Get the Picture: A Mind-Bending Journey Among the Inspired Artists and Obsessive Art Fiends Who Taught Me How to See

Bosker takes a job as a security guard at the Guggenheim Museum, using this position to examine how people interact with art and how extended viewing shapes artistic appreciation. The chapter explores museum security work, with guards rotating through nine posts daily in 40-minute intervals. Despite the museum’s effort to rebrand security personnel as “gallery guides” who engage with visitors, Bosker discovers the job primarily involves monotonous surveillance punctuated by occasional interventions to prevent visitors from touching artwork or consuming food and beverages.

Bosker presents a historical analysis of American museums’ transformation from democratic spaces to elite institutions. Early American museums, such as P.T. Barnum’s establishment, displayed an eclectic mix of items. However, after the Civil War, wealthy urbanites transformed museums into exclusive spaces for “higher things,” implementing strict behavioral codes that persist in contemporary museum culture.

Through her guard duties, Bosker identifies distinct categories of museum visitors: “touchers” who physically engage with artwork, “breathers” who examine pieces at extremely close range, “completers” who methodically view every piece, and “grazers” who selectively engage with certain works. She notes that these behavioral patterns reflect institutional conditioning rather than natural responses to art.

The author describes her growing appreciation for specific artworks, particularly a Brancusi sculpture, after spending extended periods observing them.