In 1974 when I was an MFA candidate in studio art I noticed many
newly graduated colleagues not getting jobs teaching art in the
university setting. That is when I decided to see if the Sheldon
Memorial Art Gallery on campus needed a grad assistant thinking that
museum work might be just as rewarding. They did and for the next two
years I worked there and learned a great deal from the staff. I
graduated in May of '76 and immediately went to work at the Kentucky
Arts Commission running a traveling exhibition service. Since then I
have worked in museums and galleries and slowly moved into the
position I now have as Director of the University of Mississippi
Museum and Historic Houses.
It is unusual for a working artist to be in my current position,
typically it is held by a Ph.D. and I would say that that degree is
now almost a requirement to work in an academic museum at the upper
levels of staff. An MFA, while a terminal degree, is not what the
typical academic museum today looks for. If I was starting out today
I would study the discipline that interested me and, at some point,
get formal training in museum studies. My learn as you go system
would be difficult to achieve today.
This career has been rewarding and exciting and I encourage my
students to consider it as a possible path for their future. I will
be retiring in the next few years and a slot will open for someone
interested in preservation, collections, interpretation, and
providing learning opportunities for people.
--
Albert Sperath, Director
(Mail to)
University Museum and Historic Houses
The University of Mississippi
PO Box 1848
University MS 38677-1848
662-915-7073
Fax 662-915 7035
Physical Address
University Avenue and Fifth Street
Oxford MS 38655
http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/u_museum/
Confidentiality Statement:
The electronic mail message you have received and any files attached
and transmitted are intended solely for the proper addressee(s) and
may be legally privileged and/or contain confidential information. If
you have received this email in error, please delete it and all other
copies from your system without reading the contents or opening the
attachments, destroy any hard copies that may have been printed, and
notify the sender so that no further mail or information will be
directed to you. Any unauthorized use, copying, forwarding,
printing, or otherwise disclosing the email contents, attachments, or
information contained herein may be unlawful. If you have received
this communication in error, please contact Albert Sperath.
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