Neuroscience researcher, Peabody Essex Museum

When a visitor walks into an art gallery, they expect to see paintings hanging alongside one another on every wall, and the rooms categorised by era or movement or artist.

Sometimes, galleries adopt different methods – displaying a single artwork in a room on its own or making use of flexible design techniques that enable them to rearrange the layout of the space.

Experts now believe displaying many works side-by-side and top-to-tail on a gallery wall is not the best way for the visitor to appreciate the art. It makes sense – doesn’t it? – that seeing maybe one hundred works in a room altogether might overwhelm the visitor’s brain?

At Peabody Essex Museum (PEM), in Salem, Massachusetts, Dr Tedi Asher has joined the team to advise on exactly this conundrum – what is, neurologically speaking, the best gallery experience?

Asher takes the role of neuroscience researcher, part of a PEM neuroscience initiative made possible through $130,000 (£100,000, €110,000) funding from the Barr Foundation, a Boston-based private institute that works to “elevate the arts and creative expression”. PEM’s neuroscience initiative aims to find strategies to display art in a way that complements the way the brain functions.

“PEM’s cross-disciplinary approach is exciting and comes at a time when neuroscience findings are beginning to be more widely embraced outside of the scientific community,” says Asher.

Applying the latest neuroscientific research and neuroaesthetic theory to enhance visitor experiences across the museum’s permanent collection, Asher will document her work and work with PEM to write and publish her findings, which will be shared with art museums worldwide.

“We’re all familiar with the idea that a satisfying experience has this delicate balance of meeting and violating our expectations,” the Harvard-educated Asher, who has a special interest in neuroscience and psychology, told Artsy magazine. “In the context of exhibition design, how can we surprise people in a way that won’t be jarring, but will help viewers make sense of what they have seen? Something that is unexpected takes longer to detect – but it also makes a more lasting imprint.”

Museum head Dan Monroe has been introducing neuroscience to PEM over the past couple of years, experimenting with less cluttered exhibition spaces, more manageable and engaging descriptions for the art and some multi-sensory elements. The appointment of Asher will help him take this work to previously unexplored levels.

“We’re excited to be the first art museum to employ a full-time neuroscientist to help develop new ways of designing experiences that are highly meaningful and relevant to visitors,” says Monroe. “Dr Asher’s unique perspective and deep insight will make the process of art exploration and discovery especially rewarding, stimulating and fun.

“We believe there are new ways to present and interpret art that will enliven and enrich the art and art museum experience. We also believe the collaboration may benefit the art museum community at large,” Monroe says.