A Curator Explains Why You Need to See Art in Person

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By Rumann Alam

Sheena Wagstaff. Image courtesy of Daniel Dorsa

On this week’s episode of Working, Rumaan Alam spoke with Sheena Wagstaff, who leads the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s program of modern and contemporary art. They spoke about the job of a museum curator, how a major exhibit comes into being, and why it’s important to see art in person. This partial transcript of their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. "I’m not sure I can articulate this very fully," said Wagstaff, "but there is something incredibly consoling about the fact of the object, the direct relationship one has with something that is as physical as your own body and the fact that we are now going through this period of not even being able to touch one another, where our relationship to one another is through a series of screens. [More]