INSIDE SEMC
The Newsletter of the Southeastern Museums Conference summer 2022Monique
Monique
Heather Marie Wells President heathermarie.wells@crystalbridges.org
Digital Media Project Manager, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, AR
Matthew S. Davis Vice President matt.davis@gcsu.edu
Director of Historic Museums, Georgia College, Milledgeville, GA
Deitrah J. Taylor Secretary dtaylorhistorian@gmail.com Public Historian, Milledgeville, GA
Robin Reed Treasurer rereed10@gmail.com
Museum Administrator (retired), Fort Monroe, VA
Darcie MacMahon Past President dmacmahon@flmnh.ufl.edu
Director of Exhibits & Public Programs, Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL
Scott Alvey scott.alvey@ky.gov
Director, Kentucky Historical Society, Frankfurt, KY
Glenna Barlow gbarlow@columbiamuseum.org
Curator of Education, Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia, SC
Alexander Benitez beniteza@portsmouthva.gov
Director of Museums and Tourism, City of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, VA
Nancy Fields Nancy.fields@uncp.edu
Director and Curator, The Museum of the Southeast American Indian, Pembroke, NC
Brigette Janea Jones brigettejones60@yahoo.com
Director of Equitable Partnerships, Belle Meade Historic Site and Winery, Nashville, TN
Pamela D. C. Junior pjunior@mdah.ms.gov
Director, Two Mississippi Museums, Mississippi Department of Archives & History, Jackson, MS
Calinda Lee sources.lee@gmail.com
Principal, Sources Cultural Resources Management, LLC Atlanta, GA
Rosalind Martin rmartin@knoxart.org
Director of Education, Knoxville Museum of Art, Knoxville, TN
Katy Menne katy.menne@ncdcr.gov
Curator of Education, NC Maritime Museum at Southport, Southport, NC
Michael Scott mscott@solidlight-inc.com Project Manager, Solid Light, Louisville, KY
Ahmad Ward award@exploremitchelville.org
Executive Director, Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park, Hilton Head Island, SC
Lance Wheeler
lwheeler@civilandhumanrights.org
Director of Exhibitions, National Center for Civil and Human Rights, Atlanta, GA
exhibiting change at the semc 2022 annual meeting!
What a busy few months it’s been! No summer slow down for SEMC, but that’s ok! Busy = programs, engage ment, and PROGRESS.
This edition of Inside SEMC is filled with good news about SEMC members and updates on compelling exhi bitions and programs and other terrific work being done in southeast museums!
If you have not heard, REGISTRATION FOR S EMC2022 IS OPEN !
There are so many talented, dedicated, passionate pro fessionals working extremely hard to produce a spec tacular Annual Meeting in Northwest Arkansas this fall. I am exceedingly grateful to every individual that has (and will) play a role in designing the SEMC2022 experience which will include art, history, and cultural museums, historic sites and nature centers, botanical
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas.
gardens, a children’s museum, a historic theatre, and even a few corporate collections! Conference planning has so many moving parts, and when everyone is work ing together toward the common goal, the synergy is electric. The 2022 Expo Hall will be filled with Industry Partners to connect with, and evening events will pro vide continued networking opportunities, great food and drinks, and a chance to relax after a day of learning and have FUN! Of course, don’t forget the foundation of the 2022 Annual Meeting, the 55+ professional ses sions that will address timely topics in the museum field presented by your peers and designed for thoughtful dialogue that can lead to positive action and forward movement.
As you’ll read in the pages ahead, SEMC2022 will be an amazing professional gathering. We can’t wait to see you in Arkansas!
Respectfully, — Zinnia Willits , SEMC Executive DirectorI know you will all join me in sending thoughts and support to our colleagues in Kentucky who have been affected by the recent flooding. We are wishing you a speedy recovery.
It is hard to believe that in two and half months the annual meeting will be happening, and you all will be coming to Northwest Arkansas. It is so exciting to have SEMC coming here for the first time. The area has changed so much in the ten years since Crystal Bridges opened and it continues to change.
Crystal Bridges is in the midst of an expansion on the north side of our building. The Shiloh Museum of Ozark History in Springdale has also expanded in that time adding another historic building to their campusrestoring it and opening it to the public. The Rogers Historical Museum also expanded, opening a new exhi bition space across the street from its existing location.
New institutions have also opened in the area since Crystal Bridges opened. 21C Art Museum Hotel, the Scott Family Amazeum, and the Momentary all opened in Bentonville. While the J. B. and Johnelle Hunt Family Ozark Highlands Nature Center opened in Springdale. The Razorback Regional Greenway, a 37.5-mile trail that
extends from south Fayetteville north to the city of Bella Vista was also completed and connects a network of over 150 miles of trails throughout the region.
All of these were additions and expansions to a region that was already rich in culture, nature, architecture, and entertainment with organizations like the Museum of Native American History, Compton Gardens, Walmart Museum, Pea Ridge National Military Park, Daisy Airgun Museum, Arkansas Public Theater, The Walton Arts Center, Washington County Historical Society/Headquarters House, University of Arkansas Sports Museums, and Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park and E. Fay Jones’s Thorn Crown Chapel.
I cannot wait for you to arrive and experience the renaissance in our downtown areas, our hospitality, and the beauty of our changing seasons. I truly hope you can find time to either come in early or stay after the conference and spend more time exploring all our region has to offer as we have only been able to pro vide a small glimpse of the beauty and diversity of the Ozarks.
With anticipation, — Heather Marie Wells , SEMC PresidentI hope this message finds you safe and well. As summer is upon us, many of our members have been busy with summer programs, camps, exhi bition prep, or other duties around the museum. While certainly a busy time for us all, I hope that you have also been able to take a few days away from the office for vacation, self-care, or just general relaxation. Your SEMC staff, council, and local arrangements committee have been hard at work on the final preparations for our conference in Northwest Arkansas. This issue of SEMC highlights some of the wonderful oppor tunities #SEMC2022 will provide including special spotlights on evening events and tours of local sites and all the unique things this area has to offer.
Let me encourage you to register today and take advantage of low regis tration rates (they go up the longer you delay!) I am very excited about all the important things this fall has to offer as we all continue to navigate and exhibit the changes in our profession. I look forward to seeing you this fall in Arkansas and hope you enjoy the rest of your summer.
Sincerely, — Matt S. Davis , SEMC Vice PresidentThe SEMC annual conference is an important profes sional development benefit for members. Our staff works hard to make the event as seamless as possible for all participants but accomplishing this takes A LOT of work! Both SEMC staff and volunteers are essential for getting the job done and we appreciate all who pitch in to help.
Volunteering connects you to others! Maybe you are shy or think you may not be great at meeting new people. Volunteering is an easy way to network without actu ally trying. If you are new to the museum field, it is an excellent way to meet and engage with colleagues from around the region.
Volunteering is a fantastic opportunity to master lead ership skills and help! We encourage volunteers to let us know what their strengths are so we can put you in a position to be successful in your role.
Volunteering can also be beneficial to your budget. Even though SEMC keeps costs for attendees as low as possible, it is no secret that conferences can be quite expensive between flights, accommodations, and registration fees. For some, it can be a challenge to get approval to attend a conference. SEMC offers a discounted rate for volunteers who commit to
at least three hours of time. We think it is a win/win and hope you do too!
Volunteers ensure our conferences run smoothly. Assistance both behind the scenes and on the front lines is essential to a successful event.
If you would like more information about volunteering at the SEMC 2022 Annual Meeting, please contact me at cphillips@semcdirect.net.
— Carla Phillips , SEMC Membership & Communications Manager cphillilps@semcdirect.netMark your calendars for the 2022 SEMC Annual Meeting which will be held at The Embassy Suites and Rogers Convention Center, featuring 400 guest rooms and 125,000 square feet of flexible meeting space under one roof. There are over 60 restaurants within a mile as well as museums, cultural sites and even a Topgolf within walking distance for extra fun!
Rogers (similar in metro population size to Chattanooga, TN or Lexington, KY) is nestled in the middle of Northwest Arkansas (NWA) in the Ozark moun tains. NWA is one of the fastest growing regions in the U.S. With over a half million residents and count ing, NWA is poised to be one of the nation’s 100 larg est metropolitan statistical areas by 2023. The bulk of the region’s population consists of Rogers and its three next-door neighbors, Bentonville, Fayetteville, and Springdale. In yet another unique conference year, many of these cities will play host to SEMC 2022 events. Attendees will have opportunities to visit various loca tions and experience the museums and historic sites that make up its cultural fabric including the famed Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville and satellite campus The Momentary, a contempo rary art space for visual, performing, and culinary arts.
NWA has long been known nationally as home to industry giants Walmart , Tyson Foods , and J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc . Many other Fortune 500 companies that do business with the “Big Three” have offices in the region, including Procter & Gamble, Unilever, 3M, General Mills, Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Hershey, and more than 1,400 other companies. Those fortunate enough to relocate
to Rogers and the region, enjoy a quality of place almost unmatched anywhere in the country. NWA is also home to the University of Arkansas and its nearly 28,000 students. The University conducts cutting edge research in a variety of sectors
Northwest Arkansas National Airport (XNA) makes getting to Rogers and Northwest Arkansas a breeze. The airport is located 12 miles from the Convention Center. With 25 destinations, XNA now has the most direct flights in the state and more than some metros twice its size. American, Delta, United, Breeze, Allegiant, and Frontier all fly through XNA. Taxis, Ubers, Lyfts, and car rentals are all available at the airport for your con venience as well as group shuttle options. Information forthcoming. Located near the geographic center of the country, Northwest Arkansas can be an easy drive from nearby cities; 2 hours from Tulsa, 3 hours from Kansas City, 3 hours from Little Rock, 3.5 hours from Oklahoma City, 4 hours from Wichita, 5 hours from Dallas, 5 hours from Memphis, and 5 hours from St. Louis.
The Natural State: Wherever you go in Arkansas there are endless outdoor activities and NWA is certainly no exception. The Ozark mountains offer unexpected outdoor excursions few places in the country can rival. You can scuba dive in Beaver Lake, spelunk in War Eagle Cavern , or hop on a mountain bike in a designated IMBA Ride Center.
Arrive early, stay late! For more details and registra tion information go to https://www.semcdirect.net/ conference.
SEMC is thrilled to announce the 2022 Keynote Speaker, Quantia Mills Fletcher, Director of the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center in Little Rock, Arkansas.
A native New Orleanian, Ms. Fletcher, affectionately known as “Key,” makes it her mission to ensure that the beauty, value, and significance of the Arkansas African American experience is curated and celebrated both far and wide. She currently serves as the Director of Mosaic Templars Cultural Center (“MTCC”), in Little Rock, Arkansas, after serving eight years as Deputy Director. Key joined MTCC prior to its opening in 2008 and has helped develop MTCC into the only state-funded Black history museum in Arkansas. Director Fletcher’s passion for preserving the Black experience spans over 18 years of service in history, cultural studies, and museums. Her career also includes work for the U.S. Department of Interior with the National Park Service. Ms. Fletcher produces a quarterly program on YouTube called “Stay Key’ed In” which highlights African American his tory and culture in and around the Little Rock communities.
We are excited to welcome Key Fletcher to Rogers, Arkansas for the SEMC2022 Keynote Presentation on Wednesday, October 26, following the SEMC Annual Business Meeting. This event will be live streamed for all SEMC members to enjoy!
The Arkansas Ozarks. When people encounter that name, they conjure up all sorts of ideas, as you prob ably did just now, and many of them were perhaps ste reotypes of hillbillies and moonshine and barefooted rascals coming out of the woods. The Arkansas Ozarks is as much an idea as it is a geographical location. For decades this region was considered a well-kept secret by native Arkansans and long-time transplants. People love its natural beauty and its friendly people. The secret is out now, though, and with the growth of locally based entities such as Walmart, Tyson Foods, J. B. Hunt, and the University of Arkansas, the region has grown exponentially in the last forty years. Those who grew up here hardly recognize its modern highways, chain stores, and abundant cultural opportunities.
Even with these changes, the region hasn’t forgotten its heritage, as is evident in the preservation of historic districts and sites in towns dotted across this area. Each city has found its own ways to remember its past but also embrace change. This has resulted in giving each city across Northwest Arkansas its own unique cultural vibe, offering a little something for everyone. For this visit, you’ll have the opportunity to discover some of this diverse Northwest Arkansas history and culture by exploring museums in Rogers, Bentonville, and Springdale.
The Arkansas Ozarks are so much more than what you just imagined, and we are excited to show you all the things we are. Our museums offer a wonderful
glimpse of the region’s diverse peoples and cultures, and October is absolutely the best time of year to expe rience the natural beauty of the Ozarks. Whatever you think Northwest Arkansas is, we promise you, it is more than that.
The Northwest Arkansas region is rich in its diversity of history and culture. We invite you to join us as we explore some of what Northwest Arkansas has to offer through a selection of off-site tours. Experience the harmony of art and nature on a guided trail walk through the grounds of Compton Gardens and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Discover some of Northwest Arkansas’ historic architecture on a guided walking tour of Downtown Rogers. Visit the site of the largest trans-Mississippi Civil War battle at Pea Ridge National Military Park. Learn about the lives of the First Americans at the Museum of Native American History. Explore Northwest Arkansas’ new est place to learn about the natural world and outdoor recreation at Hunt Family Ozark Highlands Nature Center. Experience the wide-ranging art collections and state-of-the-art storytelling at The Walmart Museum and Tyson Art Gallery. Of course, this is only a sampling of what Northwest Arkansas has to offer. As we say here in the Ozarks, “y’all better make hay while the sun still shines,” so we encourage you to take advantage of your visit here to engage with some of this diversity.
Let’s get this party started on Sunday evening in Downtown Rogers! You’re invited to a night of fun and mingling in Rogers’ historic district for Mix on the Bricks, hosted by the Rogers Historical Museum, Daisy Air Gun Museum, and Arkansas Public Theatre. Enjoy a variety of tours, live music, drinks, and light hors d’oeuvres while exploring museums and a historic theatre in the heart of Rogers’ entertainment district. Be sure to get your event passport stamped at all three venues. The first one hundred participants to complete their pass ports will receive an event challenge coin. All partici pants to complete the passport may be entered into a raffle for a chance at winning a Rogers souvenir basket, which includes many one-of-a-kind items.
The Amazeum and Crystal Bridges have teamed up for Monday night’s adventure in art, nature, and science. You will begin your evening by finding your inner child at a fun-filled romp through the Amazeum with a side of local food trucks and assorted beverages. As you make your way down into the wooded hollow, you’ll enjoy a guided walk through Architecture at Home, an eye-opening survey of contemporary home design. Your evening ends with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres and a nighttime stroll through the galleries of Crystal Bridges.
Tuesday night’s event on the beautiful grounds of the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History is your chance to get a taste—literally!—of Springdale, our region’s most diverse city. Guests will be entertained by roots music, mariachi, and guided tours of the historic buildings. Our exhibit hall and current exhibits will be open, and visitors can learn more about our historic photo col lections (the largest in the state) and the digitization process, along with the photographs of Ken Smith that tell the story of how Arkansas’ Buffalo River came to be the first national river. The highlight is sure to be the culinary offerings that will include local ciders, beers, and food from several local cultures. You really don’t want to miss the barbecue from Second Hand Smoke or the El Salvadoran pupusas!
We’re looking forward to introducing you in October to our Arkansas Ozarks, and we hope you’ll be right at home here during your visit. With so much to do and such little time to do it all in, we hope you’ll find your way back here someday soon to experience more of the Arkansas Ozarks that we proudly call home.
Angie Albright , Director Shiloh Museum of Ozark History Serena Barnett , Director Rogers Historical MuseumOn behalf of the Frazier History Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, I am proud to announce that our newest permanent exhibition, The Commonwealth: Divided We Fall, officially opened to the public on June 1, 2022. The exhibition tells the history of Kentucky from its Natives Peoples through the early 1900s. The proj ect was generously funded through grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, The National Endowment for the Arts, and the James Graham Brown Foundation.
Though we began preliminary work on the exhibition a few years ago, most of the work on this 5,500-squarefoot exhibition began in the fall of 2021. Our goal was to revolutionize the way Kentucky’s history is told by making it as diverse and inclusive as possible.
A view of the Town Clock Church clock face and the deconstructed slave cabin aboard a replica steamboat.
The exhibition begins with an interactive experience created in collaboration with local company Infinity Productions. I wanted to begin not only with the his tories of Kentucky’s Native Peoples but with their tra ditional stories. For this installation, we interpreted the creation stories of some of the tribes that had origi nally occupied the land that we now know as Kentucky. Working with representatives from Cherokee, Shawnee, and Chickasaw tribes, we were able to share their sto ries through animation, soundscape, voiceover, and dioramas. The installation includes an interactive floor that mimics a creek bed and features native Kentucky species that are prominent in the tribes’ creation sto ries. In addition to this installation, we have dedicated a significant portion of the first section of the exhibi tion to telling the history of Kentucky’s Native Peoples and have been intentional about including their stories throughout the timeline of the exhibition.
Throughout the exhibition, we feature profiles of diverse Kentuckians in as many areas as possible. It
was my goal for every museum guest to be able to relate to someone in the exhibition. We included profiles of men, women, African Americans, Native Americans, immigrants, people with physical disabilities, members of the LGBTQ+ community and more. I am so proud of the many diverse communities that we were able to represent by profiling 30 Kentuckians from throughout the state’s history.
Perhaps the most significant object in the exhibi tion is the original clock face and columns from the Town Clock Church, located just across the river in New Albany, Indiana. The Town Clock Church was an important stop on the Underground Railroad and could be seen by enslaved people in Kentucky on their jour ney to freedom. To enter the room in which the clock face is displayed, visitors must pass over a nearly-lifesized interpretation of an early 1800s steamboat, which
provides an incredible view of the clock face. This is intended to help visitors make the connection between the important role of the Ohio River in Kentucky’s grow ing commerce of the time, including the slave trade, and the significance the river held for enslaved people.
For The Commonwealth and other programs, we are very proud to partner with the (Un)Known Project. The (Un)Known Project is lead by artists Hannah Drake and Josh Miller in partnership with the Frazier and Roots 101 African American History Museum. The goal is to cre ate artistic spaces and experiences to support learning, healing, reflection, reconciliation, and action by honor ing the names and telling the stories—of both known and unknown—Black men, women, and children who were enslaved and hidden figures in Louisville, Kentucky and beyond. With support from the (Un)Known Project, we were able to tell the stories of African Americans in
Kentucky in ways that are not traditionally told. I pri marily focused on stories of the Underground Railroad, slave revolts, and antislavery activism, while also telling the horrible realities of slavery in Kentucky.
For our portion of the (Un)Known Project, we hired local glass artist, Ché Rhodes, to create an installa tion that provided a space to reflect on the thousands of unknown enslaved people that lived in Kentucky. For his piece, Ché took 3D scans of objects that had been owned by enslaved people, made 3D prints, cre ated molds, and blew over one hundred glass versions of each object. His clear glass installation evokes the often-unseen labor of the enslaved people of Kentucky. The piece is situated in a deconstructed log cabin made of antique barn wood that is about half the size of a typical slave cabin at a plantation in Louisville.
As the exhibition moves into the Civil War, emphasis is placed on everyday soldiers rather than generals or the elite class. One case displays the uniform of a Union soldier along with an array of items the typical soldier of either side may have carried. This emphasis on the
common Kentuckian continues throughout the rest of the exhibition. Text panels tell the stories of the farmers, miners, immigrants, and African Americans in Kentucky following the Civil War, particularly those of labor movements of the time.
One of the most impactful objects in the exhibition helps to tell the story of Reconstruction in Kentucky. It is a souvenir dessert spoon with an engraving that depicts the lynching of Tom Brown in Nicholasville, Kentucky, on loan from the Kentucky Historical Society. We did not want to shy away from such difficult objects, but also knew that the spoon, in particular, needed to be installed with sensitivity. The label accompanying the spoon includes a content warning and a button needs to be pressed to light up the case, allowing for the viewing of the spoon.
At the end of the exhibition, an interactive country store allows children to engage with an important part of the history of rural Kentucky. We also recreated a typical neighborhood bar, allowing us to contrast an
A star is born! Webb’s new view gives us a rare peek into stars in their earliest, rapid stages of formation. For an individual star, this period only lasts about 50,000 to 100,000 years. A composite image of the Cosmic Cliffs in the Carina Nebula, created with the Webb telescope’s NIRCam and MIRI instruments.
The Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI
urban space with a rural space. The bar allows guests a place to rest at the end of the exhibition and pro vides a venue for bourbon tastings offered by museum staff. Profiles on the walls of the bar tell the stories of men who immigrated to Kentucky, including Isaac W. Bernheim, who started a successful distillery.
I am incredibly proud of the work that our small team accomplished to reimagine the way we tell Kentucky’s history. While the people that you expect to hear about— Daniel Boone, Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay, etc.—are included in the exhibition, we were able to share the stories of so many more Kentuckians with unique perspectives and diverse backgrounds. I invite everyone from our SEMC community to visit The Commonwealth: Divided We Fall to learn some of the incredible histories that we have the privilege of shar ing with our visitors.
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Monique Davis , Chief Equity & Inclusion Officer, Managing Director of the Center for Art & Public Exchange, Mississippi Museum of Art
The Mississippi Museum of Art’s (MMA) most recent exhibition, (on display from April 9 through September 11, 2022) A Movement in Every Direction: Legacies of the Great Migration, asks 12 artists to examine the impact of the Great Migration on the social and cul tural life of the United States. The historic phenomenon known as the Great Migration saw more than six mil lion African Americans leave the South for cities across the United States at the start of the 20th century and it continued well into the 1970s. The participating exhi bition artists explore their families’ connections to the
Mississippi Museum of Art’s Chief Curator & Artistic Director of the Center for Art & Public Exchange Ryan N. Dennis leads a Front Porch conversation with community members to create a meaningful exhibition experience for visitors.
South and reflect on their personal histories and migra tion stories. It is the MMA’s hope that visitors will expe rience a similar journey and reflection. Conversations between the artists and MMA’s curatorial and interpre tation teams made it increasingly evident that MMA needed to reach out to local African American commu nity members to help us think through how to create a meaningful exhibition experience for visitors. Because many of the artworks are abstract, it was important to create access points for our visitors so that they could more readily engage with the artworks.
MMA held three community conversations prior to the exhibition’s opening to connect with our African American community. We asked members of our Community Advisory Council to serve as hosts and invite their friends and family members to participate. These meetings were known as “Front Porch” conversa tions. The “Front Porch” symbolizes comfort and truthtelling, and we imbued the gatherings with that spirit. These conversations were instrumental in helping MMA
staff determine what visitors might need to engage with the works in the exhibition. From these groups, MMA staff was better able to explore ways to connect the exhibition’s themes of resilience, movement, and self-determination to the visitor experience through interpretation plans, labeling, and more.
Below are highlights from these conversations.
Humanize the artist. Share the artists’ connections to Mississippi—where did they receive their educa tion, who are “their people.” A work’s inspiration and the artist’s process were frequently noted to help the viewer understand abstract work.
Provide spaces for rest and reflection. In many African American families, the Great Migration stories are shared on a spectrum. Many families are steeped in the history of their movement from the South, while other families have not shared the stories due to pain and trauma. Spaces to process emotions and honor memories are needed to support visitors as they engage with the artworks.
Provide tools to continue the conversation and possibly start a new one. The participants had a deep desire to continue the conversations sparked in the galleries and asked for tools to support that dialogue. MMA’s curatorial and interpretation teams incorpo rated feedback into their processes in real time. Some of those elements are:
• Digital and analog (a Visitor Guide) content that provides in-depth information about the artists.
• A storytelling portal where memories and histories are shared with a companion.
• A conversation guide that includes prompts to jump-start an intergenerational conversation.
Engaging community members in conversations that directly impact the interpretation of the exhibition is a practice that MMA is committed to continuing. The contributions of the Front Porch participants have added depth and authenticity to the exhibition, and we are forever grateful.
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Museum work can be hard, y’all. We put up with all kinds of craziness that our friends in other fields (except maybe teachers) could never dream of… and often come out of it with wild stories of visitors behaving badly, weather catastrophes, and creative problem solving. Given that so many of us at small museums wear many, many hats, it is often unclear which area under and out side of our control the next situation will come from.
We got the idea for a session to share our wild expe riences after tuning in for “S*%T! When Things Go South(east), Stories About Collections Mishaps,” a session presented during the 2020 Virtual SEMC Conference. This sparked an idea: what if we could create a session that was part vent session, part therapy, and part “you’ll never believe what happened to me…” You know, the conversations that happen in between sessions at conferences and during evening events, but never as a formal session. Who better to center the conversation than those of us working at small museums? From there, “The Horrors, the Humors, and the Completely Improbables (But Happened to Us Anyways)” was born. From our brainstorming session came a few key themes we knew we had to discuss: boards, animals, event problems, and of course… poop
stories. You know, the basics of museum life! We also wanted to make sure that we discussed some of our positive experiences as well.
We have been fortunate to hold this discussion at SEMC 2021 in Chattanooga, and the Georgia Association of Museums conference in 2022 in Thomasville, Georgia as well as an adapted version at the American Alliance of Museums 2022 Annual Meeting in Boston. From these conversations, we have learned SO much. Did you know that KY gel is great to keep in your tool kit in case an arm gets stuck where it should not? Or that pool noodles have lots of great uses and are chemically inert (except the red ones)? And that is just the tip of the iceberg… wildlife (and unexpected encounters with several different species) was a common point of conversation—our museums have so many bats!
Other subjects have included: “what to do when a category five hurricane delays the annual fund raiser,” “volunteers gone rogue,” and fun new ideas to improve events in a post-COVID world. A common refrain has been: “If our boards only knew half the stuff we deal with on a daily basis.” But until then, we will groan through our stories about some of our board
interactions and celebrate each other’s small victories. Our ability to make lemonade from lemons in moments of crisis shows our adaptability and creative thinking when things do not go as planned.
Feedback from attendees has given us our favorite description of the session: “museum therapy,” where we can get it all out and find the humor in unpleasant situations. It is nice to know that we are not alone when something unexpected happens because someone else has likely experienced something similar, or at least equally as awkward. Attendees have offered advice on what to do in the future, shared stories of success, and offered comfort that they too would have responded in the same way.
2022 AAM attendees at the Small Museums/ Historic House Professional Network NeighborHub sharing their unusual museum stories and networking.
2021 SEMC attendees at the “Horrors and Humors and Completely Improbables” session sharing their unusual museum stories.
For our friends at larger museums, you might ask “Why would you want to work in a small museum?” after hearing some of the mischief and mayhem that happens at our sites. However, these unusual events are all happening in your museums as well… you just might not hear about them! To answer the question, small museums can pro vide great opportunities to train and work in all areas of the field without switching jobs. Best of all, every day is different. What horrors, humors, and completely improb ables have you faced? We cannot wait to hear all about it at a future conference! In the meantime, know that we commiserate with you, and celebrate your successes because we have all been there in one way or another.
Location Utqiaġvik (Barrow), Alaska
Exhibition Casework Zone Display Cases
On the rooftop of North America, the Iñupiat Heritage Center is in the North Slope Borough of Alaska and tells the story of the Iñupiat people. North Slope Borough was created by an election in 1972. At that time, the Borough enjoyed first-class status and exercised its powers with planning, zoning, taxation, and schools. It was the first time that Natives Americans took control of their destiny through municipal government. It was and remains one of the boldest moves ever made by indigenous people to regain control of their lives and their destinies. In 2015, the Iñupiat History, Language and Culture Division became its own department of the North Slope Borough. Colleen Akpik-Lemen is now leading the department as the director of the Iñupiat Heritage Center.
When Colleen contacted Zone Display Cases about the possibility of acquiring a conservation display case for the center, she certainly didn’t expect to be donated a high-end museum display case worth US$25,000 a few months later. It was the beginning of a genuine busi ness partnership between a company eager to make a difference with an optimal solution and a community in need that is struggling with the radical climate change of recent years.
Colleen was born and raised in the community of Utqiaġvik (Barrow), about 300 miles north of the Arctic Circle and the northernmost part of the United States. Throughout her life, she has seen climate change hap pen before her eyes. For instance, when she was a child, at Halloween, she would go trick-or-treating in her costume, underneath all her warm clothes, because it could be 20 degrees below zero. It was very cold, with big snow drifts, but today, that kind of Halloween and weather don’t exist anymore.
Unfortunately, the melting ice is putting the communi ty’s whaling activities at great risk. The cultural and sub sistence activities of the Inupiaq Eskimos of Northern Alaska continue to rely heavily on the twice-yearly
bowhead whale hunt. As the sea ice is not as thick as it used to be, it becomes dangerous for the whalers to go out, as they must pay attention to the thickness of the ice. If the wind blows east, they have to read the ice well, and make sure that it will not come off the shore so that they will not be blown away.
Nevertheless, the Arctic has always been a very harsh environment. The Iñupiat have lived in one of the harshest climates on earth for thousands of years and have learned to adapt to each seasonal change and climate variation. For example, due to the city’s posi tion in the far north, they must adapt to a two-month period of darkness from mid-November to mid-January. Fortunately, they benefit from twilight during the day. When daylight begins to return in January, they drive as far as they can to welcome the sun.
Colleen also remembers that the sea ice has been melt ing since 1994, causing the ocean level to rise. In fact, the Barrow community is probably the most affected by global heating in the United States.
This is exactly why Colleen reached out to Zone Display Cases; she needed to make sure that all the artifacts in the Iñupiat Heritage Center would be safe for the long term.
The director of Iñupiat Heritage Center felt even more urgency to ensure the display case she wanted to pur chase would provide the best optimal protection for the objects. She was exploring options of high-end, climate-controlled museum display cases to protect the sensitive objects in the upcoming museum’s collection. These custom-designed, high-performance cases are often out of reach for small museums like the Iñupiat Heritage Center, so it was not possible for Colleen to obtain this type of case at the current cost.
During this time, Zone Display Cases was touched by the culture and the community of Barrow and knew that First Nations artifacts were extremely fragile in nature. The Zone team decided to donate a beauti ful tabletop glass display case worth US$25,000 to the Iñupiat Heritage Center.
As the residents of Barrow are people of whaling, it would naturally make sense that the main theme of the Iñupiat Heritage Center’s gallery is “The People of Whaling”. In fact, when you enter the museum, it’s impossible not to notice in the main lobby the ‘Qargi’ area. It’s this giant whale, located in the center of the area, that makes this museum so unique.
The first objects that were placed in the display case were from an expedition by Frederick William Beechey. William Beechey’s job was to document and map land masses. He came to the town of Barrow and there is a Beechy Point in the area named after this person who was on these Artic expeditions. The museum has obtained the original watercolor paintings from this expedition, as well as the rare books that documented this journey.
Rare and sensitive books such as these must meet strict conservation standards; they must be kept in an airtight display case made of non-off-gassing archival materials. The Zone tabletop display case will significantly stabi lize the relative humidity with a passive control system (silica gel) and thus provide a sealed art envelope for all the Beechey artifacts.
Ultimately, if we asked Colleen if she is afraid for her community, her response would be most definitely. Living north of the Arctic Circle means learning about fear and its power to motivate in the face of danger. As time goes by, she has doubts about the longevity of the whale hunt. The real problem is that the warming of the ocean is causing the whale to move away from the Barrow community. It’s also bringing new species of animals that they don’t normally see. They are seeing more sharks coming ashore, and more orcas coming into the area. This means that the orcas and sharks are
killing the whales that they depend on for sustenance and that are part of their diet. For Colleen, seeing these extreme environmental changes makes her afraid for the whole planet.
Many thanks to our FY2022 endowment contributors for investing in the future of SEMC! When you are thinking of honoring or remembering someone, please consider a contribution to the SEMC endowment. For more information, contact Executive Director Zinnia Willits at 404.814.2048 or zwillits@semcdirect.net
David Butler Graig Shaak Heather Marie Wells
Members of the Past Presidents Circle contribute $150 annually for at least two years to the endowment fund:
George Bassi Sharon Bennett David Butler Charles “Tom” Butler
Tamra Sindler Carboni Micheal A. Hudson Darcie MacMahon Douglas Noble
Robert Rathburn Graig D. Shaak
Robert Sullivan
Kristen Miller Zohn
Thirty members of SEMC have made commitments of distinction as Alderson Fellows. Their investment of at least $1,000 each is a significant leadership gift, reflective of a personal commitment to the professional association that has meant so much to each of them.
Platinum Alderson Fellows (minimum $5,000) Sylvia F. Alderson Bob Rathburn Graig D. Shaak Nancy & Robert Sullivan
Medallion Alderson Fellows (minimum $2,500)
George Bassi
Sharon Bennett
David Butler
Tamra Sindler Carboni William U. Eiland Martha Battle Jackson Pamela Meister Richard Waterhouse
Zinnia Willits and David Butler, at the Hunter, Chattanooga, SEMC 2021, courtesy of Michael Lachowski
Alderson Fellows
(minimum $1,000) T. Patrick Brennan Michael Brothers W. James Burns Matthew Davis Horace Harmon Brian Hicks Pamela Hisey Micheal Hudson Kathleen Hutton Rick Jackson Andrew Ladis John Lancaster Elise LeCompte Allyn Lord Michael Anne Lynn R. Andrew Maass Darcie MacMahon Susan Perry Robin Seage Person Allison Reid Steve Rucker Michael Scott Warren Heather Marie Wells Kristen Miller Zohn
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SEMC thanks all our active members, including those who have recently joined (in bold). Without your support and participation, we could not provide region-wide services such as our awards, and scholarship programs, as well as our outstanding Annual Meeting and acclaimed Leadership Institute and Jekyll Island Management Institute. If you are an individual member and your museum is not an institu tional member, please encourage them to join. For informa tion on memberships and benefits visit semcdirect.net, email Smemberservices@semcdirect.net, or call 404.814.2047. For your convenience, the last page of this newsletter is a membership application.
Phyllis Asztalos, Tallahassee, Florida
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E D U CA T E & E NG A G E Y OU R V I S I T O R S
T H R OUG H Y OU R S T O R Y
Deanna Bradley, Tallahassee, Florida
Jon Broadbooks, Cooperstown, New York
Diana Bryson, St. Petersburg, Florida
Sean Burke, Knoxville, Tennessee
Jamie Bynum, Carrollton, Georgia
Riva Cullinan, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
William Donaldson, Monroe, North Carolina
Cassandra Erb
Kendall Fairbanks, Apopka, Florida
Nathan Fleeson, Lawrenceville, Georgia
Sharon Fox, Wetumpka, Alabama
Breanna Gehweiler, Dallas, Georgia
Evangeline Giaconia, Gainesville, Florida
Madeline Greene, Powell, Tennessee
Kelsey Hawkins, Arlington, Tennessee
Anna Henderson, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Tyler Hendrix, Bonaire, Georgia
Joshua Howe, Winter Park, Florida
Kate Hughes, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Melody Hunter-Pillion, Cary, North Carolina
Ivy Johnson, Gainesville, Georgia
Megan Keener, Merritt Island, Florida
Ryan Marquez, Bellingham, Massachusetts
Rachel Mohr, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
JoCora Moore, Raleigh, North Carolina
Brandy Morales, Douglasville, Georgia
Samantha Oleschuk, New Hill, North Carolina
Kaniah Pearson, Atlanta, Georgia
Sarah Robles, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Apoorva Shah, Miramar, Florida
Linda Shea, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Margaret Stevenson, New Orleans, Louisiana
Trisha Strawn, St Petersburg, Florida
Megan Tewell, Johnson City, Tennessee
Ashlee Thompson, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Eileen Tomczuk, New Orleans, Louisiana
Alyssa Watrous, Rome, Georgia
Casey Wooster, St. Augustine, Florida
Benjamin Adamitus, Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin
Krishna Adams, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jess Alden, Atlanta, Georgia
Lucy Allen, Madison, Mississippi
Susanne Allen, Sarasota, Florida
Andy Ambrose, Macon, Georgia
Katie Anderson, Huntsville, Alabama
Madeleine Arencibia, Fort Pierce, Florida
Emilie Arnold, Dalton, Georgia
Becca Barnes, Cartersville, Georgia
Kathleen Barnett, Vicksburg, Mississippi
Amber Barnhardt, Athens, Georgia
Vincent Barraza, New Orleans, Louisiana
Trevor Beemon, Marietta, Georgia
Austin Bell, Marco Island, Florida
Eboni Belton, Columbia, South Carolina
Victoria Berry, Stillwater, Oklahoma
Erin Blackledge, Brandon, Mississippi
Linda Bitley, Smyrna, Georgia
Steven Blashfield, Richmond, Virginia
Jan Clapp Bomar, Fort Monroe, Virginia
Judith Bonner, New Orleans, Louisiana
Mary Bowers, Hixson, Tennessee
Kathleen Boyle, Brentwood, Tennessee
Amanda Briede, LOUISVILLE, Kentucky
Margaret Brown, Durham, North Carolina
Beth Burkett, Ravenel, South Carolina
Rebecca Bush, Columbus, Georgia
Jayd Buteaux, New Iberia, Louisiana
RaeLynn Butler, Okmulgee, Oklahoma
Samantha Bynum, Paris, Arkansas
Deanna Byrd, Caddo, Oklahoma
Marvin Byrd, Loganville, Georgia
Colleen Callahan, Richmond, Virginia
Sharon Campbell, Travelers Rest, South Carolina
Christian Carr, Savannah, Georgia
Staci Catron, Atlanta, Georgia
Olivia Cawood, Cleveland, Tennessee
Anna Chandler, Spartanburg, South Carolina
Celise Chilcote-Fricker, Lexington, Kentucky
Lola Clairmont, Asheville, North Carolina
Mara Clauson, Acworth, Georgia
Sharon Corey, Pawleys Island, South Carolina
Leah Craig, Bowling Green, Kentucky
Matthew Davis, Gray, Georgia
Dean DeBolt, Pensacola, Florida
Patty Dees, Cartersville, Georgia
Bartholomew Delcamp, Winter Haven, Florida
Kathryn Dixson, Atlanta, Georgia
Jeff Donaldson, Atlanta, Georgia
James Draper, Merritt Island, Florida
Didi Dunphy, Athens, Georgia
Christian Edwards, Pittsboro, North Carolina
William Eiland, Athens, Georgia
Tyler Fasnacht, Buford, Georgia
J.R. Fennell, Lexington, South Carolina
Jay Ferguson, Louisville, Kentucky
Rachael Finch, Franklin, Tennessee
Marvin Fonseca
Meghan Forest, Asheville, North Carolina
V. Taylor Foster, Louisville, Kentucky
Robin Gabriel, Georgetown, South Carolina
Stacey Gawel, Augusta, Georgia
Glen Gentele, Orlando, Florida
Meghan Gerig, Sautee Nacoochee, Georgia
Mandy Gibson, Hendersonville, North Carolina
David Goist, Asheville, North Carolina
Claudio Gomez, Knoxville, Tennessee
Sue Grannis, Maysville, Kentucky
Cindy Green, Franklin, Tennessee
Kristi Grieve, Cartersville, Georgia
Carolyn Grosch, Asheville, North Carolina
Dawn Hammatt, Abilene, Kansas
Azjoni Hargrove, Charleston, South Carolina
Brad Hawkins, Woodstock, Georgia
Joy Hayes, Baltimore, Maryland
Minna Heaton, Charleston, South Carolina
Natalie Hefter, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Sue Hiott, Clemson, South Carolina
LaQuinton Holliday, Meridian, Mississippi
Kelsey Horn, Golden, Mississippi
Michele Houck, Huntersville, North Carolina
Mary Hull, Raleigh, North Carolina
Kathleen Hutton, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Juliette Ibelli, Fort Myers, Florida
Marian Inabinett, High Point, North Carolina
Alyssa Jones, Beech Island, South Carolina
Emily Jones, Cleveland, Mississippi
Patricia Kahn, Sarasota, Florida
Diane Karlson, Little Rock, Arkansas
Martha Katz-Hyman, Newport News, Virginia
Marianne Kelsey, Greensboro, North Carolina
Kecia Kelso, Montgomery, Alabama
Tracy Kennan, New Orleans, Louisiana
Jim Kern, Vallejo, California
Connor Kilian, New Orleans, Louisiana
Valarie Kinkade, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Glenn Klaus, Alexandria, Virginia
Lauren Kraut, Gainesville, Virginia
Debbie Laffey, Franklin, Tennessee
Laurel Lamb, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Anne Lampe, Baltimore, Maryland
John Lancaster, Pulaski, Tennessee
Karol Lawson, Lynchburg, Virginia
William Lazenby, Chantilly, Virginia
Elise LeCompte, Gainesville, Florida
Carla Ledgerwood, Atlanta, Georgia
Anne Lewellen, Jacksonville, Florida
Cindy Lincoln, Raleigh, North Carolina
Felise Llano, Tampa, Florida
Ellen Lofaro, Knoxville, Tennessee
Catherine Long, Cumming, Georgia
Brian Lyman, Saucier, Mississippi
Deborah Mack, Alexandria, Virginia
Darcie MacMahon, Gainesville, Florida
Ty Malugani, Birmingham, Alabama
Patrick Martin, Old Hickory, Tennessee
Kali Mason, Dallas, Texas
Tori Mason, Nashville, Tennessee
Barbara McClendon, Jackson, Mississippi
Jan McKay, Avon Lake Ohio
Kimberly McKinnis, Norfolk, Virginia
Hilda McSween, Fort Pierce, Florida
Amberly Meli, Tallahassee, Florida
Katy Menne, Leland, North Carolina
Cindee Millard, Waco, Texas
Brittany Miller, Louisville, Kentucky
Tricia Miller, Athens, Georgia
Annelies Mondi, Athens, Georgia
Allison Moore, Kennesaw, Georgia
Kate Moore, Marietta, Georgia
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Stephanie Moore, Asheville, North Carolina
Kandace Muller, Luray, Virginia
Chris Munster, Greensboro, North Carolina
Brian Murphy, Florence, Alabama
Mary Anna Murphy, St. Petersburg, Florida
Chantell Nabonne, New Orleans, Louisiana
Michael Nagy, Atlanta, Georgia
Raka Nandi, Memphis, Tennessee
Kathy Neff, Greensboro, North Carolina
Amy Nelson, Lexington, Kentucky
Ginny Newell, Columbia, South Carolina
Kimberly Novak, Alpharetta, Georgia
Heather Nowak, Fultondale, Alabama
Lisa Ortega-Pol, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Heather Otis, Marco Island, Florida
Lauren Pacheco, Greensboro, North Carolina
Robert Parker, Tupelo, Mississippi
Yunice Patrick, Mableton, Georgia
Sharon Penton, Mooresville, North Carolina
Susan Perry, Atlanta, Georgia
Robin Person, Natchez, Mississippi
Deborah Randolph, Raleigh, North Carolina
Rachel Reese, Chattanooga, Tennessee
A.J. Rhodes, Arden, North Carolina
Carolyn Rice, Clarkesville, Georgia
Heather Rivet, Charleston, South Carolina
Stephani Roohani, Evans, Georgia
Lolita Rowe
Ann Rowson Love, Tallahassee, Florida
Tania Sammons, Savannah, Georgia
Mike Santrock, Hapeville, Georgia
Samantha Sauer, Jacksonville, Illinois
Tory Schendel-Vyvoda, Evansville, Indiana
Tony Schnadelbach, Jackson, Mississippi
Leah Schuknecht, Tyrone, Georgia
Michael Scott, Jekyll Island, Georgia
Patricia Shandor, Lexington, South Carolina
Debbie Shaw, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Beth Shea, Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Catherine Shteynberg, Knoxville, Tennessee
Alan Shuptrine, Lookout Mountain, Tennessee
Christy Sinksen, Athens, Georgia
John Slemp, Tucker, Georgia
Amanda Smith, Sandy Springs, Georgia
James Smith, St. Augustine, Florida
Laura Smith, Huntsville, Alabama
Linda Smith, Columbia, South Carolina
Sarah Soleim, Wake Forest, North Carolina
Richard Spilman, Helena, Arkansas
Rona Stage, Bokeelia, Florida
Chelsea Stutz, Beech Island, South Carolina
Dorothy Svgdik, Cordova, Tennessee
Deitrah Taylor, Perry, Georgia
Alice Taylor-Colbert, Greenwood, South Carolina
Kimberly Terbush, Greensboro, North Carolina
Sarah Tignor, Spartanburg, South Carolina
Nick Twemlow, Atlanta, Georgia
Deborah Van Horn, Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Pamela Vinci, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Holly Wait, Columbus, Georgia
Heather Waldroup, Boone, North Carolina
Celia Walker, Nashville, Tennessee
Micah Walsh, Roswell, Georgia
Amanda Ward, Bradenton, Florida
Stacy Watson, Paducah, Kentucky
John Wetenhall, Washington, District of Columbia
Liberty Wharton, Daytona Beach, Florida
Harvee White, Canton, Georgia
Jason Wiese, New Orleans, Louisiana
Charles Williams, Albany, Georgia
Jennifer Wisniewski, Maumelle, Arkansas
John Woods, South Windsor, Connecticut
Brian Wuertz, Raleigh, North Carolina
Jane Young, Madison, Mississippi
Felicia Abrams, Williamsburg, Virginia
George Bassi, Laurel Mississippi
Margaret Benjamin, Greensboro, North Carolina
Jamie Credle, Savannah, Georgia
Patrick Daily, Hickory, North Carolina
Jennifer Foster, Lexington, Kentucky
La Ruchala Murphy, Columbia, South Carolina
LeRoy Pettyjohn, Memphis, Tennessee
James Quint, Hammondsport, New York
Robin Reed, Fort Monroe, Virginia
Marsha Semmel, Arlington, Virginia
Sgt. Gary Spencer, Raleigh, North Carolina
Auntaneshia Staveloz, Silver Spring, Maryland
John White Jr., Marietta, Georgia
Joshua Whitfield, Warner Robins, Georgia
Ed Barth, Dunedin, Florida
Nancy Doll, Greensboro, North Carolina
Lee Gabrielle, W Palm Beach, Florida
Joyce Ice, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Martha Jackson, Raleigh, North Carolina
Mary Kay Klein, St. Petersburg, Florida
Vicky Kruckeberg, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
R. Maass, Longboat Key, Florida
Yvonne McGregor, St. Augustine, Florida
Robert Montgomery, Newberry, South Carolina
Douglas Noble, Gainesville, Florida
Carl Nold, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
William Paul, Jr., Athens Georgia Georgia Pribanic, Jacksonville, Florida
Amy Pruitt, China Grove, North Carolina
Judith Robb
Graig Shaak, Gainesville, Florida
James Shepp, Winter Park, Florida
Catherine Thornberry, Dunedin, Florida
Ida Tomlin, Meridian, Mississippi
TCI is always an advocate for the needs and requirements of museum collections care. Our goal is to form relationships with our clients and their collections in order to provide safe and affordable services. Combining professional knowledge of museum standards and best practices in fine art packing, shipping, and installation, the TCI team is your single point of contact for “shipping made simple.”
(Category 1: $50 )
21c Museum Hotel Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky
Altama Museum, Vidalia, Georgia
Apopka Historical Society, Apopka, Florida
Appleton Museum of Art, Ocala, Florida Arkansas National Guard Museum, North Little Rock, Arkansas
Arlington Historic Houses, Birmingham, Alabama
Art Center Sarasota, Sarasota, Florida
Bandy Heritage Center for Northwest Georgia, Dalton, Georgia
Caldwell Heritage Museum, Lenoir, North Carolina
Calico Rock Community Foundation, Calico Rock, Arkansas
Cameron Art Museum, Wilmington, North Carolina
Carnegie Center for Art and History, New Albany, Indiana Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina
Clemson University’s Bob Campbell Geology Museum, Clemson, South Carolina
Daura Gallery - University of Lynchburg, Lynchburg, Virginia
Department of Historic Museums, Georgia College, Milledgeville, Georgia
Drayton Hall, Charleston, South Carolina
Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin, Florida
Eleanor D. Wilson Museum at Hollins University, Roanoke, Virginia
Florida CraftArt, St. Petersburg, Florida
Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, Indiana
Friends of Cassidy Park Museums, Bogalusa, Louisiana Funk Heritage Center of Reinhardt University, Waleska, Georgia
Gaston County Museum of Art & History, Dallas, North Carolina
Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, South Carolina
Historic Augusta, Inc., Augusta, Georgia
Historic Cane Hill, Inc., Cane Hill, Arkansas
Historic Dumfries Virginia & The Weems-Botts Museum, Dumfries, Virginia
HistoryMiami, Miami, Florida
International Arts Center, Troy, Alabama
International Towing & Recovery Museum, Chattanooga, Tennessee
KMAC Museum, Louisville, Kentucky
Kentucky Native American Heritage Museum, Inc, Corbin, Kentucky
Lam Museum of Anthropology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida
Maier Museum of Art, Randolph College, Lynchburg, Virginia
Mandarin Museum & Historical Society, Jacksonville, Florida
Marine Corps Museum Parris Island, Parris Island, South Carolina
Meadows Museum of Art at Centenary College of Louisiana, Shreveport, Louisiana
Mississippi Industrial Heritage Museum, Inc., Meridian, Mississippi Museum of Design Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia
Museum of Durham History, Durham, North Carolina Museum of the Southeast American Indian, Pembroke, North Carolina
Oglethorpe University Museum of Art (OUMA), Atlanta, Georgia
Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art, Biloxi, Mississippi
Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation, Brookneal, Virginia
Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
SC Confederate Relic Room & Museum, Columbia, South Carolina
Spotsylvania County Museum, Fredericksburg, Virginia
Swannanoa Valley Museum, Black Mountain, North Carolina
The Museum, Greenwood, South Carolina
The Bass Museum of Art, Miami Beach, Florida
The Guntersville Museum, Guntersville, Alabama
The Parthenon, Nashville, Tennessee
The Ralph Foster Museum, Point Lookout, Missouri
University of South Alabama Archaeology Museum, Mobile, Alabama
Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee
Virginia Museum of Transportation, Roanoke, Virginia
Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia
Waterworks Visual Arts Center, Salisbury, North Carolina
Yeiser Art Center, Paducah, Kentucky
(Category 2: $150 )
A.E. Backus Museum & Gallery, Fort Pierce, Florida
Adsmore Museum, Princeton, Kentucky
Aiken County Historical Museum, Aiken, South Carolina
Alabama Music Hall of Fame, Tuscumbia, Alabama
Aldie Mill & Mt. Zion Historic Parks, Aldie, Virginia
Anderson County Museum, Anderson, South Carolina
Andrew Low House Museum, Savannah, Georgia
Appalachian State University Turchin Center for the Visual Arts, Boone, North Carolina
Arkansas Air and Military Museum, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Art Museum of the University of Memphis (AMUM), Memphis, Tennessee
Bartow History Museum, Cartersville, Georgia Beaches Museum, Jacksonville Beach, Florida
Calhoun County Museum, St. Matthews, South Carolina
Carnegie Visual Arts Center, Decatur, Alabama
Charlotte Museum of History, Charlotte, North Carolina
Chieftains Museum/Major Ridge Home, Rome, Georgia
Computer Museum of America, Roswell, Georgia
Dade Heritage Trust, Miami, Florida
East Tennessee Historical Society, Knoxville, Tennessee
Fort Smith Regional Art Museum, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Hilliard Art Museum University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana
Historic Clayborn Temple, Memphis, Tennessee
Historic Natchez Foundation, Natchez, Mississippi
Historic Paris Bourbon County Hopewell Museum, Paris, Kentucky
Historic Rosedale Plantation, Charlotte, North Carolina
Historic Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Horry County Museum, Conway, South Carolina
International Museum of the Horse, Lexington, Kentucky
Iredell Museums, Statesville, North Carolina
Kennesaw State University - Museums, Archives, Kennesaw, Georgia
Kentucky Department of Parks, Frankfort, Kentucky
LaGrange Art Museum, LaGrange, Georgia
Marietta Museum of History, Marietta, Georgia
Matheson History Museum, Gainesville, Florida
Memorial Hall Museum, New Orleans, Louisiana
Mennello Museum of American Art, Orlando, Florida
Proud partners of SEMC members: Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts – Birmingham Museum of Art Georgia Museum of Art – High Museum of Art – New Orleans Museum of Art
www.museumexchange.com
Morris Center for Lowcountry Heritage, Ridgeland, South Carolina
Mosaic Templars Cultural, Little Rock, Arkansas Museum of the Mississippi Delta, Greenwood, Mississippi Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, Winchester, Virginia
Northeast Georgia History Center, Gainesville, Georgia
Opelousas Museum and Interpretive Center, Opelousas, Louisiana
Parris Island Historical Museum Society, Parris Island, South Carolina
PIHMS, Parris Island, South Carolina Pinellas County Historical Society/Heritage Village, Largo, Florida
President James K. Polk State Historic Site/NC Dept of Natural & Cultural Resources, Pineville, North Carolina River Discovery Center, Paducah, Kentucky Robert C. Williams Museum of Papermaking, Atlanta, Georgia
Salem Museum & Historical Society, Salem, Virginia
SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film, Atlanta, Georgia Sculpture Fields at Montague Park, Chattanooga, Tennessee
South Union Shaker Village, Auburn, Kentucky Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, Alabama Sumter County Museum, Sumter, South Carolina
Swope Art Museum, Terre Haute, Indiana Tampa Baseball Museum at the Al Lopez House, Tampa, Florida
The Mitford Museum, Hudson, North Carolina
Thomas County Historical Society, Thomasville, Georgia
Thronateeska Heritage Foundation, Inc., Albany, Georgia
Tryon Palace, New Bern, North Carolina
University of Mississippi Museum & Historic Houses, Oxford, Mississippi
University of Richmond Museums, Richmond, Virginia Wetzel County Museum, New Martinsville, West Virginia
(Category 3: $250 )
Amelia Island Museum of History, Fernandina Beach, Florida Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge, Tennessee City of Raleigh - Historic Resources & Museum Program, Raleigh, North Carolina
DeKalb History Center, Decatur, Georgia Earl Scruggs Center, Shelby, North Carolina
Gadsden Arts Center & Museum, Quincy, Florida
Georgia Southern University Museum, Statesboro, Georgia
Hickory Museum of Art, Hickory, North Carolina
Historic Oakland Foundation, Atlanta, Georgia
International African American Museum, Charleston, South Carolina
Knox Heritage & Historic Westwood, Knoxville, Tennessee
Magnolia Mound Plantation, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art, Marietta, Georgia
Middleton Place Foundation, Charleston, South Carolina Museum Center at 5ive Points, Cleveland, Tennessee
Old State House Museum, Little Rock, Arkansas
Spartanburg Art Museum, Spartanburg, South Carolina
Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site (National Park Service), Tuskegee Institute, Alabama
Walter Anderson Museum of Art, Ocean Springs, Mississippi
West Baton Rouge Museum, Port Allen, Louisiana
Windgate Museum of Art at Hendrix College, Conway, Arkansas
Wiregrass Museum of Art, Dothan, Alabama
(Category 4: $350 )
Alabama African American Civil Rights Heritage Sites Consortium, Birmingham, Alabama
Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, Louisiana
Anniston Museum of Natural History, Anniston, Alabama Augusta Museum of History, Augusta, Georgia
Biblical History Center, LaGrange, Georgia
Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, Blowing Rock, North Carolina
Center for Puppetry Arts, Atlanta, Georgia
Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Children’s Hands on Museum, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Cook Museum of Natural Science, Decatur, Alabama
David J. Sencer CDC Museum, Atlanta, Georgia
DEA Museum, Arlington, Virginia
Discovery Park of America, Inc., Union City, Tennessee
Folk Pottery Museums of NE GA, Sautee Nacoochee Cultural Center, Sautee Nacoochee, Georgia
FSU Museum of Fine Arts, Tallahassee, Florida
museum architecture exhibit design master planning
Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, Charleston, South Carolina
Hampton Roads Naval Museum, Norfolk, Virginia
Hermann-Grima & Gallier Historic Houses, New Orleans, Louisiana
High Point Museum, High Point, North Carolina Hills & Dales Estate, LaGrange, Georgia
Historical Society of Martin County, Stuart, Florida History Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
International Civil Rights Center & Museum, Greensboro, North Carolina
Lauren Rogers Museum of Art, Laurel, Mississippi Leepa-Rattner Museum, Tarpon Springs, Florida
Longue Vue House and Gardens, New Orleans, Louisiana
Longwood Center for the Visual Arts, Farmville, Virginia
Louisiana State University Museum of Art, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
McKissick Museum, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
Mosaic, Jekyll Island Museum, Jekyll Island, Georgia Museo de Arte de Ponce, Ponce, Puerto Rico
of Art – DeLand, DeLand, Florida Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami, North Miami, Florida Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience, New Orleans, Louisiana Office of Historic Alexandria, Alexandria, Virginia
Orange County Regional History Center, Orlando, Florida
Portsmouth Museums, Portsmouth, Virginia
Rogers Historical Museum, Rogers, Arkansas
Shiloh Museum of Ozark History, Springdale, Arkansas
Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, Fort Myers, Florida
The Charleston Museum, Charleston, South Carolina Tubman Museum, Macon, Georgia
Upcountry History Museum- Furman University, Greenville, South Carolina
West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History, Charleston, West Virginia
(Category 5: $450 )
Department of Archives and History, Montgomery, Alabama
Asheville Art Museum, Asheville, North Carolina
Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, Charlotte, North Carolina
Belle Meade Historic Site & Winery, Nashville, Tennessee
Birthplace of Country Music Museum, Bristol, Tennessee
Cape Fear Museum of History and Science, Wilmington, North Carolina
Catawba Science Center, Hickory, North Carolina
Coastal Georgia Historical Society, St. Simons Island, Georgia
Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia, South Carolina
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas
Culture & Heritage Museums, Rock Hill, South Carolina
Customs House Museum and Cultural Center, Clarksville, Tennessee
Florence County Museum, Florence, South Carolina
Georgia Museum of Art, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
Historic Arkansas Museum, Little Rock, Arkansas
History Museum of Mobile, Mobile, Alabama
Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Huntington Museum of Art, Huntington, West Virginia
Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, Alabama
Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama
Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse & Museum, Jupiter, Florida
Kentucky Derby Museum, Louisville, Kentucky
Knoxville Museum of Art, Knoxville, Tennessee
Lodge Cast Iron, South Pittsburg, Tennessee
Louisiana Art & Science Museum, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Louisiana’s Old State Capitol, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, Knoxville TN
Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Memphis, Tennessee
Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience, Meridian, Mississippi
Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Jackson, Mississippi
Mississippi Museum of Art, Jackson, Mississippi
Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, Jackson, Mississippi Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, Alabama
MOCA Jacksonville, Jacksonville, Florida
Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia
Fiction: People don’t give to the arts.
Fact: Arts giving grew faster than any other sector in 2021, reaching $23.5 billion
need to write more grants and get more corporate giving to increase fundraising.
Giving by individuals far outpaces foundation
corporate giving with nearly 4 of 5 charitable dollars coming from individual
Morse Museum of American Art, Winter Park, Florida
MoSH (Museum of Science and History) - Pink Palace, Memphis, Tennessee
Muscarelle Museum of Art, Williamsburg, Virginia
Museum of Arts & Sciences, Daytona Beach, Florida
Museum of the Cherokee Indian, Cherokee, North Carolina
National Museum of the Marine Corps, Triangle, Virginia National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Pooler, Georgia
National Sporting Library & Museum, Middleburg, Virginia
North Carolina Museum of History, Raleigh, North Carolina
Oak Alley Foundation, Vacherie, Louisiana
Orlando Museum of Art, Inc, Orlando, Florida
Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland, Florida
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Sarasota Art Museum, Sarasota, Florida
South Carolina State Museum, Columbia, South Carolina
Tampa Bay History Center, Tampa, Florida
Tampa Museum of Art, Inc., Tampa, Florida
Taubman Museum of Art, Roanoke, Virginia
Tellus Science Museum, Cartersville, Georgia
Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum, Chattanooga, Tennessee
The Columbus Museum, Columbus, Georgia
The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, Jacksonville, Florida
The Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Memphis, Tennessee
The Florida Holocaust Museum, St. Petersburg, Florida
The Fralin Museum of Art at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
The Wolfsonian – FIU, Miami Beach, Florida
University of Alabama Museums, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Vero Beach Museum of Art, Vero Beach, Florida
Vulcan Park and Museum, Birmingham, Alabama
William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum, Atlanta, Georgia
(Category 6: $550 )
Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Little Rock, Arkansas
Arkansas State Parks, Little Rock, Arkansas
Art Bridges, Bentonville, Arkansas
Artis–Naples, The Baker Museum, Naples, Florida
Atlanta History Center, Atlanta Georgia
Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham, Alabama
Booth Western Art Museum, Carterville, Georgia
Cheekwood, Nashville, Tennessee
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Nashville, Tennessee
Division of State Historic Sites and Properties, NCDCR, Raleigh, North Carolina
Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, Florida Frist Art Museum, Nashville, Tennessee
High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia
Historic New Orleans Collection, New Orleans, Louisiana Kentucky Historical Society, Frankfort, Kentucky
Louisiana State Museum, New Orleans, Louisiana
Michael C. Carlos Museum of Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina
National Center for Civil and Human Rights, Atlanta, Georgia
National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis, Tennessee
New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans, Louisiana
North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, North Carolina
Schiele Museum, Gastonia, North Carolina
Scott Family Amazeum, Bentonville, Arkansas
Telfair Museums, Savannah, Georgia
Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, Tennessee
The Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Virginia
The Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia Watson-Brown Foundation, Inc., Thomson, Georgia
Gregg Museum of Art & Design, Raleigh, North Carolina
Henry B. Plant Museum, Tampa, Florida
Spelman College, Atlanta, Georgia
University of West Georgia-Department of Art, History, and Philosophy, Carrollton, Georgia
Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, North Carolina
Business Associate ($350)
Able Eyes, Lansing, Michigan
Arts InCommunity (division of InCommunity), Atlanta, Georgia
Atelier 4, Long Island City, New York
Available Light, Boston, Massachusetts Backlog, St. Louis, Missouri
Banks Creative, Charleston, South Carolina
Creative Arts Unlimited, Pinellas Park, Florida
Crystalizations Systems Inc, Holbrook, New York
CSR-Consulting, Solutions, Results, Atlanta, Georgia
DaVinci Development Collaborative, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia
Dorfman Museum Figures, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland
Helms Briscoe, Alpharetta, Georgia
Hutchinson Design Group, Alexandria, Virginia
Leaf Spring Consulting, Knoxville, Tennessee
NMBL Strategies, St. Louis, Missouri
Willis Towers Watson - Fine Art, Jewelry & Specie, Potomac, Maryland
Your Heritage Matters, Durham, North Carolina
Corporate Friend ($1,200)
10-31, Inc., Columbia, New Jersey
1220 Exhibits, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee
Alexander Haas, Atlanta, Georgia
Association of African American Museums (AAAM), Washington, District of Columbia
Available Light, Raleigh, North Carolina
Bonsai Fine Arts Inc, Glen Burnie, Maryland
Boston Productions, Inc., Norwood, Massachusetts
Brunk Auctions, Asheville, North Carolina
Carolina Conservation, Irmo, South Carolina
Case Antiques, Inc. Auctions & Appraisals, Knoxville, Tennessee
CatalogIt, Oakland, California Charityproud, North Charleston, South Carolina
Cinebar Productions, Inc., Newport News, Virginia Conserv, Birmingham, Alabama
Cultural Heritage Partners PLLC, Richmond, Virginia
DeWitt Stern, New York, New York
Displays Fine Art Services, Arlington, Texas
ERCO Lighting, Inc., Edison, New Jersey Exhibit Concepts, Inc., Vandalia, Ohio Explus, Inc., Sterling, Virginia
Frina Design, Lithia, Florida
Goosepen Studio & Press, Hickory, North Carolina
HealyKohler Design, Washington, District of Columbia
Interactive Knowledge, Inc., Charlotte, North Carolina
Lucidea, Richmond, BC, Canada
MBA Design & Display Products Corporation, Exton, Pennsylvania
Monadnock Media, Inc., Hatfield, Massachusetts
Museum Exchange, New York, New York
Nabholz Construction Corporation, Conway, Arkansas
Odyssey by HistoryIT, Portland, Maine
OTJ Architects, Washington, District of Columbia
Our Fundraising Search, Atlanta, Georgia
Patterson Pope, Inc., Norcross, Georgia
Riggs Ward Design, Richmond, Virginia
Solid Light, Inc, Louisville, Kentucky StoryFile, Inc., Los Angeles, California
Studio Art Quilt Associates, Beavercreek, Ohio
The Design Minds, Inc., Fairfax, Virginia
Tour-Mate Systems, Toronto Canada
Transformit, Gorham, Maine
Transport Consultants International, Lithia, Florida
Universal Fiber Optic Lighting USA, LLC., Sarasota, Florida
Upland Exhibits, Newton, Kansas
U.S. Art Company, Orlando, Florida
William G. Pomeroy Foundation, Syracuse, New York
Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Charleston, South Carolina
National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution-Office of Strategic Partnerships, Washington, District of Columbia Zone Display Cases, Charlesbourg, Quebec City, Canada
Each era has its own proclaimed master sculptor, rec ognized as a master in that artist’s own lifetime. Some names are more familiar than others — Polykleitos (Classical Greece), Donatello (Early Renaissance), Michelangelo (High Renaissance), Bernini (Baroque), and Canova (Ne0-Classical) to name a few — but all have captured the minds, eyes, and hearts of genera tions of art lovers. For the late nineteenth century, on the cusp of the abstractive trends of the twentieth, the celebrated master sculptor was Auguste Rodin (1840-1917). Rodin’s sculptures not only revived for a new century the expressive and naturalistic style of antiquity, using ancient Greek sculptors’ medium of choice but also propelled figurative sculpture into the modern age with emotion and pathos never seen before in the sculpted form.
And now Rodin comes to Florida. This summer (June 25 through October 30, 2022), the Polk Museum of Art at Florida Southern College invites visitors into the world of the modern master with an astonishing exhibi tion featuring more than forty bronze sculptures filling the Museum’s first-floor galleries. The largest exhi bition of sculptures in the Museum’s history, Rodin: Contemplation and Dreams takes its title from the sculp tor’s own words; he described the ability of art ideally to “open before us an enchanted land of contempla tion and dreams” — and, in his work, Rodin sought to transport and amaze his viewers.
Rodin’s sculptures are instantly recognizable, with his Thinker and Gates of Hell emblems in the history of art.
Forgoing idealization for astonishingly naturalistic rep resentation, Rodin created sculptures that connect with their viewers and speak to the universal emotions and
mentalities of the human experience. Tapping into the deep roots of humanity, Rodin also imbues his figures with his personal touch, presenting them in previously unseen (or even unwieldy) poses or making gestures that appear shockingly un-staged and thus even more human. It is often difficult to believe that his sculptures are merely bronze, so readily do they look like they should come to life, weep, or speak. Indeed, Rodin’s sculptures draw their power from physical and psycho logical truth, capturing human anguish, drama, tragedy, mindfulness, and hope through the sculpted form.
An artist of the post-Impressionist era (roughly the last two decades of the nineteenth century), Rodin is not easily categorized. His focus on “real” human forms behaving in “real” human ways echoes the strengths of the French Realists and Impressionists, who focused similarly on the world and people of the here and now — and how we actually see them. Meanwhile, the unmiti gated expressive emotion of Rodin’s figures, such that they make viewers actually feel something themselves,
recalls the expressionistic manners of fellow postImpressionist-era artists including Vincent Van Gogh. But whereas those artists are celebrated principally for their tw0-dimensional work, Rodin injects into the arena of sculpture all the humanity and emotion of the real world with a touch and style uniquely his own.
The American Saddlebred Museum ( https://asb museum.org/) is pleased to announce the grand reopening of the Elisabeth M. Goth History Wing. This $4,000,000 project tells the story of the American Saddlebred, a native Kentucky horse. The new History Wing features an expanded history of the American Saddlebred from past to future, a virtual reality exhibit, life-size mare and foal sculptures, children’s activities, exhibits highlighting the versatility of the American Saddlebred, and interactive exhibits.
Museum collections management software enthusiastically adopted by museums of all sizes, collection types, and budgets.
In celebration of the Louisiana Art & Science Museum’s 60th anniversary, LASM has published a collection catalog titled Sixty Years of Collecting at the Louisiana Art & Science Museum, thanks to a generous Rebirth Grant provided by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (LEH). This new catalog is available free of charge at LASM and is also available online via the museum’s virtual learning platform at virtual-lasm.org.
The publication illustrates Louisiana’s unique his tory and culture through the artwork held in LASM’s collection that was created by Louisiana-born and Louisiana-based artists working in the nineteenth century until today. The full-color publication con sists of a forward by Serena (Meredith) Pandos, LASM’s President & Executive Director; an introduc tion by LASM’s Past Curator Lexi Adams; artist biog raphies focused on their connections to Louisiana; high-resolution photographs of a selection of
objects on view in Our Louisiana; and a brief history of LASM’s sixty years of service to the community.
In her forward in the catalog, Pandos states, “The Louisiana Art & Science Museum continues to be defined by the belief that the disciplines of art and sci ence shape, complement, and spring from one another. We hope you enjoy this publication as much as we have enjoyed creating it, with special thanks to the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, the many visionaries and philanthropists who have gifted so generously to make our permanent art collection the treasure that it is today, and to my visionary predecessors Adalié Brent and Carol Gikas, whose hard work paved the way these last sixty years, as we plan for the next sixty.”
This publication was made possible by a Rebirth grant from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities in 2021. Funding for 2021 Rebirth grants has been admin istered by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (LEH) and provided by the National Endowment for
the Humanities (NEH) as part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) and the NEH Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan (SHARP) initiative.
At the LSU Museum of Art , Blurring Boundaries: The Women of American Abstract Artists, 1936–Present highlights the indelible ways in which the women of American Abstract Artists have, for more than eighty years, shifted and shaped the frontiers of American abstraction. The hierarchy of distilled form, immaculate line, and pure color came close to being the mantra of modern art—particularly that of American Abstract Artists (AAA), the subject of this exhibition. From the outset—due as much to their divergent status as abstract artists as to their gender—women of American Abstract Artists were already working on the periphery of the art world. In contrast to the other artist collec tives of the period, where equal footing for women was unusual, AAA provided a place of refuge for female
artists. Through fifty-six works, Blurring Boundaries explores the artists’ astounding range of styles, includ ing their individual approaches to the guiding principles of abstraction: color, space, light, material, and process.
Blurring Boundaries: The Women of American Abstract Artists, 1936–Present was organized by The Clara M. Eagle Gallery, Murray State University, Murray, KY and the Ewing Gallery, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN and is toured by International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC. The exhibition was curated by Rebecca DiGiovanna. This exhibition is sponsored locally by Taylor Porter Attorneys At Law. Now on view at the LSU Museum of Art in Baton Rouge, LA until on view until October 23, 2022.
Featuring two paintings and two drawings, Mario Moore: Responding to History at the LSU Museum of Art pro vides an in-depth look at Moore’s nuanced artwork During and After the Battle. At over five feet by six feet, the large-scale artwork offers much to contemplate.
the Civil War, and reflects on the past and the pres ent. Mario Moore: Responding to History also includes Gibson’s painting Battle of Antietam, which gives visi tors another view into Moore’s process for During and After the Battle. Moore recently had an exhibition of his work at the Arthur Roger Gallery in New Orleans, Louisiana entitled A New Republic, which included a series of paintings depicting Civil War scenes placed in contemporary settings. Drawing influences from Peter Paul Rubens, During and After the Battle realistically depicts the violence of the Civil War and references elements of Black masculinity.
Mario Moore, During and After the Battle,
Oil on linen. Purchased with funds from the Winifred and Kevin P. Reilly Initiative for Underrepresented Artists.
artist Mark Gibson, During and After the Battle responds to classical painting traditions, American history, and
This exhibition was organized by Clarke Brown, LSU Museum of Art Curatorial Fellow. Moore’s painting was acquired in 2020 with funds from the Winifred and Kevin P. Reilly Initiative for Underrepresented Artists. Support for all LSU Museum of Art exhibitions is pro vided by the Annual Exhibition Fund donors. Now on view at the LSU Museum of Art in Baton Rouge, LA until on view until October 23, 2022.
Experts
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largest museums,
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and private
From the Halsey’s exhibition Only You Can Prevent a Forest by Kirsten Stolle.
The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston is presenting an exhibi tion in fall 2022 that examines the global influence of agrichemical companies on our food supply.
Using appropriation, wordplay, and humor, Ashevillebased artist Kirsten Stolle co-opts advertising strategies used by agrichemical corporations to resurface and critique company history. Her work interrogates the global influence of chemical companies on our food supply and their consistent efforts to downplay effects of their toxic products on our health and environment. Stolle is interested in how chemical giants like Bayer/ Monsanto and Dow Chemical position themselves as
modern agricultural companies while actively conceal ing their pesticides’ decades-long toxic impact on the soil. By deconstructing their marketing methods, Stolle can begin to uncover the misdirection and invite viewers to critically engage with industry propaganda.
For her exhibition, Only You Can Prevent A Forest, Kirsten Stolle will create photo-based collages, visual poetry interventions, text-based sound animation, a neon wall piece, and her first site-responsive sculptural instal lation. Building upon her decade-long research into companies like Bayer/Monsanto and Dow Chemical, the work will forefront historical ties to chemical warfare and reveal persistent greenwashing.
Kirsten Stolle: Only You Can Prevent A Forest will be on view from August 26 to December 10, 2022.
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disabilities to get a more descriptive and concise version of what they may or may not see. It is a few extra words of text typically added to a photograph to describe what is visually happening in the image.
During my internship, I created the alternative text for all SEMC graphic images (used in social media, market ing, and on the website) and learned how to add this information to images on various platforms. I am now able to include this skill in my experience.
Over the course of six weeks, I researched and familiar ized myself with what digital accessibility is, learned why it is so important, and have become proficient at writ ing alternative text for images. I also created a “Digital Accessibility Best Practices” document for the SEMC staff to refer to as they continue to make their website and social media platforms more accessible for all.
In addition to learning new skills, I have also had the privilege to meet a wonderful small nonprofit fam ily that, in more ways than one, has shaped my new understanding and appreciation for making specific resources attainable to all.
The past six weeks with the Southeastern Museums Conference have been more than an internship for me; they have been a great learning experience not only in the museum field but also in life. I have learned the ins and outs of digital accessibility and how it benefits almost every area of a company. More specifically, I have learned about alternative text (alt text for short), something utterly foreign to me seven weeks ago. Alternative text allows individuals with specific
LSU Museum of Art (LSU MOA) is excited to introduce Michelle Schulte as Senior Curator and Director of Programming. Schulte has an extensive background in museum and gallery management, art education, and Southern art and history and its relationship to and impact on current events and societal inequi ties. She has a master of arts in museum studies from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland; Georgia state teacher certification in art education from Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia (now Georgia Southern University, Armstrong Campus); and a bachelor of fine arts in photography
Schulte.
from Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia. Schulte has worked as Gallery Director / Chief Curator for the Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual
Arts at Pensacola State College in Pensacola, Florida and Gallery Director and Adjunct Faculty at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland. She gained extensive knowledge on collection care, museum standards and practices, and creating programming through univer sity collaboration. She also served as the Curator of Education at the Morris Museum of Art in Augusta, Georgia, where she gained skills in curating exhibitions, collaborating with artists and community partners, and networking with peer institutions across the Southeast. At the Morris Museum, she established an Education Gallery and developed a space dedicated to teaching visitors about art movements and contemporary artists. Schulte currently serves as a senior volunteer leader for the Southeastern Museums Conference, which focuses on museum professional development and organizational practices.
LSU Museum of Art (LSU MOA) is excited to announce Brandon V. Lewis as Museum Educator and Public Programs Manager. Lewis, an artist, teacher, and Baton Rouge native, has dedicated the last decade to
Brandon V. Lewis.
educating traditional and non-traditional students. He is a product of the East Baton Rouge public school sys tem, graduating from the gifted and talented program
at McKinley Senior High School. He went on to earn a bachelor of arts in history, with a minor in fine arts, from the University of Louisiana in Lafayette. Lewis served as the Fine Arts Chair and African American Studies instructor in the City of Baker School System for over nine years, eventually becoming the District Fine Arts Coordinator/Director. He is a member of the National Association of History Educators, National Association of Arts Educators, Greater Baton Rouge Arts Council, and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated. An advocate for service, Lewis believes that art, in any form, can be a change agent. For the past three years he has spearheaded the neighborhood senior Art Pack Initiative, which engages participants and provides a fine art experience for senior citizens impacted by the pandemic. In addition to being a devoted educa tor, Lewis is a celebrated visual artist, creating work since the early age of three. Driven by his mother and grandparents, Lewis developed an early passion for the arts, which formed the foundation for him to thrive in the field. Working primarily as a painter, he has won numerous national awards and honors. Lewis’s work
celebrates people of color and all aspects of their cul ture. He truly believes artists are custodians of their community’s histories, and it is their job to preserve and relate the stories for all.
LSU Museum of Art (LSU MOA) is excited to announce Marianna Luquette as Registrar. Luquette, a lifelong Louisiana native, possesses a deep passion for regional culture, history, and art. She spent her childhood visiting museums throughout the Southern United States. This early experience seeded a fascination with museums and how they work, and eventually led her to pursue a degree in Public History. Luquette received a bach elor of arts and a master of arts in history from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She wrote her master’s thesis on cultural activism in South Louisiana, which helped cultivate her love and appreciation of tra ditional craft. Luquette was the Tribal Archivist for the Federally recognized Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana for five years. During her time with the Tribe, she learned all facets of collection care and assisted in developing a community-focused archive, building a deep admiration
Marianna Luquette.
for cultural preservation and a desire to continue to pur sue a career in the museum field. Although Luquette’ s roots are in Cajun culture, she enjoys learning about
the various cultural groups found throughout Louisiana. She believes Louisiana’s diversity is its most beautiful aspect and that it should be celebrated and taught.
The Southeastern Museums Conference (SEMC) is pleased to announce the selection of Heather Nowak as the new Program Administrator. This position is a strategic, collaborative addition to the growing SEMC team. In this role, Ms. Nowak will conceptualize, develop, promote, manage, and implement a full suite of SEMC programs including virtual programs, in-person workshops, and Annual Meeting professional sessions. She will have oversight of the SEMC Program Committee and serve as the liaison between the Program Committee Chair, SEMC staff, and Council. The position will also share administrative coordination of the Jekyll Island Management Institute and SEMC Leadership Institute with the Executive Director.
Ms. Nowak is a native of Birmingham, Alabama, and has been a long-time member and participant of SEMC attending her first annual conference in 2008; she received the SEMC Emerging Museum Professional Award in 2014. Ms. Nowak is a graduate of the University of Alabama at Birmingham where she received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history. She began her museum career in 2009 at Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark as the Education Coordinator and was promoted to Director of Programs in 2011. In 2015, she became the Executive Director of the Man in the Sea Museum in Panama City Beach, Florida. Throughout her museum career, Heather continued to be active in SEMC as a frequent presenter, member of the Program Committee and Program Committee Co-Chair in 2015 and 2018. She is excited to join the SEMC team as the Program Administrator and will utilize her skills and experience to further develop virtual programming and provide support to the Program Committee, Jekyll Island
Management Institute, and Leadership Institute. She currently resides in Birmingham with her husband Nate, son Silas and daughter Ryder.
Zinnia Willits, SEMC Executive Director, notes, “We had a deep pool of talented applicants for this role. Heather has a long history with SEMC and will bring a diverse network of connections, museum experience, and proven success with programs. She is passionate about the mission of SEMC and will work hard to create robust and sustainable programs in collaboration with strategic partners that provide relevant training and networking opportunities to the diverse community of museum professionals in the Southeast and beyond.”
Heather began her position with SEMC on August 1 and can be reached at: HNowak@semcdirect.net
The deadline for the Fall edition of Inside SEMC is November 18, 2022. To submit information for the newsletter, please contact Zinnia Willits (zwillits@semcdirect.net) or Carla Phillips (cphillips@semcdirect.net).
2022 Annual Meeting, Northwest Arkansas
Inside SEMC Fall 2022 submissions deadline
October 24–26, 2022
November 18, 2022
October 25–27, 2022, Temecula, CA Archives, Libraries, and Museums
International Conference of Indigenous
American Historical Association 2023 Annual Meeting
Small Museum Association 2023 Annual Conference
American Alliance of Museums 2023 Annual Meeting
January 5–8, 2023, Philadelphia, PA
February 19–21, 2023, location TBD
May 19–22, 2023, Denver, CO
SEMC Job Forum offers employers and job seekers the ability to search and post jobs on SEMC’s website. SEMC Job Postings are now self-serve and free for members. For non-members, there is a flat fee of $20 each job description, regardless of the word count. SEMC Member Institutions may now post jobs for free on the SEMC jobs page at www.semcdirect.net/listing. Please Note: ALL SEMC job board postings must include the following in accordance with administrative best practices: job title; location; description of the position and organization; and numerical salary or salary range.
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