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Category: Tufts Program (Page 13 of 13)

Capturing Community Opens Today!

Please think fondly today of your fellow students in the exhibitions class as they iron out last-minute details for their exhibition opening tonight. They’ve put in a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to bring this wonderful collection of photographs to the Tufts Art Gallery. (Well, we hope not too much blood. Or any, really.)

If you have any time at all free tonight, please swing by the exhibit opening – 5:30 to 8:30 tonight, with a gallery talk by artist Markham Starr at 6:00.

We’ve blogged about all of this before, so go and read up in our previous posts if you’d like.

Exhibit Opening: Capturing Community

The exhibit opening for Capturing Community: Farming, Fishing, and Canning in New England is just two weeks from today!

So the answer to the question, hm, I wonder what I’m doing on Tuesday, May 10, from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. is “I’ll be at the Tufts University Art Gallery, eating good food, listening to a great gallery talk by artist Markham Starr, and generally admiring all the brilliant work by my friends in the Exhibition Design class.”

Not that you need any more reasons to celebrate the end of the semester!

PS – More info about the Tufts Art Gallery here.

PPS – Follow along at the exhibit’s Facebook page, too.

PPPS – Just in case you’re the kind of museum geek who likes to come prepared, you can read about artist Markham Starr ahead of time.

Save the Date – Opening Reception for “Capturing Community”

Save the Date: Opening Reception of Capturing Community: Farming, Fishing, and Canning in New England

Tufts University Art Gallery, Aidekman Arts Center

Tuesday, May 10, 5:30 – 8:00 pm, and with a gallery talk by Markham Starr at 6 pm

Black-and-white photographs by Starr document dairy farming in Connecticut, trap fishing off the coast of Rhode Island, and the now-closed Stinson Seafood Cannery in Maine. Curated by students in the Tufts Museum Studies graduate program, the photographs portray not only the daily mechanics of work in three industries, but also the relationships and traditions that made them important in the lives of those who work there and to the region as a whole. Various economic and legislative pressures have contributed to the decline of these traditional New England livelihoods and Starr’s photographs capture what may by the last vestiges of once-booming industries.

Motivated by a desire to document slices of New England life before they’re gone, Starr spends time getting to know his subjects and their daily routines-from sardine packers whose decades-long friendships help them work together faster and more efficiently, to close-knit dairy farming communities connected by family ties and common business interests, to trap fishermen following in the wake of generations-old traditions. “In fifty or a hundred years people will want to see how these fishermen worked, how sardines were canned, or what dairy farms looked like. Having the images out there is a way of helping these traditions survive,” Starr says. “I want to show that these are things worth saving.”

For directions and other general information call the Tufts University Art Gallery at 617-627-3518 or visit http://artgallery@tufts.edu. The Tufts University Art Gallery is located in the Aidekman Arts Center, 40R Talbot Road, Medford, MA 02155.

The Tufts University Art Gallery animates the intellectual life of the greater University community through exhibitions and programs exploring new, global perspectives on art and on art discourse. The Gallery is fully accessible and admission is free ($3 suggested donation). Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11-5 & Thursdays until 8pm. During regular visitor hours, there are free visitor parking spots in the Gallery parking lot behind the Aidekman Arts Center, off Lower Campus Road.

Want to write for this blog?

We always welcome new voices from the Tufts Museum Studies community – students, instructors, alumni, and even some guest postings! Here’s a list of some possible ideas for posts, but we’re pretty flexible overall. If you have an idea that isn’t listed here, go ahead and pitch it!

Send posts, or ideas for posts, to Amanda Gustin: amanda.gustin[at]tufts[dot]edu.

Possible Ideas for Posts

1. Career Conversations – Find someone who has the job you want. Go interview them. Write up a summary for us.

2. Conference Panel Reviews – Did you have a great time at NEMA? AAM? Another museum conference? Write all about it!

3. Book Reviews – Did you just finish a great book that has brilliant ideas for museums? Or the exact opposite? Write a few paragraphs about your thoughts.

4. My Favorite Museum – What’s your favorite museum in the whole world? Why is it your favorite? Tell us!

5. Museum Profiles – Did you visit somewhere new and interesting? Give us some basic details, your favorite bits, your least favorite bits. Use this as an exercise to help develop your critical eye.

6. Exhibition Reviews – From the MFA’s big splashy exhibitions to a new display case at your local historical society, we want to hear what you thought. Does it work? Why or why not? We don’t need the most elaborate essay ever, just your impressions and ideas.

7. The Future of Museums – Have something you’d like to get off your chest? Maybe something more museums should or shouldn’t be doing? Vent here!

8. Museums in the News – We’re always happy for elaboration on any of the (many) issues that come up in the news each week about museums. Or you could just call our attention to an article that you think should be highlighted.

9. Professional Development Ideas – Have you attended a class or seminar that you found really useful? See something upcoming that you’d love to attend? Give us the heads up!

10. My Internship – Write us a few paragraphs about your internship – where you were, what you did, and how it helped you as a museum professional. It would be great to build up a whole gallery of the awesome things that Tufts students are doing out there in the world.

Guidelines: This is a blog, not an academic review! Write informally, succinctly, and interestingly. Think about what you’d say in a conversation with your friends – then just write it down. You don’t have to sweat over it and revise it a dozen times – though you should give it the once-over before sending it in, and we’ll offer some editing advice if you’d like.

So, send away! Once again, any submissions to: amanda.gustin[at]tufts[dot]edu.

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