Behind the Scenes at the Museum

Collections Assistant Mary Katherine Scott documents one of the many pieces being added to the Art Museum collection

There are many projects that happen behind the scenes at the Art Museum.  Whether it's a professional photographer coming in to photograph works from the permanent collection and organizing those digital files, or a student intern cataloging publications in the Resource Room, the Art Museum gets a lot of help in many different places.  All of these projects and jobs help make the resources we have more available, and often times contribute directly to getting an upcoming exhibition ready to go.

One of those jobs has been processing the John and Pam Finley Collection, a long term loan to the UW Art Museum.  The Finley Collection consists of almost 115 masks, wooden figures, textiles, staffs, and weapons from all over Africa, as well as almost 50 examples of African American folk art from the southern United States.  A selection of pieces from the Finley Collection will be on exhibit starting in June of this year.  Assistant Mary Katherine Scott has been down in the collections area for the past few months, filling out vital paperwork that helps document and track each piece.  In addition, Scott will process a 2011 donation by The Salgo Trust for Education of 68 artifacts from Papua New Guinea.  A number of these artifacts were included in the recent exhibit Journeys along the Sepik River: Tribal Art from Papua New Guinea, which was on view in the summer of 2012.

The Art Museum is a busy place beyond what you see in the galleries, but it makes it all worthwhile when a great exhibition comes together!