I decided to do the volunteer work at the San Carlos warehouse of the Museum of American Heritage (MOAH). I went there for 3 days to complete the project. On the first day, Jim gave a brief introduction about the warehouse and the types of work they do there. I was surprised when Jim explained that the warehouse is mostly run by volunteers. Then, he introduced me about the main process they did at the warehouse. One of the main tasks is to determine what to do with the artifacts received through various means such as from donations, buying and other methods. As the storage space is limited, it is important to decide what to keep. Unwanted items are either transfer to other museums/archives, sell it for fund or simply throw it away. What items …show more content…
I am glad to be able to experience various types of work at the warehouse. It made the work fresh and kept me interested. This time Jim was working on putting an exhibition on MOAH by selecting interesting objects from the warehouse. I was able to work with Max, one of the classmate, this time. We were asked to help select a collection of typewriters from different eras. We helped arrange it on display, took photo and Jim was going to present it to another group who organize the exhibitions for the museum. Then we also help find various calculators from the warehouse database and select which would be interesting to put it on the …show more content…
As I was working with the item, Jim helped me explain the history, the features, when was it made, where and how it was use for almost every item we worked with. It was engaging and easier to remember that just simply reading. I also have to do a little bit of research on some items I worked with. So, it was a very good opportunity to learn about history. I also went to the California History Center because I was curious about the type of work there and wanted a different experience. It was fascinating to read newspapers on a film-like machine, but the type of work there was much closer to research paper work. I personally prefer the type of work at the San Carlos warehouse because I got a physical interaction with the primary source – artifact itself. It was like going to a museum and learning about history by looking at the artifact. It has the same feel as going on a field trip and learning the history base on experiences. For me, this was much more interesting than just simply researching and writing a paper. It is a very interesting active learning project; I was able to get a bit of hand-on experience on history and learn various components of American
Their main storage was in construction, so staff at the museum had to make arrangements for the pottery collection to be stored offsite. The collection was moved to a temporary offsite storage location. The vessels were stored in nine 4x4x2 wooden crates. These crates were each filled with 24 cardboard boxes which contained bagged pieces of
Museums have long served a purpose as cultural staples. For every museum, big and small, careful consideration is used in selecting its contents. When securing new items for a museum, it is most important to consider public appeal, educational value, and cost-effectiveness.
In the second story that I’ve read called Museums Preserve the Cultures of The World says that “sometimes museums agree that it is appropriate to return these items, but sometimes the other museums don’t return the items back to the right museums that
Prepare a floor plan of the Museum, identifying priority artifacts or displays for immediate recovery in case of an emergency.
describing the job so far. Yes, it was nice that Jessica was a point of contact within the
However, I was disappointed that most of the items in the house are not original. Items are both reproductions and replicas of their original. They are afraid of theft since the museum has a reputation of having people demanding to be let in for a tour. It was even more surprising to actually see it with my own eyes. It really put into perspective that, sadly, the museum had to take precautionary measures for people similar to what our class experience. If the items were really personal, they were placed in cabinets. After visiting the Courthouse, I have a new respect for seeing glass cases holding the original wallpaper and wood of the building. This respect grew over time, even from the first trip to MSV. The exterior of the house is just as important as the actual
The museum representatives were very nice and helpful. Entering the Charles H. Wright museum, my fiance and I were stopped by a cameraman who worked at the museum. The cameraman was very welcoming, encouraging, and persistent. Entering the D.I.A, the representatives at the desk were very respectful and understanding. Admission was free to the D.I.A for all Wayne County residents; however; I forgot my state I.D at home and the lady was kind enough to accept an old check stub as proof that I resided in Wayne County. Both museums were very clean and quiet, with the exception of the kids who were enjoying the moment. Comparing the two, my most favorite exhibit would have had to be the slave ship I mentioned at the Charles H. Wright museum. The slave ship is more than an exhibit, it’s like two minutes in a slave’s shoes. Walking through the dark ship, I could slightly imagine and empathize the life of slaves on that ship. My least favorite thing was a picture that I’ve attached to the essay. The picture is of a black slave beating another slave while the Master’s watched. Though the image may represent the truth, I’m not a big fan of ugly truths - especially when they don’t compare to the bigger
I spent time at three different museums for my service hours, the Bangor Discovery Museum, the College of the Atlantic Dorr Museum and the Woodlawn Gardens Museum. At each I went to a different event and each had their the similarities and differences to each other. I facilitated an event at both the College of the Atlantic Dorr Museum and the Bangor Discovery Museum, which is why I believe there are the most similarities between these two, they were completely different activities, but with the same goal: kids have fun and learn.
Over the spring break, my parents decided to take me to visit colleges. Of the two colleges we visited, one of them is located near Washington D.C. We were supposed to visit Georgetown University, but we had one day to relax, so my family decided to visit the National Gallery of Art. My dad originally suggested the Smithsonian Museum, but my said that on Yelp, the National Gallery of Art was ranked 1st in museums in Washington, which is much better than Smithsonian, which was ranked 12th. So, we left our hotel and arrived at the museum just as soon as it opened.
The museum that I decided to visit was the California African American museum, located in the Exposition park by the Coliseum and USC school. I knew that by visiting this museum, I would learn more about African American culture and lifestyle, which I thought it would be interesting to learn about another culture. What, I expected to see there was African American’s art creation, music, maybe see a few things about their old lifestyle, and the difficulty they once had to face. To be honest, I don't really know much about African Americans history nor culture, besides the way they were treated it due to racism. And how Martin Luther king Jr fought for their civil rights, by doing anti-segregation protests and delivers his famous speech I Have
Growing up I was always fascinated by history. I like to imagine my love of history was passed on to me by my grandmother who was both a history major and a history teacher; however, I was never able to genuinely connect with her since she had already passed years before I was born. No matter the case, I reciprocated her passion. I decided that I wanted to pursue a career that involved a more hands on approach appertaining to history aside from teaching. Therefore, I concluded I wanted to ultimately work in a museum. An opportunity to shadow a museum director, a position I hope to be in one day, truly exposed me to that specific environment and sealed my determination like never before in regards to my future.
I learned a lot from this trip. It was an unforgettable moment. I loved that Mr. Bierly presented all the pieces then for a person who was the first time visited a museum, I felt that was the best and even for others then already had been in one .I am very sure, it was better and more instructive. I liked that we could have our time to explore more pieces then tried to apply what Mr. Bierly taught in class. One thing that I experienced in the trip, while he was explaining each pieces of art, I was able to understand then apply my knowledge on it. I really enjoyed time in the
For my project, I researched the Abner Pollard Mausoleum. I live one street away from the cemetery and had never known that it was a grave. I have been able to increase my knowledge on hima along with the culture of the late 1800s in Leominster as well as in the world.
Lars Eighner once found himself homeless, scavenging dumpsters for his next meal and looking for possessions that could benefit him in this difficult time. While on this journey, Eighner discovered how wasteful today’s society is when it comes to vital materials in life. In his article, “Dumpster Diving”, Eighner uses an informative tone to emphasize the fact that people take things for granted by wasting valuable items they could still benefit from. Eighner establishes his use of logos by emphasizing his view on wastefulness in today’s society.
‘Imagine you were in charge of a museum’s collecting policy. What would you chose to collect and how would you justify these decisions?’