Photo Courtesy of Dallas Museum of Art
I love Sundays, don't you? Savoring the last sweet drops of weekend freedom by sleeping in and generally having a lovely lazy day before the toils of the work week truly begin. I love going on long walks on Sundays. Maybe that doesn't sound very lazy, but I feel very relaxed when I do it. There's no set pace, no route, just me and my headphones wandering the neighborhood in the sunshine.
A couple of Sundays ago, I felt unusually motivated to take my walk somewhere new, so I decided to head over to the Dallas Museum of Art to lose myself for a few glorious hours among the great artists of the world. I hadn't been to the museum in a few years, and I have heard rumors of new and wonderful things.
I didn't have to wait long to find out what has been happening at my old stomping ground. I handed my credit card to the lady at the front desk to pay for my ticket only to find she wouldn't take it.
"General admission is free," she said.
Free? What does this word mean?
"Free?"
"Yes, ma'am. Free."
"As in I don't have to pay?"
"No."
"Free?"
This went on for quite some time. In case you haven't already figured it out, general admission to the museum is free. Special exhibitions are still subject to admission fees, but the entire rest of the museum is free. Let that sink in for a moment. Nothing in Dallas is free. Nothing.
Feeling like I had stepped into a magical alternate dimension, I was then led to a small kiosk by a very nice lady in a red jacket who told me I could earn free stuff by signing up for the DMA Friends program. I automatically declined, as I do for all so-called rewards programs, but she insisted I would not regret it. She entered in all of my information, and then started describing the points and badges part of the program.
Photo courtesy of the Dallas Museum of Art
Small red badges with codes can be found throughout the museum, and you earn points by entering the codes into the DMA Friends kiosk computer. My first visit, I earned 10% off the museum cafe and a free book on Vincent van Gogh from the gift shop. That's kind of the most basic reward, though. You can earn everything from a free special exhibition ticket to a tour of the DMA's art storage facilities to a pass to join the Overnight at the Museum slumber party. I don't know about you, but I want that slumber party pass.
I had to be physically pulled away from the kiosk so that I could do what I actually came to do in the first place--see the art.
Oh right, yeah, I forgot about the art.
Walking through the museum takes hours. I was there for three before being kicked out for closing time, and I still did not see everything. It's designed to be a great place for walking, for being lost in thought. There's no physical interruption except to pass from one era to another. You lose track of time and location and become completely immersed in the experience. I saw my old favorites: Frederic Edwin Church's The Icebergs, Andrew Wyeth's That Gentleman, and Nicolas Mignard's painting of Faustulus bringing Romulus and Remus to his wife.
While wandering from room to room, I couldn't help but think that this is the way art should be. Art should be free and accessible to the public. Money shouldn't stand in the way of the sheer emotional outpouring that comes from being struck dumb, dwarfed by The Icebergs, in awe of what is in front of you. It doesn't even have to be that particular painting. Everyone has one piece of art that speaks to them, and finding it shouldn't be contingent upon the ability to pay.
A very hearty "bravo!" to the Dallas Museum of Art.
Photo courtesy of the Dallas Museum of Art
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