Treat a work of art like a prince. Let it speak to you first.

People usually arrive at a painting or a book already talking, deciding whether they like it, whether it is any good, what it is up to. That verdict runs ahead of the actual encounter and then quietly determines what you are able to notice. Holding your judgment back for a while is not deference. It is the only way to find what is there rather than what you brought.

Next time you meet something made with care, wait before forming an opinion. Give it a full minute of silence. The same courtesy works on people.