{"id":616037,"date":"2026-04-20T07:09:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T07:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/616037\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T07:09:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T07:09:08","slug":"my-toddler-threw-a-toy-pig-at-an-artwork-and-inspired-this-guide-for-small-kids-in-galleries-art-and-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/616037\/","title":{"rendered":"My toddler threw a toy pig at an artwork \u2013 and inspired this guide for small kids in galleries | Art and design"},"content":{"rendered":"

It all began at the Royal Academy. I was trying \u2013 and mostly failing \u2013 to look at epic, inventive paintings by Kerry James Marshall<\/a>. My toddler was trying \u2013 and mostly failing \u2013 to career around the gallery spaces without colliding with anybody\u2019s legs. As he hurled his toy pig, bowling ball-style, beneath one of the low, string barriers installed to keep a safe distance between us and the canvases, it got me thinking: are small children and art compatible? Was it selfish of me to have chosen the RA over, say, the Young V&A<\/a>? What could I do to make gallery-going a happy and stress-free experience for us both?<\/p>\n

These are just a few of the questions I hope to answer over the course of this series, which will explore the delights and dangers (just imagine if one of piggy\u2019s trotters had pierced a KJM) of introducing knee-height people to art. Over the coming weeks, I\u2019ll be visiting galleries, museums, immersive exhibitions and sculpture parks with my toddler \u2013 some aimed at him, others \u2026 well, aimed at me. Along the way I\u2019ll share my thoughts, his reactions, key strategies and notes on buggy access, child-friendly menus, entrance fees and changing facilities.<\/p>\n

According to research commissioned by Art Fund in 2024, 92% of parents in the UK believe that visiting a museum or gallery is beneficial for their children. Yet 45% consider some hushed halls to be unwelcoming to kids, and 68% have felt judged for bringing them. Just over half of the parents surveyed worry their children would run around and potentially damage something.<\/p>\n

\u2018Was it selfish of me to have chosen the RA over, say, the Young V&A?\u2019 Photograph: David Parry\/courtesy of Victoria and Albert Museum, London<\/p>\n

I get it. Just the other day I was told \u2013 and I really was told \u2013 to hold my son\u2019s hand in a museum, which I did, before the tiny, squirmy hand inevitably wriggled free. One friend ditched a video installation for which she\u2019d bought a ticket after a man moaned that her young child was disturbing him. Another described a recent trip to Tate Britain with her own hard-to-wrangle toddler as a high-intensity workout.<\/p>\n

The question, then: is the niggling worry, the possible embarrassment, the physical torture, the downright fear really worth it?<\/p>\n

Yes! I think. I hope. And not just because I want to spend time with art \u2013 and, on the days when I don\u2019t have childcare, where I go, my son comes, too. It\u2019s true that, on a purely selfish level, I prefer paintings to stay-and-plays, and that I don\u2019t feel entirely relaxed in rackety play cafes. I\u2019ll admit I\u2019m not a joiner \u2013 poor child, you might be thinking, for the love of god take the boy to rhyme time! But checking out the art on offer across the country is just as enjoyable for him, and heaps more enjoyable for me.<\/p>\n

double quotation markResearch shows that if you visit a museum as a child, you\u2019re more likely to become a long-term visitor<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to me that he feels at home in our national institutions, which, by the way, are often free. Research shows that if you visit a museum with your family as a child, you\u2019re more likely to become a long-term visitor. And then there are the benefits to learning, mental health and wellbeing.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, things have changed since former Guardian columnist Dea Birkett and her twins were shown the exit at the RA<\/a> after one of them screamed with delight \u201cMonster! Monster\u201d at an Aztec sculpture 20-odd years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought I was the cleverest woman in the world,\u201d she tells me. \u201cHere I was with a two-year-old appreciating pre-Hispanic art. So, I bent down to say \u2018yes, yes, it\u2019s just like a monster\u2019, then a gallery assistant asked us to leave because we were being too noisy.\u201d The experience led her to establish Kids in Museums<\/a>, a charity dedicated to making cultural organisations more welcoming for families.<\/p>\n

Historically, museums might have been places of quiet contemplation and static displays. But more and more now cater to children \u2013 particularly under-fives, who, with their adults, make up a large part of the midweek audience. Last year, Brighton & Hove Museums collaborated with Sussex Baby Lab<\/a> to create a trail based on eye-tracking technology and headcams, which revealed what infants were most drawn to during cultural visits. And Dulwich Picture Gallery in London opened a new ArtPlay Pavilion<\/a> \u2013 the centrepiece of a \u00a35m renovation \u2013 furnished with bridges and swings inspired by paintings in its collection.<\/p>\n

\u2018More and more museums now cater to children\u2019 \u2026 the ArtPlay Pavilion at Dulwich Picture Gallery, London. Photograph: Luca Piffaretti<\/p>\n

Off the back of its 2024 research, Art Fund launched Kids Aloud<\/a>, a scheme that encourages children to visit museums and galleries, and, during two-hour slots, be as lively as they like. Look up your local and I bet there will be a kiddy-focused offering. After a quick Google search, I have a long list that includes Art Baby<\/a> at the Whitworth in Manchester, Toddle Tours<\/a> at MK Gallery in Milton Keynes, and Art Rebels<\/a> at Turner Contemporary in Margate.<\/p>\n

The trouble is, do I want something kiddy-focused, or do I want to simply bring my son with me to an exhibition I\u2019ve been longing to see? Am I after education or entertainment or both? What happens when we leave the iPad behind, only to encounter art on a screen? Is an outdoor sculpture park the answer to a day of art that\u2019s free from constant cajoling and scooping? And, speaking of which, how on earth can we plan for the fact that small children are entirely unpredictable?<\/p>\n

Back at the RA, I sheepishly told the nearest gallery attendant about the toy pig, cordoned off behind the string. I wanted to tell him that, as well as a mum, I\u2019m an art critic. I didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

He followed me across the polished wood floor before kneeling down to peer into one of the metal grills (my son loves to dance on those) and regretfully inform me he wasn\u2019t sure how to retrieve it.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot there,\u201d I said. \u201cThere.\u201d I pointed towards the base of the painting behind him, mercifully unharmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, you can get it,\u201d he replied. \u201cThose strings are just for show.\u201d<\/p>\n

Top tips for survival when visiting a gallery or museum with a small child<\/p>\n

Snacks, lots of snacks<\/p>\n

Time it well (bear in mind naps, meal times, rush hour \u2013 you name it)<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be afraid to cut and run<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It all began at the Royal Academy. I was trying \u2013 and mostly failing \u2013 to look at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":616038,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[76,354,355,49,48,356,75],"class_list":{"0":"post-616037","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-ca","12":"tag-canada","13":"tag-design","14":"tag-entertainment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/616037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=616037"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/616037\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/616038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=616037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=616037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=616037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}