellis
The Lamp of Sacrifice, 286 Places of Worship, Edinburgh 2004 Nathan Coley
Giant Cod MacMahon of Aberdeen
Hell's Glen Ian Cheyne
Composition (Paysage à Céret) [Composition (Landscape at Céret)] Auguste Herbin
Daphne Oram Victoria Morton
Explore the collection

See | Think | Wonder

What do we see when we look at a piece of art? Do we all see the same thing or do we each bring our own ideas and experiences to the work?

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Learning resources

Explore our other learning resources for use in school, in gallery or at home.

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