Gabriella Victorio, the museum’s Parker Research Assistant, joined our team in 2020(opens in new tab). Next month, she’ll move on to new opportunities as she finishes her graduate degree at the University of Georgia. Gabby wrote about her time here and what she’s been doing for the past two years.
As my assistantship comes to an end, I am grateful for my time at the Georgia Museum of Art and sure this will not be the last they see of me. For the past two years, I held the position of Parker Research Assistant under Dr. Asen Kirin, Parker Curator of Russian Art. With my main task of cataloging the Parker collection, I focused on measuring, conditioning and formatting in the museum’s database(opens in new tab). When exhibition preparation rolled around, I communicated with conservators and worked with Dr. Kirin to prepare displays. I also attended staff, curatorial and registrars’ meetings and got used to the routine of museum work.
As an undergraduate, I gained experience interning in the museum’s curatorial and registration departments before I graduated in 2018 with my bachelor’s degree in art history. This is where my experience with the Parker collection began. In 2017, I started my internship with Dr. Kirin and associate registrar Amber Barnhardt. I gained experience in art handling, condition reporting and navigating the museum’s database. This aided me when I returned to UGA in 2020 for my master’s degree in art education and was offered the first Parker Research Assistantship.
I also enrolled in the Museum Studies Certificate program at UGA(opens in new tab), and I gained experience interning in the education department. I wanted to get as much experience as I could as a museum educator, so I also enrolled in the museum’s student docent program. Learning how to give tours and make learning about art in a museum setting fun was necessary to begin my career as a museum educator. I also held the role of teaching artist for the museum’s studio workshop program on embroidery and fiber arts in February. With my self-taught experience in hand embroidery, I enjoyed sharing my tips with a class of 18 people.
This summer, I will attend UGA’s Museum Studies Field Study program in Atlanta and expand my museum knowledge outside of the Georgia Museum of Art and Athens. I will also be teaching art camps and Saturday lessons at Treehouse Kid & Craft(opens in new tab). In June, I will be teaching a beginner sewing course and a beginner hand embroidery course at Community(opens in new tab). To finish my degree, I will student teach and complete my research project. I am thankful to the Georgia Museum of Art for giving me a plethora of knowledge that I will be armed with to hopefully enter the museum education field when I graduate in 2023.
Stepping into Gabby’s shoes will be Chelsey Spencer, who begins work August 17. Spencer is an art history master’s student studying Russian art with Dr. Kirin. She received her bachelor’s degree in art history and psychology at Salem College, North Carolina, where she wrote her senior thesis on Russian architecture under Peter the Great and Catherine the Great. She hopes to use her language skills to assist with and learn more about the Russian collection at our museum.
