“Crowds in museums are nothing new. They’ve been a fixture of temporary ‘blockbuster’ exhibitions for years. For a long time, the rest of the museum–the permanent collection–remained considerably less populated. Lately, though, the permanent galleries, too, have become more and more crowded. The new crush of bodies is partly the result of a surge of tourism, funneling out-of-town visitors into local venues, and partly the culmination of a long and steady increase in the public’s interest in art.”