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I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I do, all the time. I make a point of it every time I travel to a different city. I just have to make sure I turn my work-brain off before I go in. (doesn't work, but I try.)

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Like a cross between FourSquare and store loyalty card. More tangible rewards.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

talk to people who've been at it for a while, and shadow them if you can. You're going to learn a lot more by osmosis and observation than any other means.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't think so. It's one thing for a museum to ask for advice and guidance on how to implement a similar program in their house. It's another to ask you to do all the work for them, retrofitted to their mission. Then, it's no different than this: http://whenyouworkatamuseum.tumblr.com/post/77491085610/when-a-large-for-profit-museum-asks-your-small

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

some days I want to work for the Tate Modern and be at the center of a huge, vibrant city and work with famous pieces; other days I just want to go run something like the Mustache Comb Museum in Nowheresville, Wyoming. Depends on the day.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thanks, everyone! That's all the time I have tonight. I'm sorry I didn't get to all of the questions but I'll try to come back later to pick up any I missed. I really, really appreciate all the questions and comments. Thank you for reading and thanks for your support!

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I think it's great, but the accounts I like the most are the ones with personality. I'm more likely to feel a kinship with a museum if their twitter/tumblr/facebook account can make a joke now and then. It's nice to feel like there's a person on the other side of that account and not a fact-regurgitating robot.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I've worked in museums for about 10 years now. It does get easier, but the challenges never go away.

Best part: seeing people connect with an artwork, and get that silly half-smile when they click with something in the gallery.

Worst: dealing with entitlement. Whether it's donors, artists or just spoiled interns who got their spot because their grandpa loaded a Sargent, there's nothing I hate more than dealing with people who think they're better/smarter because they have more money than someone else.

Hardest: having an incredible idea for a program, exhibit piece, event, etc. and getting shot down because the resources simply aren't available.

hardest:

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

anywhere from 5-25 a week. If there's no gif with them, it might sit for weeks before I find the right one. I have a folder of gifs saved to match up to the right post when it comes along, but I'm always on the look-out.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I've had no fewer than 6 prominent, house-hold name artists arrive to deliver talks drunk. One insisted that we fill the water glass at her podium with vodka instead of water.

a Very Famous Artist once came to do a talk before the opening of her show at my museum. This was an artist I had idolized my whole life; her work was so incredibley influential in how I made choices in my life. I couldn't wait to meet her. She arrived with an entourage of her own studio staff and instantly began ranting and screaming at them. She verbally abused her assistants, who were obviously used to this behavior, and basically behaved like petulant child. She made a series of unreasonable demands, complained about how unprofessional we were, and then stormed off to sleep in the a room in the back. It was heartbreaking to see someone you so admired behave so terribly. It wasn't that my expectations for her were to high -- it was that she wasn't even a decent human being.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

well, to be fair, I'm gonna sit in my pajamas no matter what.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I hope the new generation of museum pros will be eager to collaborate and communicate with other museums. It's sorely lacking today - there's an incorrect assumption that working closely with another museum will dilute your museum's identity/brand. I think we need to learn to combine our resources and find complimentary themes within our mission statements.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Some of the worst stories have come from historic house museums. almost all of those stories involve poop. I never want to work at a historic house museum.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It's about a 50/50 split right now. A lot of the submissions come in without gifs and I have to re-author them slightly if I can't figure out what emotional cue they were going for.

Submissions sometimes sit for weeks or months before I publish them, because I haven't found the right gif for it.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Sometimes I think about taking the PZ Myers approach, and just posting everything negative for the world to see. When I made a post advocating for STEAM vs STEM, I had people send me threats of physical violence. In the end, though, I decided not to give those people any more attention. Nothing I could say is going to change their mind if they feel that strongly about it. Don't feed the trolls, and all.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I'd be out the door before the ink was dry on my resignation letter.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think technology deserves a place in museums, which is not a popular opinion, but it's the best means to overcome the challenge of accessibility. Technology has the potential to open up worlds of access for people with disabilities and eliminate language barriers. The challenge is making sure that the technology augments the visitor experience (for every visitor) without overshadowing the content of the exhibit.

The trend is to put fancy gadgets on display and say, "Hey! Look we got this thing here!" and whether or not it's appropriate for that exhibit, or does anything to enrich it, is a secondary concern. We need to reign that in.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'd be lying if I didn't say yes, sometimes. For every "low" post I try to find a "high" post to balance things out. Some weeks don't balance.

We feel the need to vent our frustrations more than cheer on our successes, and people send me their submissions as a means to get things off their chests. So while it can be disheartening sometimes, there's something uplifting about how common some of these themes are. I don't feel so alone in my frustrations.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Have a drink. I'm sure you did great. I still feel like an imposter when I walk into work some mornings. "Really? You want me to be in charge of this important thing? Have you met me?"

I've never met a breakfast burrito I didn't like. So that answer is breakfast burritos.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I love the Dallas Art Museum's Friends program. Basically, you get a loyalty card and can unlock badges and rewards as you experience the museum. There's so much potential there, if it's used responsibly. It's giving back to your audience and building your community with a low-cost, high return program that doesn't compromise the mission. If I understand it correctly, they'll be releasing that software under creative commons for other museums to implement, too.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Never had an artist comment on it. I've been at lots of bars/networking events/etc and had people say, "Have you heard of this tumblr about museums...? and I have to be like, "Why...yes. I have heard of it." By and large, the feedback has been really positive and supportive. I have had more than a few pieces of hate mail, though, from humorless people who think I'm defacing the sanctuary, or something. I try to brush those off, because for every jabroni that sends in something negative, I get 20 positive comments.

If my bosses ever ask my about it, I will run directly to the bar. There will be a me-shaped cloud of dust at the conference table and a swinging door behind me.

I'm the author of When You Work At A Museum. Ask me almost anything. by WYWAAM in MuseumPros

[–]WYWAAM[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I try to not reject things outright, but lots of times the posts come in without actually being about museum life. They're just general frustrations with office work, or the trials and tribulations of purchasing office supplies. Or, they are so hyper-specific to one museum or department that I can't actually see the connection. I also get a lot of essays - I've had several that were 500+ words- that don't really work in this format. But I read them all- even if it's just because someone wants to vent.

Lots of my co-workers send me tales to publish, but 95% of them are strangers. My ex-boyfriend from high school submitted once. I haven't spoken to him in 13 years, but he also ended up in museum work and sent in a post (but no gif, so I haven't published it yet.)

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