Category Archives: Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Course Description:

This course provides students a forum in which to ground, frame and discuss their hands-on work in museums, galleries, archives or collections.  Whether students have arranged an internship at a local institution or in the Bryn Mawr College Collections, this course provides a framework for these endeavors, coupling praxis with theory supported by readings from the discipline of Museum Studies.

The learning goals for the course are:

  • To connect Museum Studies theory and practice
  • To connect internships in museum, archives or galleries to students’ individual interests and career goals
  • To gain knowledge about some of the fundamentals of Museum Studies—including the history of museums, the role of museum in society, current trends in museums, museum ethics and about the variety of museum professions

Justine Stiftel, Physics & Visual Studies, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Adviser: Monique Scott

Field Site: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

Field Supervisor: Joshua T. Lessard

Fieldwork Description:

At the Penn Museum, I had the opportunity to engage with the museum’s renovations and rebranding. The museum has been working to attract a broader audience than previously, and a major part of this work is becoming more accessible to disabilities. I took surveys of sound levels and ambient light levels in the galleries, to aid the exhibits team in their plans for future galleries. I also worked with Philly Touch Tours to understand the needs of visitors with low vision and worked toward 3D printing artifact replicas for these tours.

Final Presentation:

Stiftel_PraxisPresentation.pdf

Please click here to access a PowerPoint version of the presentation with additional notes.

Sofia Mondragon, History of Art, BMC ’22

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: Philadelphia Film Society

Field Supervisor: Rosie Jacobson

Fieldwork Description:

The Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar is a Bryn Mawr College PRAXIS class that is made up of an internship at a field site and a lecture class. The field site I worked at was the Philadelphia Film Society and I was an Education and Outreach Intern. At the Philadelphia Film Society (PFS), I worked on two educational projects: The Albert M. Greenfield Student Screening Program and Cinemaniacs. The Greenfield Program is a free field trip program for grades 6-12. There are 6 movies associated with this program. This program includes screenings, pre and post screening activities, and discussions. For this program I started by watching the 6 movies in and taking notes on them. Then I wrote the lesson plans, pre and post screen activities, and questions. The second program I worked on was Cinemaniacs. Cinemaniacs is a pilot-program designed for high schools to enjoy and learn about film after school. For this program I took the lesson plan created by my Field Supervisor and turned that into PowerPoint presentations. I did some research to provide a more holistic view and filled out in-kind donations. I also turned some parts of the lesson plans into worksheets and I made notebooks for the students. The PFS did temporary close due to COVID-19 and I was not able to continue my internship after Spring Break. To fulfill my internship requirement for this class, I created a small zine that says what I did at the PFS.

Final Presentation:

Museum Studies Presentation(1)(1)

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Zine:

Creative Silkscreen eBook Cover(2) (1)

Please click here to access a PDF version of the zine.

Sean Keenan, History, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

Field Supervisor: Katy Blanchard

Fieldwork Description:

I have had an overall excellent experience during my Praxis course. The fieldwork that I’ve done at the Penn Museum has allowed me to get hands on experience within the field. This opportunity has taught me the necessary skills involved in rehousing and photographing a collection. I got the chance to hit upon my learning objectives, which has involved learning to build connections with the team I worked with as well as get a better understanding of museum practices involved in archeological materials. Having these experiences has and getting a chance to reflect on them during the class portion of the course has allowed me to truly appreciate my time there working with Katy and the other interns. I also really enjoyed hearing from my fellow interns and classmates regarding their own experiences and thoughts they had during their placements. Having participated in this experience has expanded my overall knowledge of how expansive the museum world actually is.

Final Presentation:

Sean Keenan_Penn Museum as an Excavating Body Final

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Rosemarie Fettig, English & Museum Studies, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: The Barnes Foundation

Field Supervisor: Andrea Çakars

Fieldwork Description:

As a Registration Intern at the Barnes, I participated in the preparation for and installation of the special exhibition “Marie Cuttoli: The Modern Thread from Míro to Man Ray” by keeping the exhibition checklist updated with shipping information for loan objects in the show. I also did a significant amount of records management work, including generating object fact sheets and inventory shelf lists, as well as entering insurance records into the collections database.

Final Presentation:

Fettig - Fieldwork site presentation

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Rebecca Kelly-Bowditch, Anthropology & Museum Studies, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: Mutter Museum

Field Supervisor: Lowell Flanders

Fieldwork Description:

For the Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar, I worked as a collections intern at the Mutter Museum. Under the supervision of collections manager Lowell Flanders, I worked mainly with the Hyrtl Skull Collection. I conducted research on the ancestry of the skulls (which I am using for my thesis), as well as photographing each of the skulls as the museum does not yet have these records. Additionally, I assisted the collections manager, curator, and other staff with everything from organization to exhibit maintenance to additional research.

Final Presentation:

The Mutter Museum

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Mort Cavanah, Anthropology, BMC ’22

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: Bryn Mawr College, Special Collections

Field Supervisor: Marianne Weldon

Fieldwork Description:

As part of my Praxis experience, I researched a set of thirteen Peruvian textiles housed in Bryn Mawr Special Collections. I completed various types of physical and archival research with these textiles, including some special photography which I discuss in more detail in my PowerPoint presentation. I then compiled my research and made it available via Bryn Mawr Special Collection’s online collections. This part of my project was especially interesting to me as I was able to see how the back end of an online cataloging system works. I became especially interested in digital cataloging and online accessibility in the process, and I plan to pursue further education in the field.

Final Presentation:

Praxis Field Presentation

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Mira Yuan, Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology & Linguistics, BMC ’21

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

Field Supervisor: Katy Blanchard

Fieldwork Description:

I interned at the Penn Museum in the Near Eastern Collection under Katy Blanchard, along with fellow museum studies students Alex Stern and Sean Keenan. As interns, we were cataloging, photographing, and rehousing material from the site of Beth Shean in Israel.

Some of the material from Beth Shean had been in the collection for nearly 90 years, but still didn’t have a picture on the database. Objects are far more likely to be included in academic research when people can see what they look like before contacting the collections keeper. Although our internship was cut short, we assisted in adding over 1,000 photos to the online collection.

Final Presentation:

Mira Yuan Blog Post Penn Museum Internship

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Madi Becker, English, BMC ’21

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Adviser: Monique Scott

Field site: The Rosenbach Museum & Research Library

Field Supervisor: Jobi Zink

Fieldwork Description:

For my Praxis, I worked as the Collections Intern at The Rosenbach Museum & Research Library in downtown Philadelphia. Although the experience was cut short because of the COVID-19 outbreak, it was really valuable while it lasted. As an English major and a Museum Studies minor, my work at the Rosenbach allowed me to combine my two interests in a way that I had not been able to explore previously. Not only did I learn more about museum collections and management, but I also was able to continue expanding my knowledge of literature and experience it through the new context of book/manuscript production. During my time at my field site, I had two main responsibilities: the camera study and the shelf read. For the camera study, I observed the actions of visitors, logging their interactions with the main exhibit in Microsoft Excel for later analysis. For the shelf read, I worked with other members of the Collections Department to ensure that all the works in the museum’s collection were accounted for and in their correct storage location.

Overall, one of the most significant parts of my work was simply existing in the professional, office space of the organization. Although I had worked in a museum previously, prior to this experience I had never been so thoroughly integrated into a professional space. I learned a lot about the practical side of communication, including office dynamics, sending emails, and participating in meetings. In terms of my other learning objectives, I also learned a lot from working in an organization within Philadelphia. Seeing the different demographics of people that visited The Rosenbach, walking through the neighborhood the museum is located in, and participating in discussions about networking in the city gave me a greater understanding of what it is like to work in a metropolitan, public-facing organization.

Final Presentation:

The Rosenbach Museum Research Library

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Mackenzie Somers, History of Art, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Adviser: Monique Scott

Field Site: The Kitchen

Field Supervisor: Rayna Holmes

Fieldwork Description:

In my final semester in the Bi-co, the fieldwork seminar enabled me to gain valuable archival and curatorial experience as I transition out of college and into the workforce. I commuted to Manhattan each week to work with The Kitchen, a non-profit art space which supports experimental art, video, music, dance, performance, film, and literature. During my time there, I mined the archives for website content, helped prepare for upcoming events, worked the front desk of an off-site exhibition, conducted an artist interview, and wrote an essay for the blog. Even though we had to adjust when COVID-19 closures sent everyone into social distancing, I feel that I learned a great deal both on and off-site. The sense of community cultivated amongst participants in the fieldwork seminar class helped me to reflect on my experience, to learn about other institutions, and to feel supported amidst the semester’s challenges.

Final Presentation:

Macks Kitchen Prez (1) (4)

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Jennifer Tham, History of Art & Museum Studies, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Adviser: Monique Scott

Field Site: Museum of the American Revolution

Field Supervisors: Shannon Stout and Kristian Smith

Fieldwork Description:

The Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar is intended to help students connect museum studies theory with hands-on experience in a local institution and gain knowledge about the fundamentals of working in a museum. I interned at the Museum of the American Revolution in the Membership and Development departments. I only got to experience the Membership side of the program before my internship ended, but I greatly enjoyed the work and the trust my supervisor put in me. One of my favorite parts about this internship was learning about the Museum’s unique and inspiring mission to create inclusivity and diversity. I loved connecting with museum staff about shared accessibility goals and everyone was very friendly and eager to help me learn more about museum studies.

Final Presentation:

M_AR presentation for blog

Please click here to access a PDF version of the presentation.

Ceara Buzzell, History of Art & Museum Studies, BMC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott,

Field Site: Bryn Mawr College Special Collections, Art and Artifacts Department

Field Supervisor: Marianne Weldon

Fieldwork Description:

My work in Special Collections was centered on researching and cataloging a group of Peruvian textiles. This involved object research and identification, collections research, updating database information, writing catalogue entries, and imaging the objects. The purpose of this work is in part to maintain the collection, and in part to make it more assessable for students, faculty, and researchers.

Final Presentation and Report:

C Buzzell Special Collections Praxis Presentation

Please click here to access a PDF version of the report.

Alexandra Stern, Classical & Near Eastern Archaeology (BMC) & History of Art (BMC), HC ’20

Museum Studies Fieldwork Seminar (Prof. Scott)

Faculty Advisor: Monique Scott

Field Site: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

Field Supervisor: Katy Blanchard

Fieldwork Description:

As the final component of my Museum Studies minor, I worked as an intern in the Near East section of the Penn Museum with Katy Blanchard, the Keeper of the Collection. As part of my responsibilities with Katy, I worked with another intern, Sean, and in conjunction with a third intern, Mira, to help  the collection’s significant holdings of material from Beth Shean. The larger goals of this project were threefold; our work with the collection helped make the basement in which they are housed a safer environment (for both the collections and the staff who work there), as the objects had not been rehoused since likely the 1930’s, to help prepare for an upcoming refreshing of the Museum’s Canaan and Israel gallery, and to help provide data for the continuation of the project in future years. In addition, the project gave each of us the chance to try our hand at collections management and object photography. Although our work was cut short, we were able to rehouse and photograph a significant percentage of the overall collection, contributing to both the basement environment and the Museum’s online catalog.

Final Presentation:

Stern Site Presentation (1) (3)

Please click here to access a PowerPoint version of the presentation with additional notes.