12:23 p.m.

"Colin B. Bailey, the Frick’s chief curator since 2000 and now also its associate director, deserves a bronze plaque for persuading everyone to remove the confining stanchions from the West Gallery — otherwise pretty much as it was during Frick’s era — allowing visitors to roam free."

-Roberta Smith, from "A Fresh Makeover for Familiar Faces," The New York Times

hat should the ratio be for art and comfortable places to sit and view it? How should one meander from one room to the next? I enjoyed reading Smith's review on the Frick mostly because she states many of the same issues I've been pondering, but with smaller spaces. Using your space in the best way isn't just a museum and gallery issue; it's carried through in your home, and in businesses. Who wants to look through a shop with hoards of clothes and cases of jewelry? The best places to experience something (whether it's art or a movie or buying a dress) allow the most important pieces to shine by creating a space (walls, seating, floors, ceiling, lighting) that quietly but effectively highlights and enhances the pieces. It's about trying something new. As Smith writes, perhaps walls of color are what truly create a vibrance to certain paintings. Perhaps it's not just about white walls and stark seating. However, experimentation and successful implementation should work like magic. You must not realize why the curator or designer was doing that with paint — otherwise he or she didn't do a good enough job in the first place.

Drop cap by Jessica Hische, Daily Drop Cap