Milwaukee Art Museum Blog
Four weeks ago I had no idea that I would be creating a post that would be viewed by anyone who accessed Milwaukee Art Museum Blog. When I first started the internship I was ecstatic: Working at the art museum? I was movin’ on up in life. Then when I found out I was going to create a blog post, you could pretty much say my day–if not year–was made.
On a personal level, art has always been a part of my life. Whether it be in dance, thought, or in action; art surrounds me. As an intern here at the Milwaukee Art Museum, my appreciation for creativity, innovation, and artists new and old has only grown. Art as a whole, has changed through time, increasing in meaning and expression. In my eyes, the finished product of art does not need to make complete sense to every individual. The same piece of art I may find beautiful may not meet another’s standards of beauty. Art lives on, beyond the surface of a canvas, in the Museum.
During our internship, we learned in depth about the hard work and dedication that goes into running a museum. The internship was also part of the TED-Ed Clubs pilot program, and we were tasked as a group to create a video about our essential question: “What are museums for?”
Starting from a small art gallery, the Milwaukee Art Museum merged and combined with other organizations and people to form what it is now. With, of course, the help of the community, the Museum has thrived into a famous attraction. A few people from the community went out of their way to start the Museum, and now the Museum is returning the favor to the community as a place to view and learn about art. Visitors even count the Museum one of “the top three of all I’ve seen since traveling around the world.”
This coming year will be my third year as Chelsea’s intern, so I’ve definitely come to know my way around the Art Museum and its many programs. I work with Chelsea mostly with the Satellite High School Internship Program, thus I was thrilled to have a hand in some of the prepping and planning for the spring term.
Prior to the start of the spring semester, Chelsea and I did some program brainstorming for the Satellite Program. Most of our conversation was about what the final project would look like for the students. Read more to find out more about the teaching process and view the students’ final project videos!
This summer, fourteen teens from 12 Milwaukee-area high schools came together to impact the present and future of museums. Funded by the MPS Arts Internship Program through the Milwaukee Public Schools Recreation Department, these teens were paid museum studies interns for five weeks, going behind-the-scenes at the Museum, developing career skills, and helping the Museum in its day-to-day functions.