Day 3 of my adventure in getting to the core of museum work led me to two articles. The first, “How to Behave in an Art Museum” by Timothy Aubry, and a response, “Let the Little Children: How to Behave in a Museum” by Bob Duggar. I was intrigued because they both cite museums as placesContinue reading “Museum Life: Oh Behave!”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Museum Life: Day 2 Walkabout
So in a process like this one is supposed to take cues from dreams and signs. My dream last night took me back to a grad school classmate who had become a salesperson for a bar code company. She was working hard to convince me to purchase said system for the collection of books inContinue reading “Museum Life: Day 2 Walkabout”
Museum Life: Mid Museum Life Crisis
It was 1989 when I first entered The Heard Museum as a museum professional in training, idealistic to the hilt and ready to save the world in the environment I believed combined all of my passions perfectly. Since then I have held positions from docent to director in institutions as varied as you can imagineContinue reading “Museum Life: Mid Museum Life Crisis”
Museum Life: Behind the Curtain
Lately I’ve been thinking about museums founded by or for well-known individuals. Media is buzzing about a proposed Jackson Family Museum in Gary, Indiana while relatively new facilities such as The Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Center and the Muhammad Ali Center have 5 years of operation thus far. Yet the 42-year-old Roy Rogers Museum recently closed, the group working onContinue reading “Museum Life: Behind the Curtain”
Museum Life: To the Moon!
So I just read about the possibility that a mysterious engineer from Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation saw to it that a ceramic chip containing mini artworks by well-known artists made it to the Moon on Apollo 12 in November, 1969. According to the story, New York artist Forrest “Frosty” Myers worked with Bell Labs scientist Fred Waldhauer toContinue reading “Museum Life: To the Moon!”
Museum Life: Who Do You Think You Are?
Last weekend I was browsing On Demand selections for some mindless downtime. I ran across the show called “Who Do You Think You Are?” that airs on Friday evenings 8/7 Central on NBC. Mindless it was not, and I ended up watching every episode in a mini marathon. If you haven’t seen it, the premise isContinue reading “Museum Life: Who Do You Think You Are?”
Museum Life: Yes- A Leprechaun Museum!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! In honor of my Irish heritage I bring you one of the newest museums on the planet…. The National Leprechaun Museum which opened in Dublin last week. Irish furniture maker Tom O’Rahilly founded the museum to capitalize on what has become a national symbol, albeit a negative one from the perspectiveContinue reading “Museum Life: Yes- A Leprechaun Museum!”
Museum Life: What Are They Doing in That Gallery?
Lately the museum stories catching my eye are about galleries being opened to performance art of all types. Last month the Laguna Art Museum in southern California hosted roller derby girls who helped artist Jocelyn Foye create clay pieces by throwing each other into the walls. A DJ, beer and popcorn rounded out the night.Continue reading “Museum Life: What Are They Doing in That Gallery?”
Museum Life: Virtual Day of the Dead
As Halloween revelers nurse their multi-sourced sugar hangovers and (if they don’t live in AZ) relish the extra hour of sleep, attention turns to Dias de Los Muertos, All Souls Day, Samhain, or whatever you choose to call the time for remembering, honoring and placating those who have died. In Museum Life, Death is a constantContinue reading “Museum Life: Virtual Day of the Dead”
Museum Life: Mad Men and the Met
I love it when museums are referenced on television. Last night it happened when I was watching the season premiere of Mad Men on AMC. Mr. corporate climber Pete Campbell (played by Vincent Kartheiser) gets news of a promotion and runs to have his “girl” get his wife Trudy (played by Alison Brie) on the phone. Continue reading “Museum Life: Mad Men and the Met”
Museum Life 