I believe the Academy Art Museum is more than a place where people look at art—it’s a place where people find each other. Art is a powerful connector, bridging gaps between strangers and building bonds that feel something like family. That’s what drives me: creating spaces where people aren’t just spectators but instead play an active role in building something bigger together. That thing is called community.
The importance of this work feels especially urgent today. Loneliness has become a silent epidemic, affecting Americans of all ages and backgrounds. According to a 2021 report by Harvard’s Making Caring Common project, over one-third of U.S. adults report feeling serious loneliness. In response, the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has issued a stark warning: chronic loneliness is a public health crisis with risks to physical and mental health equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Loneliness isn’t just an emotional experience—it’s a health risk that shortens lives and leaves people vulnerable to conditions ranging from heart disease to depression.
One reason for this epidemic is the decline of “third places”—those public, community-centered spaces outside of work and home where people can naturally gather, relax, and connect. Sociologist Robert Putnam explores this concept in The Upswing, where he argues that third places like coffee shops, libraries, and yes, museums, are crucial for building social cohesion. Without these gathering places, people lose opportunities to connect in a meaningful way with others in their community. In their absence, isolation grows.
Museums are particularly well-suited to fill this gap. Daniel Weiss, in his book Why the Museum Matters, describes museums as “cathedrals of the imagination,” where visitors are encouraged to pause, reflect, and find meaning. Unlike many other public spaces, museums offer an environment that’s both welcoming and contemplative, where people can take their time, engage with ideas, and share their experience with others. Museums make space for thoughtful encounters that often lead to meaningful connections.
At the Academy Art Museum, we see this potential for community building firsthand. Our public programs, like a film screening or a lecture, bring people together in shared experiences. These events are more than just cultural outings; they’re opportunities to bond over mutual interests and form lasting friendships. When visitors come for a film screening or a lecture, they’re joining a gathering of people who share an appreciation for creativity, curiosity, and dialogue. It’s a chance to become part of something larger.
Beyond these public events, our adult classes and workshops offer another layer of connection. In a world where adult friendships can be hard to sustain, these programs offer a rare opportunity to meet people who share similar interests in art and creativity. Whether it’s a painting workshop or a photography course, these classes invite participants to engage deeply with a craft while connecting with others. It’s a different kind of learning environment, one that values collaboration and exchange as much as individual growth.
And as people learn together, something transformative happens—they build a community. In a museum setting, that community becomes woven into the larger fabric of the institution itself, bringing new life to the art on the walls and new stories to the people who walk through our doors.
So yes, art has the power to inspire, challenge, and provoke. But just as importantly, it has the power to connect. In a society increasingly marked by isolation, museums are one of the last places where people can meet face-to-face, share a moment of insight, and leave feeling a little less alone. At the Academy Art Museum, that sense of connection is central to everything we do, because we know that the arts are most impactful when they bring people together.
For those on the Eastern Shore, the Academy Art Museum is here for you—not just as a gallery of beautiful things, but as a space to belong, to connect, and to be part of something bigger. Whether you’re here for an exhibit, a program, or a class, we invite you to come as you are, and maybe, just maybe, leave with something unexpected: a new friend, a sense of purpose, and the feeling that you’re part of a community.
Daedelus Hoffman is the director of education at the Academy Art Museum in Easton, Maryland.
