By Trevor Pacelli
Museums have always been among the main activities my mom and I enjoy doing together; between that and visiting zoos, she and I seem to bond best over culture, nature, and the arts. While we’ve found a preference for historical museums, the art museums we’ve seen are best when their exhibitions are pleasing to the eyes and were clearly made by an expert who spent a long time on the piece to trigger a specific emotion. Yet often, the art museums we’ve seen exhibit modern “art” that is just something like a white canvas with a single black dot in the center, or paint randomly splattered over a childish doodle, which to some people, isn’t really art. Like the curators in charge of what gets exhibited at art museums, the Academy of Motion Pictures award what they think is “art,” but I believe are simply products following a checklist of components films need to gain attention from Oscar voters. It’s why movies like Shakespeare in Love, Crash, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Green Book, and most recently Emilia Pérez have become so hated. They’re not movies the average person wants to watch with friends or family, nor are they providing worthwhile entertainment that can be talked about positively. The are signs that the Academy, and many elite groups of other artistic mediums, including museums, are growing frustratingly out-of-touch with their own industries and audiences.

By Trevor Pacelli
I recently took Michael Pollan’s Masterclass, Intentional Eating, which included Pollan's three philosophies of food:
1. Eat Food
2. Not Too Much
3. Mostly Plants
I came up with three similar philosophies about consuming artistic media:
1. Enjoy Art
2. Embrace Your Tastes
3. But Don’t Force Them

​Guest post by Erica Francis
Painting, dancing, and music are some ways your child with autism can express themselves creatively. Having a creative outlet helps them reduce their anxiety and escape their worries. Check out the creative outlets below:
Painting 
Encourage your little one to paint. Give them a palette with different colors and brushes of different thicknesses and let your child go to town. Autism Parenting notes that painting can allow your child to express themselves, even if they aren't verbal, and it may help build confidence. 
Music 
Whether you're encouraging your child to listen to music, play an instrument, or sing, it could benefit them. 
When listening to music, the right and left hemispheres of the brain are stimulated. Professionals use music as part of autism therapy for this reason. In fact, Percussion Play points out that music can improve language development as well as cognitive function. 
Try using a drum or rhythm sticks. Take turns developing patterns and repeating each other's rhythm. 
Dancing 
Dance therapy helps to reestablish the body-to-mind connection. Dance improves concentration and attention and helps children express themselves, even if they're nonverbal. In a group setting, dance can help build social skills. The repetition of dance moves enhances memory. 
Give them an opportunity to create a dance and demonstrate it to you, which is also a good time to spend more time with them and show you care. No matter how busy you may be with raising your child on the spectrum, carving out time to share artistic experiences pays huge dividends both now and into the future.
Try playing Night at the Museum, where one person is the museum guard and turns their back on the others, who must dance or move in some way until the guard turns back around. The aim of the game is to not get caught moving when the guard turns around. 
Give Your Child an Art Room
If you have an unused room in your home, consider dedicating it as an art or crafting room. whether it's a den, a spare bedroom, or your unfinished or finished basement. Add a variety of supplies into the room, such as markers, rhythm sticks, paints, crayons, and more. Organize the supplies so your child can easily reach them.
General Rule with Art for Autistic Children
If you're creating activities, remember to adapt them to your child based on their skill and condition. Art shouldn't be frustrating for a child. When you notice them struggling, it's okay to accommodate them.
Create both open-ended and closed-ended projects. Open-ended art projects allow children to express themselves and get creative. On the other hand, closed-ended assignments help them follow instructions and build specific skills.