Farewell, Winterthur

It’s hard to believe ten weeks have come and gone, and that Friday was full of goodbyes. I was sent off with kind cards, two pies, and the promise that I was now family, and should come back when I could.

There are so many wonderful moments and memories, people and things from this summer, but here are a few I know I will miss:

• The old elevators built in the 1920’s

• The potato flask and jaundiced Milton

• Being able to wander through nine floors of heavily decorated mansion

• Sitting in the chair next to the Curatorial Fellow desk to talk with first Nalleli, and then Amanda
• My quirky office (I was excited I got to add a few of my own clippings before I left)

 

• Discovering really random objects, from a bag of cotton balls to a potato flask to a bunch of disembodied mannequin hands

• Hearing snippets of museum department drama
• My desk plant

• Eating lunch with the Registrars
• The early morning walk from the parking lot, past the trees and the greenhouses, sunlight sparkling in the humidity
• Wearing purple nitrile gloves and feeling like a scientist, a super-villain, or a museum professional, depending on the day
• Discussing the similarities between museum curation and directing a theatre
• The Dowton Abbey tea (and the rest of the eclectic tea shelf)

• Being able to say things like “I work with an emu” when talking about the museum’s database, KE-EMu
• The jazz in the galleries lobby

 

I am grateful for the opportunity I had to experience museum life, which was made possible through the William and Mary Woody Memorial Internship in Museum Studies, the help of Chelsie Craddock at the Charles Center, and Linda Eaton and Nalleli Guillen at Winterthur. They are the reasons I could explore Winterthur’s collection, and there are so many other people in Curatorial, Registration, in meetings and in passing, who helped me learn and feel welcome in the middle of Delaware. Thank you all so much.

Farewell, Winterthur. I hope to see you all again soon.