Empathy and aesthetic experience in the art museum

The purpose of this study was to explore how students’ aesthetic understanding and ability to empathize were impacted by multiple learning experiences in the environment of an art museum. As part of a semester-long class in elementary art methods, education majors experienced a docent-led tour of the local art museum, featuring the work of fibre artist Deidre Scherer. The tour was followed by a series of learning events centred on the exhibit and the study of end-of-life care, the theme of Scherer’s work. Students then answered structured questionnaires prompting them to process the learning events with intentional reflection. A qualitative method of enquiry sought to uncover the lived experiences of the students enrolled in the class. Through these encounters, students developed empathy and understanding as well as the ability to describe the meanings of the art in terms of their own life scenarios.