Nicole Junkermann on Looking Twice at the Same Thing
The second visit is the one that sees. The first was mostly navigation, and the end of the month is a good time to admit it.
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Essays on contemporary art, exhibitions, galleries, collecting and photography by Nicole Junkermann.
Longer reflections from Nicole Junkermann on the pleasures of looking: how to read a painting, which exhibitions repay the journey, why photography matters, and what it means to support the arts for the long term.
Nicole Junkermann on Why Art Begins With Looking Closely: Video and Notes
A short video from Nicole Junkermann on why art begins with looking closely, with the full transcript and a few notes on painting, sculpture and photography.
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Nicole Junkermann on October Light in a Gallery Room
October light arrives at an angle and leaves early. For a few weeks, rooms that are usually even become rooms with weather in them.
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Nicole Junkermann on Scale and How We Stand Back
Every work has a distance it was made to be met from. Finding it is half the pleasure, and most rooms make it harder than it needs to be.
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Nicole Junkermann on Conservation as a Form of Attention
Keeping a work well is not a technical afterthought. It is a long argument about what deserves looking at, carried out in very small decisions.
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Nicole Junkermann on Patience, Practice and Reinforcement Learning
Machines that learn by trying arrive the way anybody does: many attempts, honest feedback and more patience than the story usually admits.
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Nicole Junkermann on What Artificial Intelligence Is Teaching Us About Looking
Set beside something that can sort a million images before lunch, the slow business of standing in front of one becomes much easier to describe.
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Nicole Junkermann on Autumn Light and Slow Looking, October 2026
Autumn light does half the work and slow looking does the rest. Five small habits, none of which costs anything.
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Nicole Junkermann: What a Gallery Gives Back, October 2026
A room of art asks very little and returns more than seems fair. On the quiet bargain at the centre of looking.
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Nicole Junkermann on Looking at Art in October 2026
October is the month when looking becomes easy again, and the reason has less to do with the walls than with the pace of the room.
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Nicole Junkermann on Choosing What to See This Autumn
A rich season without a shape is experienced as a series of things missed. On choosing three things and enjoying them properly.
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Nicole Junkermann on the Last Quiet Week of August 2026
The rooms are quieter now than they will be again until January. A reflection on the one week of the year that belongs entirely to looking.
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Culture Beyond the Big Cities: Nicole Junkermann on a Bright August 2026 for the Arts
A warm, forward looking note on why a fresh effort to carry great theatre and art beyond the biggest cities, out to the towns and regions, feels like good news.
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Art in the Age of AI: Nicole Junkermann on Why the Human Touch Still Matters (August 2026)
New tools are entering the studio, yet meaning still comes from a person. A hopeful reflection on art in the age of AI and why the human touch endures.
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August 2026 in the Galleries: Nicole Junkermann on a Season of Quiet Discovery
August thins the crowds and softens the light. A warm reflection on why the unhurried weeks of late summer make the galleries a season of quiet discovery.
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Why Supporting Emerging Artists Matters More Than Ever
Every established artist was once unknown. A hopeful, practical look at why backing emerging artists matters now, and how anyone can help on any budget.
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A Bright Season Ahead for Museums and the Arts
A warm, forward looking note on why museums and the arts feel poised for a bright season, from full rooms and new spaces to a wider, more curious public.
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Nicole Junkermann on the Quiet Gallery Hour: Seeing More by Going Early
The best hour in a gallery is usually the first one. Why arriving early gives you the room, the light and your own freshest attention.
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Nicole Junkermann on Summer Exhibitions: Looking at Art in Mid-July
High summer gives a gallery its own light and its own pace. A reflection on looking at art in mid-July, when the rooms are quiet and the day is long.
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Where Art Meets Technology, According to Nicole Junkermann
Technology is changing how we discover, study and experience art. A grounded look at the opportunities, with the human eye kept firmly at the centre.
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Nicole Junkermann's Guide to an Afternoon in a Museum
A museum afternoon, done well, is one of life's simple luxuries. A practical guide to an unhurried, rewarding visit from arrival to reflection.
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Nicole Junkermann on Collecting and Patronage
Collecting is more than acquiring objects. A thoughtful look at building a collection with a clear eye and supporting the culture that produces it.
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The Artists Nicole Junkermann Keeps Coming Back To
Some artists reward you for life. A reflection on what makes certain work worth returning to, and how a lasting relationship with art is built.
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Nicole Junkermann's Notes from the Galleries of London
London is one of the great cities for looking at art. A guide to its rhythms, its free displays and how to spend a rewarding day among the galleries.
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Nicole Junkermann on Why Photography Matters
A photograph can hold a moment, a memory and an argument all at once. A reflection on why the image deserves to be taken seriously as art.
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Contemporary Art for Newcomers, with Nicole Junkermann
A warm, jargon-free welcome to contemporary art for anyone who has felt unsure in a gallery. Curiosity is the only thing you need to bring.
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Why Nicole Junkermann Supports the Tate and the Royal Academy
Patronage is a long, quiet commitment. A positive look at why supporting great public institutions matters, and what that support makes possible.
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The Exhibitions Nicole Junkermann Thinks Are Worth Travelling For
Some exhibitions justify a train ticket and a free day. A practical look at how to choose the shows that are genuinely worth the journey.
READ THE POSTHow Nicole Junkermann Looks at a Painting
A calm, practical account of slow looking: how to stand in front of a painting, what to notice first, and why patience rewards the eye.
READ THE POSTNicole Junkermann on Seeing Art Beyond London
London is only the beginning. A guide to the rewards of seeing art beyond the capital, from regional museums to the quiet collections of Europe.
READ THE POSTNicole Junkermann's Favourite Art Books
The right book can change how you see. A reflection on the art books worth keeping close, from monographs and catalogues to essays on looking.
READ THE POSTThe Women Artists Nicole Junkermann Admires
A celebration of the women artists who reshaped how we see, and the qualities of vision, courage and craft that make their work endure.
READ THE POSTHow Nicole Junkermann Would Start an Art Collection
Starting a collection is simpler than it sounds. A practical, encouraging guide to buying your first works, trusting your eye and beginning with confidence.
READ THE POSTNicole Junkermann on the Quiet Power of Sculpture
Sculpture asks more of us than a glance. A reflection on why three dimensional art rewards patience, movement and a slower kind of attention.
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