Singer Laren — The Netherlands

In a restless world that rarely pauses, museums offer space to stand still — with art and with yourself.

At Singer Laren, Mindfulness in Museums (MiM) developed guided mindfulness experiences that invite visitors to encounter artworks with presence and curiosity.

During these sessions, participants pause and notice how they think, feel, and react while looking at art. Through this process, artworks become mirrors for inner experience. As a result, visitors often discover new perspectives on themselves and the world around them.

Mindfulness in Museums brings mindfulness from the meditation room and clinical practice into museums: spaces for presence, care, and shared humanity.

Mindfulness in Museums and Singer Laren

The collaboration between Mindfulness in Museums (MiM) and Singer Laren explores how art and mindfulness can deepen our experience of artworks and support mental health.

Singer Laren is known for its collection of Dutch modern art and its strong connection with landscape, nature, and artistic communities in the region. Within this context, MiM sessions invite visitors to encounter artworks not only intellectually, but also through sensory and emotional awareness.

Participants are encouraged to notice their thoughts, emotions, and bodily responses while looking at art. In this way, artworks become gateways for reflection and insight.

Museum Context

Singer Laren is a museum and cultural centre located in the artists’ village of Laren in the Netherlands.

The museum presents modern and contemporary art, with a particular focus on Dutch artists connected to the Laren School and the artistic life of the Gooi region.

Through exhibitions, performances, and educational programmes, Singer Laren encourages visitors to explore how art connects with personal experience, creativity, and reflection.

Mindfulness in Museums contributes to this mission by offering guided art experiences that cultivate presence, attention, and deeper engagement with artworks.

Mindfulness in Museums Programme

Mindfulness in Museums sessions at Singer Laren usually include:

• a short mindfulness check-in meditation
• guided attention to selected artworks
• reflection on sensory and emotional experience
• inquiry connecting the artwork with everyday life

Participants learn to observe their inner experience while engaging with the artwork. This supports emotional regulation and clearer awareness.

In addition, the sessions help people shift from thinking about art to sensing it directly.

Connection to the Collection and Exhibitions

Mindfulness in Museums programmes at Singer Laren are developed in dialogue with the museum’s exhibitions and collection.

Sessions often explore themes such as:

• landscape and perception
• colour and atmosphere
• artistic expression and emotion
• the relationship between nature, art, and inner experience

By combining mindfulness with art observation, visitors are invited to experience artworks in a more attentive and reflective way.

Impact

Mindfulness in Museums shows how museums can become spaces for presence, emotional regulation, and social connection when programmes are facilitated by trained professionals.

Participants often report:

• deeper engagement with artworks
• increased emotional awareness
• new perspectives on personal experience
• a sense of shared presence with others

Since 2020, more than 25 museums internationally have worked with Mindfulness in Museums (MiM), reaching nearly 2,000 participants.

MiM is applied and endorsed by leading partners such as the Van Gogh Museum, Museum of the Mind, and Oxford Mindfulness Foundation.

Role of Mindfulness in Museums

Mindfulness in Museums collaborated with Singer Laren to:

• develop mindfulness-based art experiences connected to the museum’s exhibitions
• facilitate guided sessions in the museum galleries
• explore how art experiences can support reflection and mental health

The MiM methodology is evidence-based, stress-, neuro- and trauma-informed.

All programmes are delivered by qualified mindfulness teachers trained at recognised institutions.

Mindfulness in Museums is a practice-led expertise emerging from the museum field itself, shaped by the sensory and emotional possibilities of art.

Endorsing Partner

Singer Laren
Laren — The Netherlands

Connect with Mindfulness in Museums

Whether you are a museum professional, a mindfulness practitioner, or simply curious — this is your starting point.