Question set 1, starting work!

This will be my first blog post about the internship, as we got started a bit later than originally expected since they were very busy getting things for a current exhibition set up. I'll start with the first question set, and then I'll get into my thoughts on the experience so far and what I'm working on!

Q: What are your first impressions?

A: The internship is mostly remote work because of the pandemic, but I did need to go to the museum to see the space for the exhibition I am designing things for first, which I really enjoyed. Seeing the space in person and talking about the needs for the materials for the exhibition was a lot more helpful and productive than talking through email or over the phone. Most of what we've done so far is talking about what the needs are for the materials, and I am getting started on putting things together today. I am very excited about working with a museum, it seems like the perfect fit for me since I also have a BFA in painting, drawing, and printmaking. This will be a great experience for me to learn the structures and organization of design for museum materials. This honestly isn't something I ever thought about doing, so I'm interested to see if it is something I want to continue doing!

Q: Describe your work environment. How is the space organized? Where do you fit within the organization's structure? Include a picture of yourself at work.

A: The design work will mostly be done remotely, however I did go to see the space that houses the show I am designing materials for. This exhibition is a collection of ceramic pieces that belonged to collectors, and has been donated to the museum. These pieces are diverse and fun, and will be an interesting exhibition to work with. I will get more into the specifics of the work I'll be doing, but here's a picture of me with the big binder of content for the materials I'm working on: 

In the space, the pieces are put on tables and risers. There are four tables in the middle of the room, and some smaller displays on the sides of the room, towards the walls. Since this exhibition is a bit more complicated in layout, a lot of my work on this project will be organizing the information and putting it into a book or pamphlet that folks can view as they walk through the space. This material will include the usual "tombstone" information on each piece— the title, artist, date, medium, etc, as well as some other bits of information about the collection. The tombstone information is usually put on cards and placed on the wall next to the work, but in this case Gabe (the museum's curator of exhibitions, who I am working for on this) thought it would be best not to crowd the space with all of those cards. I definitely think this was the best choice for the space. The goal is for this material to be easy for the viewer to navigate the room and identify the pieces they are looking at, and to be able to do so with no searching or frustration. Here are some pictures of the space that I took for my own reference:

I also was given a binder of information (pictured with me above!), which details every piece in the exhibition, and includes pictures of them all. The binder is almost two inches thick, and very full, so I have my work cut out for me!

And that's the end of my first post! Each post also has to include a list of highlights and problems/issues. 

Highlights: Working with a museum and art, which I love. 

Problems/issues: there is a LOT of information to organize, so it will take some time to go through it all!