November/December 2025
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Rethinking Visitation
This issue of Museum magazine reports on shifting approaches to visitation, sharing the latest strategies museums are using to enhance visitor experience and boost attendance. Find out how museums are using everything from in-gallery engagement to marketing campaigns to biometric research to capture the hearts and minds of visitors today.
In this issue:
From the President
If We Build It
“For a long time, museums assumed that ‘if we build it, they will come.’ And for much of our history, that proved true. But in recent decades, the competition for leisure time, the decline in school trips, and the endless stream of at-home entertainment have reshaped visitor behavior. Today, museum visitation is no longer something we can take for granted.”
» Read the full column about rethinking visitation as a discipline to welcome and inspire the public from AAM President & CEO Marilyn Jackson.
Reopening with Purpose
FEATURE
by Alexis Light, Dana Mitroff Silvers, and Carolyn Royston
As part of an extensive renovation, The Frick Collection reimagined the visitor experience.
When Dinosaurs Meet Deep Oceans
FEATURE
by Christina Klingenberger-Valdez
In a bid to increase attendance, the California Academy of Sciences shook up its exhibition schedule and marketing.
Reading the Room
FEATURE
by Jacque Micieli-Voutsinas, Angela Person, Silvina Fernandez-Duque, and Christopher Black
When museums design exhibitions with the nervous system and emotional impact in mind, they create more effective spaces.
Reflecting Our Communities
FEATURE
by Marianna Pegno
Tucson Museum of Art and Historic Block has taken a community-based approach to programming that is increasing audience engagement and visitation.
Going Straight to the Source
FEATURE
by Devin Dotson and Lilly Andersen
The US Botanic Garden conducted interactive interviews with children to create new and engaging programming for families.
What Teens Want
POINT OF VIEW
by Geva Avnet
Research shows that teens want to engage with museums—if they provide the right programming. Get tips from this NYC high school senior and intern at the Museum of Arts and Design.
November/December 2025 issue
By the Numbers:
Cost of Admissions
2x
Young adults are twice as likely as adults 60 and older to be concerned about museum admission fees.
#1 barrier
41% of casual and sporadic museum-goers rank the cost of admissions as the #1 barrier to visitation.
$315
The average annual expenditures on admission fees to ALL types of entertainment venues by households headed by individuals without a college degree; it is $1,645 for college-educated households.
Sources: 2024 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers and Broader Population Sampling (AAM + Wilkening Consulting); Bureau of Labor Statistics
» Learn about the Annual Survey of Museum-Goers and enroll in the 2026 survey!
» Explore additional resources on audience engagement and visitor experience in the AAM Member Resource Library.
Your Member Access to Museum
View these recent digital editions by clicking their cover, or access PDFs from the Full Issue Archives.
Sept/Oct 2025
Collection Queries and Consequences
July/August 2025
The AI Universe
May/June 2025
Trust
Mar/Apr 2025
Centering Accessibility
To access other digital editions (beginning in December 2014), click any of the covers above, then in the new window: Click Menu in the upper left, click Contents View, and scroll to find the issue on the left. If you are looking for an issue published prior to 2014, please contact us at content@aam-us.org.
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Stay tuned!
January/February 2026 – Annual TrendsWatch issue
March/April 2026 – The Museum Built Environment
May/June 2026 – The Museum Odyssey (Annual Meeting Issue)
July/August 2026 – Public Relations & Marketing (Article pitches due February 13, 2026)
» Explore the full 2026 Editorial Calendar and learn potential topics under each theme.
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