American Visionary Art Museum Development Intern

As part of my internship at the American Visionary Art Museum I was invited to join the Development Associate and the Director of Educational Programs at the Maryland State Senate on February 18^th. Each year the American Visionary Art Museum, along with other non-profit organizations in the Baltimore area, receive a certain amount of grant money from the Maryland government. However, each organization has to present information to the Maryland State Senate and House of Representatives to prove that they still deserve the grant money. It was a long day with a lot of waiting around, but it was still an educational experience. We arrived around nine in the morning to check in and drop off some paperwork. Several hours later we returned for the hearing process. Along with the packet of information, the Development Associate and the Director of Educational Programs had about two minutes to deliver an oral presentation to the Senate. One of the most interesting parts of the day was getting to see representatives from non-profits throughout the Baltimore area. The Director of Port Discovery was in attendance along with representatives from the Baltimore Zoo, the Walters Art Museum, and the Reginald F. Lewis Museum. Listening to their presentations was very interesting. I learned that the Reginald F. Lewis Museum has suffered some serious financial problems in the last several years. The museum is currently in a difficult position where they haven’t had the money to hire a Development Associate, but they truly need one to get back on track. I’m so glad I was given the opportunity to join members of the staff in Annapolis this year. While it wasn't thrilling, it was educational. I got first-hand experience with the efforts museum staff members go through to keep their institutions running smoothly. I also learned about the problems that museums can experience that can prevent them from getting funding they desperately need.

Internship with Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum

My last day at JPP I worked with Rebecca Morehouse comparing their in house database, regarding collections they house, with those of the Maryland Historical Trust.  The Historic Trust has a new online site, “Maryland’s “Archeological Synthesis” Project.  Through this new project, researchers are able to enter a specific ceramic type and find all the archaeological sites in Maryland that contain those types of ware.  Through this process we were able to pin-point collections at JPP containing diagnostic ceramics which we can now pull and add to the existing study collection.  I was not actually able to pull any samples but hope to continue as a volunteer over the summer. 

It has been a great semester and wonderful to work with Ed Chaney and Rebecca.  Hopefully the update website will up soon along with a new research collection.  Here I've included a couple images regarding prehistoric wares that demonstrate some of the surface techniques and how these vessels actually appeared.

Scanning Photographs at the Glenn L. Martin Aviation Musuem

After completing the Martin Star digitization project, I was given the opportunity to work on another digitization project, only this time it dealt with old photographs. A man named Jim Hawkins, who lived in the New York City area, began taking photos of aircraft in the mid-1930s at La Guardia and Idlewild Fields. The head archivist at the Glenn L. Martin Aviation Museum, Stan, also told me that Jim took images at several military bases in the same area and then worked with Grumman aircraft for a brief period of time right after WWII but he resumed taking pictures in the 50’s of airliners at Idlewild and other airports around the country as he was involved in a construction business that worked all over the US.  He continued taking pictures up until his health declined in 2007.  He was in his 90's and lived in Florida at that time where his collection was donated to the Glenn L. Martin Aviation Museum by his son Robert. Many of the older photographs taken have already deteriorated. This can be attributed to the improper handling of these materials over the years and their old age. Some of the photos were not kept in cold enough conditions causing them to bubble at a faster speed. Some of the photos have also been damaged from human contact because they were not protected. Fortunately, some of the pictures from the 1950’s have survived and many from the 1960’s. I have only been able to get through those years so far because there are so many. So far, I have scanned and labeled about 560 photographs. From these pictures, I have learned a lot about how airplanes have changed structurally and aesthetically over time from each manufacturer. Even though this work is repetitive and time consuming, I am really glad I was given this project because I know I am saving so many photographs, some of which are almost in such terrible condition that they would not have been visible for much longer. Jim took so many amazing pictures and it is really unfortunate that those from the 1930’s and 1950’s are no longer able to be scanned. I will continue to work on this project through the summer until I leave for Graduate School. Overall, I would say it has been a really helpful experience. There are not many archive volunteers that work there and I am happy that I get to help them with such important projects. I have been able to meet such lovely people and they have given me great advice about my future.

Catoctin Furnace Historical Society Internship #2

After the initial delays which beset my boss, I am now fully engaged with my internship and am learning a great deal. I have begun the creation of a formal tour for the Catoctin Furnace Historical Site. I initially researched how to construct a tour outline by contacting Christine Hawthorne, a park ranger and interpreter at the Hopewell Furnace Historical Site in Pennsylvania. She was incredibly helpful and sent a great deal of outlines of various tours which the Hopewell Site employs for public presentation. This not only provided me with solid examples but also allowed me to facilitate relations between the Hopewell and Catoctin historical sites. With this information I have created a rough outline of the information I wish to present to the public, the structure of how to present this information, and some concepts which I might employ in future. It is also important to note that I applied a great deal of knowledge that I have obtained via my study of public history. For example, I wish to present the daily lives of furnace workers in an interactive format in order to entice audiences with entertaining and educational information.

Of course I did not create an outline solely on information provided by Hopewell. I conducted research from various sources in order to construct a strong outline. I read the book provided by the Catoctin Furnace Historical Society titled Catoctin Furnace: Portrait of an Iron-Making Village and contacted the Catoctin Mountain Park in order to more information and facilitate ties with the national park as well. This research allowed me to form my initially outline and as I continue through this internship it will also aid me in forming a more comprehensive outline so that I may be better prepared for public presentation.

I was also lucky enough to attend a meeting of the society and see how a small historical society functions. We discussed a great deal of financial business including various grants, the indiegogo campaign, and restoration expenses towards the creation of the new museum. Upcoming events such as Spring in the Village (an event which celebrates the site with auctions, refreshments, and dressing in traditional outfits) and the upcoming Star-Spangled Tours. This allowed me the opportunity to discuss my tour and, when my work has concluded, an inaugural tour will be scheduled most likely following my graduation.  

Internship with Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum

Over the past month I have completed reading through the many journals housed in the Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum library, and have submitted my updates for the website “Diagnostic Artifacts in Maryland.”  The most interesting of these updates are the new findings regarding manufacturing techniques used on Mockley Ware, produced during the Middle Woodland period (A.D. 50 – AD. 950).  Traditionally manufacturing processes which created an outward appearance were believed to be the result of net-impressions or cord-markings produced when these materials were wrapped around a stick or paddle.  These sticks or paddles would then be slapped along the outer surfaces to help stabilize the clay and workout any bumps or imperfections in the vessel.  New evidence indicates a third method was utilized during the production process, one barely visible to the naked eye.

In 2006 Lynn Bullhack, an amateur archaeologist and her friend Johnna Robinson, published an article in the Journal of Maryland Archaeology that has changed the description and chronology for Mockley Ware in Maryland.  This past Friday (4/24/15) I attended a talk Lynn Bullhack gave for the Western Maryland Chapter of the (ASM) Archaeological Society of Maryland in LaVale.  I was interested to learning about their process and findings.  Providing a brief history of Point Lookout, a Peninsula in the Chesapeake Bay, Bullhack noted that this area of beach has suffered numerous reconfiguration due to past storm erosion and rising tides, submerging approximately one-quarter mile of land to a depth of 10 feet.  Bullhack discussed how as an avid beach walker; she noticed fragments of what appeared to be asphalt washing up.  Upon closer inspection she realized these were fragments of early Mockley ceramics and that some exhibited decorative details different from those traditionally assigned to this Ware.  Because of her connections with the Archaeological Society of Maryland and the Maryland Historic Trust, Bullhack was allowed to continue collecting surface finds for further analysis.   They collected 3,309 shell tempered sherds (Middle Woodland – Mockley ware) and 76 sand tempered (Early Woodland – Popes Creek ware).  To investigate what they saw as fabric impression on some sherds, Bullhack used sculpey clay to form a relief image of those sherds.  Photographs of the reliefs were then enlarged through digital imaging.  This process enabled her to detect three distinct fabric patterns: interlacing with unequal elements, a twined fabric, and one exhibiting accessory stitches within the fabric itself.  Lynn also utilized the technique of experimental archaeology creating her own pots, digging clay from veins in the same area of Point Lookout, weaving her own fabric, and firing the ware in a traditional out-door fire pit to test the outcome.  Several of the sherds they found also retained carbonized remains, which were sent to a lab (Beta-188328) for carbon dating.  Results came back placing these remains somewhere between 2030+- 40BP, with a calibrated result of 155BC – AD65 much earlier for Mockley ware than traditionally believed.  These findings suggest that one of the earliest Native American sites in Maryland is now eroding away off shore and producing these great finds.  The two main areas of beach where this material washes up have now become official archaeological sites (18ST728 & 18ST729) opening up new questions for archaeologists and redefining traditional thought regarding the manufacturing processes of early pottery makers.

This week I’m excited to begin pulling diagnostic samples from the various collections that will be made available in the MAC lab for researchers to study. 

Glossary
Accessory Stitches, or Supplemental Element(s): One or sets of elements added to a fabric as it is being constructed.  Embellishments such as embroidery can be added to repair, join, or as decoration.

Interlacing: A technique in fabric making where by one element passes over then under another perpendicular element.

Twining: One of the oldest fabric structures, it entails twisting to enclose one or more elements within the others. A wide variety of materials can be used and there are numerous variations on the process.

For the full article see:
Robinson, Johnna and Lynn Bulhack, An Analysis of Fabric Impressions on the Surfaces of Early Mockley Sherds from Point Lookout State Park, Maryland (18ST728 & 18ST729). Maryland Archaeology 42(1):1-8, 2006.

Small Museum Conference

In January, some of the other volunteers at the Glenn L. Martin museum talked to me about the Small Museum Conference that they attend every year. They asked me if I wanted to go, and if I did, they said the museum would pay for me. I decided that this opportunity was too good to pass up so I told them I would go. The conference was in Ocean City on February 15-17. Because of classes, I planned to only stay until Monday night instead of Tuesday, since many of the session were on Monday anyway. Because of the snow storm that Monday, many others left early as well, so I was not the only one. When I arrived that Sunday, there was a gathering for all of the attendees. I met a lot of people from companies who offer services to museums. One person I talked to was from a company that made lifelike figures to represent people for museum displays. Another company specialized in restoring and making copies of different types of documents. The woman representing that company explained the process of restoring some documents, which was very interesting and I was able to see before and after pictures of some restored documents. It is always fun to learn about behind-the-scenes work. People spend so much time and effort creating wonderful displays for museums and their work is often overlooked. Of course, these documents are not only restored for the public or museum displays, but to preserve them for future access, which is also important. One of the last groups I talked to were the graduate students from the University of Delaware. One of the students, Betsy, was very nice and gave me some good advice about being a graduate student. The next day, I had breakfast with my group while listening to a speaker discuss his experience visiting museums. He brought up some good points that made me think about what I love in museums and what I do not love. I have never really thought about how museums had affected me or other people and it was interesting to think about my experiences as an outsider. He emphasized that people respond really well to interactive displays and activities. The problem for small museums, however, is that they do not have a lot of funding and it is difficult to have more complex and interactive displays. One of the sessions I went to was about financing. Since many small museums lack funding, fundraising is very important. The presenters explained how even simple things like a donation box, memberships or an obvious donate link on the museum’s website can significantly impact funding. Overall, this conference was a great experience for me and I find myself thinking more about how museums affect people and the aspects that make them effective or ineffective in presenting ideas and sharing knowledge about specific topics.

American Visionary Art Museum Development Internship

At the beginning of the spring 2015 semester I began an internship at the American Visionary Art Museum located in Baltimore as the Development Intern. AVAM was founded by Rebecca Alban Hoffberger in 1984. Rebecca had an idea for a unique new museum that would emphasize intuitive creative invention and grassroots genius. There are now more than 40 museums and major visionary art environments open to the public around the world, but AVAM is still the largest. It continues to influence and inspire museum and city planner thinking all over the world.

But, what is “visionary art”? When I began my internship it was important that I understand how the museum defined this unique genre of art. The Mission Statement defines visionary art as such:

“Visionary art as defined for the purposes of the American Visionary Art Museum refers to art produced by self-taught individuals, usually without formal training, whose works arise from an innate personal vision that reveals foremost in the creative act itself.”

Those who work at AVAM consider visionary art to be something that begins by listening to the inner voices of the soul, and often may not even be thought of as ‘art’ by its creator.

As a non-profit organization, AVAM relies on donations and grants to operate. Acquiring funds is the duty of the Development Associate I work under. As the Development Intern I assist in fundraising projects by conducting research for potential donation sources. The museum recently organized a musical benefit night to raise money for the annual Kinetic Sculpture Race. I compiled a list of businesses to contact and prepared the appeal letters that will be sent. On another occasion I conducted research on fundraising galas hosted by similar organizations in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. My supervisor intends to use the information I compiled to plan the museum’s 25^th Anniversary Gala this fall/winter. I have also conducted research to find grants that will potentially fit the needs of the museum.

AVAM receives regular funds through donations and membership funds. The museum keeps extensive records of these donations. In the development department I track donations. Each donation also receives a personalized thank you letter signed by the museum director and founder that I put together and mail each week. This kind of work is essential for maintaining stable relations with crucial donors. I also track guests admitted to the museum for free and discounted rates, so the staff can keep track of money lost, and adjust.

In this position I have learned about daily museum administration. Even though I work in the Development Office, AVAM has a small staff. I eat lunch each day with the head of marketing, the head of event planning, the education directors, and the museum’s exhibit designer. As a result, I have gleaned information from the rest of the staff as well. Thus far, my experience at the American Visionary Art Museum has been meaningful and realistic.