Language as Connection: Multilingual Gallery Talks at The Huntington

🖼️ A live, drop-in interpretive program reimagining the gallery tour as an inclusive, cross-cultural moment of connection.

🗂 Project Snapshot

• - Role: Evaluation Manager
• - Program Type: Multilingual Drop-In Series
• - Client: The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens
• - Tools: Qualtrics, Vea Analytics

🎯 Project Objective

To evaluate and enhance a live gallery experience that fosters access, curiosity, and cultural reflection, through real-time, multilingual storytelling and audience participation.

✨ Project Overview

Hosted in the Huntington’s Thornton Portrait Gallery, this drop-in talk series invited visitors to explore a compelling dialogue between two iconic works:

• - The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough (18th century)
• - A Portrait of a Young Gentleman by Kehinde Wiley (contemporary)

The talks framed these artworks through language and context, offering accessible entry points in English, Spanish, and Mandarin. The result was a low-barrier, high-impact engagement format that encouraged reflection, storytelling, and cross-generational connection.

🧩 Experience Design Goals

• - Create inclusive access through multilingual delivery
• - Build narrative flow across time, style, and cultural identity
• - Design for pacing, clarity, and comfort in an active gallery space
• - Preserve cohesion while transitioning between languages
• - Collect real-time insights on participation and engagement

🧠 Curatorial Approach: Layered Portraiture & Cultural Reflection

The interpretive structure emphasized contrast and connection:

• - Historical + contemporary representations of masculinity and race
• - Cultural identity through fashion, pose, and patronage
• - Social storytelling told through form, context, and gaze

Talks were timed (1:30 English, 2:00 Spanish, 2:30 Mandarin) to match visitor flow and highlight language as both access and rhythm.

⚙️ Production & Evaluation Challenges

• - Live Language Flow: Seamless talk transitions without disrupting gallery movement
• - Cultural Sensitivity: Ensured tone and interpretive nuance stayed intact across languages
• - Real-Time Feedback: Captured insights with minimal disruption using field surveys + observation

🧾 Visual Assets

• - Bilingual handouts and gallery signage
• - Photos documenting audience engagement + space layout
• - Feedback summaries and key visitor quotes

🧭 Reflection

This project reaffirmed my belief that language, space, and story can spark spontaneous learning and transformation. By designing for empathy, cultural resonance, and ease of access, we created a public-facing moment that made the museum feel alive, open, and deeply human.