06 Oct 2025
I don't think I'll ever go back.
It was my first time at the museum, along with my children, niece, and nephew. I was so excited to take them and share artwork with them. Immediately staff were rude to us. I had no idea where to go, signage was limited and no one was standing at the podium before an exhibit, there was an employee just standing in the middle of the area so I went up to her and she made me feel like it was huge inconvenience to be asking her questions and as if I should already know what to do/where to go. Another member was rude when I tried handing her my phone to scan our exhibit tickets because we went to her instead of her coworker. I came up in a friendly, polite, smiling, happy manner and instead I was tread with impatience and shortness and this is how my children saw me get treated. This is their first experience of an art museum. So now there is this expectation that this is how all art museums are. That they will be treated this way and treated as unwanted.
At one point an employee came up to me and my son and wanted to show us art work. I was so excited that here was finally someone who was excited to be there and show us history. Instead he pointed out how a little boy in this one painting was wearing a dress and then asked my son how he would like to be wearing a dress as if it was a shameful thing. I was absolutely appalled. What if my son did like wearing dresses? His first experience at a museum is being shamed for a piece of clothing article. I am so thankful that my niece who identifies as part of the LGBTQIA+ community was not in the room when that happened.
I am a huge art lover, and I was so excited to share this experience with my children and niece and nephew, but instead was treated awfully and they all saw. I am ashamed, appalled, and heartbroken.