Blog #25: Mentorship

Literal: 

Mentorship Log

Angie Reyes - (909) 499-8664
Nicole Frazer - (909) 706-1085
Susan Reed - (626) 380-5785

Interpretive: (What is the most important thing you have gained from this experience. Why?)

   The most important thing that I believe I have gained from this entire experience is the knowledge of how every single aspect of the museum works. I have been able to work every side of the museum since I have been here. From loading objects, to cataloging and storing the art pieces. I have seen the spread sheets that are used to identify specific art pieces, taken the pictures needed for the spreadsheet, filled out the forms needed to get rights to specific art, etc. etc. I have experienced the manual labor, the computer labor, the photography and curatorial labor, and many other types. With this experience I have gotten to have a full understanding of what goes into maintaining an institution like a museum. For that, I am forever grateful. Without my mentorship, I wouldn't know half of the hidden gems of knowledge that I have found on the way. It has truly opened doors for me, and allowed me to see more into the way the art world honestly is.

Applied: (How has what you have done helped you answer your EQ? Please explain.)

    Having gone through so much work and discovery at my internship, I was able to figure out my answers very easily. In this line of work, I realized three things: My coworkers were crazy, A museum is hard work to keep up to date, and that Customer bonds are the most important things to a museum. I learned this answer through spending time and observing what my coworkers did for the customers. Recognizing names, giving tours, hosting talks and having schools come to visit. It was honestly the most humbling thing seeing so many people from all walks of life come together for the sake of education. If it weren't for this mentorship, I would have never known how awesome it is to be offered a piece of art from a girl scout as you helped her slave over it for weeks. I would have never experienced the tedium of everyday work and how after a long while, seeing it come together into a whole culminated show. Being able to say: I helped make this happen, was the best experience I could have ever asked for, and aside from helping me answer my EQ, it helped me to become a more proactive person in the end. I feel that this portion of the senior project helped me grow as a person the most, and become a more active citizen within the community now.