AGO's newest exhibit puts heart in art

Art Gallery of Ontario external rendering by Play-time, courtesy of AGO, Diamond Schmitt, Selldorf Architects and Two Row Architect.

The Art Gallery of Ontario’s newest experience is putting heart in art, literally.

The museum says its new Art Rate Monitor, which launched Sept. 17 and ends on Nov. 19, is a first-of-its-kind art experience. The exhibit’s experience measures the heart rate of guests while they explore the museum, allowing them to see which art pieces elevated or lowered their heart rate the most.

The experience is included with the cost of admission while supplies last. Visitors will receive a lanyard and wristband that records location and heart rate throughout the museum, allowing the experience to connect pieces of art with a viewer’s heart rate.

“Science has proven we respond to art in many ways; emotionally, cognitively and physically,” the AGO’s website states. “Measuring heart rate is a simple and non-intrusive way to record one of the ways we experience art.”

The experience is as long or short as it takes for visitors to explore the exhibit. At the end, visitors will receive an email with a free personalized report that identifies their “art persona,” including what pieces they spent the longest time viewing, their preferred color palette and more.

“The intention of this fun experience is to create a personalized wrap report that details aspects of a visitor’s experience, to showcase how art affects everyone differently,” the AGO said on its website. It added that individual data will not be released or viewed by the museum.

While the Art Rate Monitor is intended to capture the viewer’s heart rate as its way of gathering data, the museum says that viewers will not be able to view their heart rate in their report. It says that it measures heart rates similar to a smart watch or a digital app.

The experience is suitable for children, although those under the age of 14 must have a parent or guardian’s consent.