Introduction

Hello, my name is Rachel and I am a fourth year Museum Studies major. I have a background in art and design, having previously completed an Associate’s in Graphic Design, after which point I transferred to the Museum Studies program at RIT. I currently work as a student archival assistant at the Cary Graphic Arts Archive, where I have helped to process new donations as well as rehouse objects, create finding aids, and clean wood type. I am also working on various transcription projects, as well as an effort to help preserve the experiences of the disability community for Journal of the Plague Year, a virtual archive documenting the COVID-19 pandemic.

My love of museums stems from a lifelong interest in the arts and art history, with some of my favorite childhood memories being the days I spent visiting the MFA Boston, discovering the collection and sketching my own artwork inspired by the objects I saw. Today, I’m interested in facilitating more accessible, inclusive museum experiences, so that more people are able to benefit from museum collections in this way.

Below is a photo of a case I put together (before captions were added) from an exhibition that I worked on to document the history of the Wallace Library at RIT.

Hello! A Small Introduction

 Hello! My name is Koda Drake, and I am a third year Museum Studies student. I remember being absolutely fascinated by museums when I was a child. On one occasion, I went to the Franklin Institute while they were hosting an exhibit on Tutankhamen, and I remember being completely awestruck by everything in the exhibit. I wasn't sure at the time if that was something that I would be able to do for a job, but that became my dream job for several years.

While I am much older than I was at the time of my visit to the Franklin Institute, I am still absolutely awestruck by Ancient History, particularly Ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian history. My interests have branched out a bit, and I find Early American and Pre-Colonial American history to be of particular interest. Art History, notably Rococo, Impressionism, and Post-Impressionism, are also some of the subjects I am most interested in. 

In regards to Museum Studies and potential work within the field, I am interested in becoming a collections manager or an exhibit designer. I would love to work on increasing accessibility in and to museums, though I am not quite sure how I would start with that. I have past experience with collection work. For several semesters now, I have been slowly working on creating a finding aid for the technical literature at Image Permanence Institute in Rochester. That project has involved cataloging the various manuals within the collection and creating a working finding aid after the complete list has been made. I spent a summer in Genova, Italy working with the Galata Museo del Mare as a collections management intern. I helped transfer information about their collection to an external database while also providing aid in moving, storing, and restoring some objects in their collection. My most recent internship experience has been with the Genesee Country Village and Museum working on cleaning and cataloging wooden font types. Unrelated to any particular requirements, I spend time doing transcription work through the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institute. 

July 2019; Genova, Italy; This photograph shows some of the preparatory work I had to do for creating object files in the external database. The museum did not have photos of all the pieces in their collection, and I need to capture images of some works already on display.

[Image Description: The above image is a color photograph. A corner of a room in a museum is visible. On the left blue wall, there are five paintings of similar sizes. These painting show ships at sea. On the right blue wall, there is one visible painting of a ship at sea. The right blue wall is partially obscured from view by another blue wall in the foreground with no visible paintings on it.]

First post: Hello!

    Greetings, My name is Amara Engel. I am a fourth-year Museum studies major. I always have fond memories of going to museums since I was a child. I love to travel and learn about different countries' cultural histories. I am interested in art and history. I am proud to be deaf, but there are times that I have to face some barriers in society. For example, I noticed a lack of accessibility for people who have disabilities in museums. Oftentimes the museum’s modification was to give me a piece of paper, so I could follow the tour, but I always felt left out. I felt I was not getting the same experience as everyone on the tour. Luckily, my family recognized this issue and were able to interpret for me during presentations and guided tours so I could understand more of what was being said by tour guides. Some museums will provide sign language interpreters if you request them a couple of weeks in advance. I understand that it is difficult to provide all of the accommodations. But they should be encouraged to provide accommodations that would allow many more opportunities for everyone to be able to enjoy the same experience.

    I did have some experience in hosting a gallery opening when I was a senior in high school. I was responsible for arranging my show by selecting my photograph pieces and negotiating with the owner of the gallery. This experience sparked my interest to pursue a Museum studies major. My goal is to improve museums' accessibility to have unlimited resources for each individual's needs. I hope I will become a museum educator and also, work with the collection. Below are two photos of the Getty villa's collection exhbition. This museum is based on Mr. Getty's interest in Roman culture. 

Introduction to Me!

 Hello, my name is Courtney Barber and I am a fourth-year Museum Studies major. I have always been interested in the arts, and spent much of my childhood drawing, and playing different sorts of theatrical games. This growing interest in everything artistic was fully recognized during an Art History survey course in my first semester at Monroe Community College. While I had always thought that art was beautiful, this was my first introduction to the professional field of the Humanities, and more specifically, museums. 

    From this point, I was able to complete my Associate's Degree in Fine Arts, and transferred into the Museum Studies program at RIT. After reaching RIT, I have been given many generous opportunities to work alongside museum professionals at both the George Eastman Museum and Genesee Country Village and Museum. While working with both of these institutions, I have maintained my interest in collecting and preserving artwork of the past, while also realizing a new interest in architecture. As I continue through my education and learn more about the field of museums, I hope to continue working alongside both objects and architectural structures- as their combined impact is all-encompassing.

                                  (Genesee Country Village & Museum, 2020)

Intro to Me

Hello, my name is Katie Keegan and I am a third year Museum Studies student graduating early. I am interested in history, art, and science. I am also interested in collections and preservation. Outside of my major, I enjoy soccer, reading, and spending time with my family and friends.

I do have some experience to help me with this. This summer I did an internship at the Tompkins Center for History and Culture in Ithaca, NY. I worked with the collections and exhibits department. I had the opportunity to work on an exhibit for women’s suffrage, writing captions for the exhibit, going through the collections picking out quilts for another exhibit, and seeing a new item be accessioned. I was very lucky to have interned there and I will most likely be going back in December. I have learned so much from this experience and I cannot wait to gain more experience. I have also taken a class called Cultural Informatics which helped me in the exhibit work that I did. Below is a picture of the Tompkins Center for History and Culture.

Welcome to Fall 2020!

Welcome back to our RIT Museum Studies Program, Seniors! This is the launch of the posts to be prepared by our 2020-2021 cohort undertaking part 1 of our capstone sequence of courses this Fall and Spring.  

We look forward to reading your progress. And, of course, good luck!

Dr. Decker