Date: Tue, 22 May 2001 12:12:51 -0400
From: Cynthia Hoover <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Using Your Art for the Museum World
Dear Listers:
We have a volunteer at our Museum who has offered her well-above average
artistic abilities to our exhibits, from murals, paintings, backgrounds,
signs, etc.  She wants to know how to get paid for her work (it never
fails--all the good ones want to move onward and upward, and alas, we are
sooo poor!).   So, all you artsy exhibit-type people out there, what kind
of training did you get before you got your job?  Did it include museum
specific training?   And, is there a need for a consulting/contract type
situation, especially for smaller institutions which may not be able to
have someone on staff permanently.


Dear listers:
        I have to say right out that I am committed to paying people for
what they do and for rewarding good work with a decent wage.  In Virginia
we've been faced with massive state cutbacks and I regret that many smaller
institutions have responded by cutting staff salaries or doubling up on
responsibilities.  It is incumbent upon senior staff to raise the funds
necessary for operations.  If those funds can't be raised, then programs
should be cut, not positions.
        Aside from this rather political response, I can suggest that the
volunteer might want to attempt to tie some compensation to a particular
exhibition.  In other words, if there isn't funding for a position, the
museum (or the volunteer in the name of the museum) might be able to raise
funding for a particular exhibition via grants or local community support.
Built in to the cost of the exhibition should be a contract fee for her
work as curator, designer, fabrication, installation, whatever.
        From your description, it doesn't sound as if this person needs
training, she is already doing a bang-up job.  If there is training needed,
it is on behalf of whoever raises money to support the operations of your
museum.
        Regarding consulting/contract situations: three years ago I set up
a museum consulting firm to address what I perceived to be a need among
small museums.  While I have plenty of work, it hasn't been on the
exhibition side (which was my original plan).  Originally, I circulated 4
exhibitions in these 3 years and it was tough going to make each one pay
for itself as well as pay me.  I found that just as often, I would propose
an exhibition, develop it to the point of "selling" the idea to an
institution, only to find the exhibition-or a similar one-organized by the
very museum I pitched it to!  While larger museums can't get away with
this, smaller museums sometimes put ethics below the bottom line.
        I am afraid that I've raised more issues than answers here, but
sometimes the solution to an immediate problem is systematic rather than
immediate.
        Anna Fariello

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anna Fariello, Curatorial InSight, Box 505, Christiansburg VA 24068
www.curatorialinsight.com;  540-382-3946;  [log in to unmask]
Center for Interdisciplinary Studies, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg VA 24061-0227
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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