Georgia Museum of Art Annual Report July 1, 2012–June 30, 2013 FY13: A LOOK BACK One of the brightest spots of FY13 was the On October 22, the museum celebrated inaugural UGA Spotlight on the Arts, a nine-day its official reaccreditation by the American festival held November 3–11, highlighting visual, Alliance of Museums (formerly the American performing, and literary arts all over campus, Association of Museums). Although the in which the museum participated eagerly. The museum is usually closed on Mondays, it was vision of vice-provost Libby Morris, the festival open to the public for the day. AAM director was planned by the UGA Arts Council, of which Ford Bell attended the event and spoke about museum director William U. Eiland is a member, the museum, followed by an ice cream social. and its subsidiary public relations arm (at Less than 5 percent of American museums are which Michael Lachowski and Hillary Brown accredited, and the process is not a simple one. represented the museum). The festival attracted Reaccreditation is a lengthy process, involving great attendance, especially from students, and a self-study that the museum worked on for demonstrated the administration’s commitment several years and a site visit lasting several days, to making the arts an essential part of the during which AAM representatives toured the university experience. Later in the fiscal year, the facility from top to bottom, met with university Arts Council began working on a strategic plan, upper administration, and interviewed staff with brainstorming meetings held by both the members, volunteers, students, and patrons of executive and PR committees in the museum’s the museum. first-floor education space. In December, cameras went live in the As part of this spirit of collegiality, we galleries that warned patrons who came too close worked with the UGA Performing Arts Center to works of art with a chime. to feature works from the museum’s permanent January brought both Elegant Salute, collection on its program covers and to establish which featured the return of DJ duo Krush a new event: Make It an Evening, as part of Girls to Athens, and the Georgia Association which the museum was open from 6 to 8 p.m. of Museums and Galleries conference, in rapid before certain events at the PAC, with coffee and succession, leading to a full house and a busy cakes available for $5 and free gallery tours. staff. Several staff members left over the course In February, the expanded Classic Center of the year, whether for well-earned retirement opened in downtown Athens, with a gala event or to pursue other positions. Marge Massey, that highlighted three local tourist attractions, business manager, retired in September and was one of which was the museum. replaced by Lisa Conley in January. New ones In March, The Links, Incorporated, held joined us, too: Joan Tkacs and Benjamin Ray its annual fundraiser at the museum as part of a worked part-time as research assistants in the fruitful partnership that continues to develop. director’s office; Jessica Walker was hired as a UGA President Michael Adams temporary employee to work on the collections announced his retirement effective at the end of database project; Amy Smoler was hired as a FY13, and the museum participated along with scheduler and education assistant. many other campus entities in wishing him well The museum’s Board of Advisors met at and in welcoming new president Jere Morehead. the museum on October 9 and January 18, with The museum took the opportunity to a trip to Yale University in April. refinish the floors in the Lamar Dodd Gallery Board chair and patron Carl Mullis made at the end of April, which had not been redone sure that the Folk Art Society of America, which after the expansion and renovation in 2011. held its annual conference in Atlanta, took a day May had the museum saying goodbye trip to Athens in October to view the museum’s to Paul Manoguerra, chief curator and curator holdings of works by self-taught artists. of American art, who left to take a position 2 Georgia Museum of Art | Annual Report, 2012–2013 as the director of the Jundt Art Museum at May also included a one-day symposium Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. organized with the participation of Dale Couch An impressive number of people turned out at and UGA professor Valerie Babb, devoted to the a farewell party that featured a cake created by slave ship Wanderer, held in the museum’s M. security guard Cristina Figueroa in the shape of Smith Griffith Auditorium. a McRib sandwich. Museum Attendance Changes, FY12 to FY13 Month Attendance FY12 Attendance FY13 Percentage Change July (2011/2012) 5,085 5,250 + 3.2% August (2011/2012) 5,301 5,487 + 3.5% September (2011/2012) 5,751 6,500 + 13% October (2011/2012) 5,893 8,356 + 41.8% November (2011/2012) 4,953 6,716 + 35.6% December (2011/2012) 3,124 3,129 + 0.2% January (2012/2013) 4,401 8,402 + 90.9% February (2012/2013) 6,875 6,906 + 0.4% March (2012/2013) 5,666 8,794 + 55.2% April (2012/2013) 5,545 7,093 + 27.9% May (2012/2013) 4,349 5,415 + 24.5% June (2012/2013) 3,944 5,416 + 37.3% Total 61,247 77,573 + 26.6% 3 Georgia Museum of Art | Annual Report, 2012–2013 MEMBERSHIPS AND PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS • American Alliance of Museums (AAM): Carissa DiCindio (EdCom), William U. Eiland, Tricia Miller, Annelies Mondi, Melissa Rackley, Todd Rivers, Christy Sinksen, Laura Valeri • American Association of Museums–Registrars’ Committee: Tricia Miller, Annelies Mondi, Christy Sinksen • Art Art Zine Editorial Board: Lynn Boland • Art Libraries Society of North America: Dale L. Couch, Lucy Rowland • Association of Art Museum Directors: William U. Eiland • Association of College and University Museums and Galleries: William U. Eiland • Association of Historians of American Art: Paul Manoguerra • Athens Area Arts Council: Lynn Boland, Amy Miller • Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau Advisory Board: Hillary Brown, Michael Lachowski • Athens Historical Society: Betty Alice Fowler (secretary) • Charleston Antiques Forum advisory board: Dale L. Couch • Church-Waddel-Brumby House advisory board: Dale L. Couch • College Art Association: Lynn Boland, Paul Manoguerra • Georgia Art Education Association: Carissa DiCindio, Melissa Rackley • Georgia Association of Museums and Galleries: Lynn Boland, Dale L. Couch, Carissa DiCindio (board member and education representative, 2009–14; host representative for the GAMG conference, 2013), William U. Eiland, Annelies Mondi, Cecelia Warner • Georgia Museum Educators Association: Carissa DiCindio • Historic Heartland Travel Association: Michael Lachowski • Journal of Early Southern Decorative Arts editorial board: Dale L. Couch • Museum Education Roundtable: Carissa DiCindio • Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts board: Dale L. Couch • Museum Store Association: Amy Miller • National Art Education Association: Carissa DiCindio, Melissa Rackley • National Association of Museum Exhibitors: Todd Rivers • Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation Board of Directors: Lynn Boland • Packing, Art Handling, and Crating Information Network: Todd Rivers • Society for Science, Literature, and the Arts: Lynn Boland • Southeast Association of Museum Directors: William U. Eiland • Southeast College Art Conference: William U. Eiland, Paul Manoguerra • Southeastern Museums Conference: Lynn Boland (programming committee), William U. Eiland, Paul Manoguerra, Tricia Miller, Annelies Mondi, Sarina Rousso, Christy Sinksen • Southeastern Registrars’ Association: Tricia Miller, Annelies Mondi, Sarina Rousso, Christy Sinksen • Taylor Grady House Museum board: Dale L. Couch 4 Georgia Museum of Art | Annual Report, 2012–2013 CONFERENCE ATTENDANCE • American Alliance of Museums annual meeting, Baltimore, Maryland, May 19–22, 2013: Carissa DiCindio, Tricia Miller, Melissa Rackley • Art Beyond Sight, Multimodal Approaches to Learning Conference, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, October 26–28, 2012: Melissa Rackley • Art Libraries Society of North America, Southeastern Chapter, location?, November ??, 2012: Tricia Miller (served on panel “Moving House: Relocating and Dealing with Change”) • Georgia Art Education Association, Valdosta, Georgia, November 1–4, 2012: Carissa DiCindio (presented “An Examination of the Experiences of University Students in Their University Art Museum through Dialogue and Peer Learning,” part of the higher education division session “Graduate Research Seminar”) • Georgia Association of Museums and Galleries Conference, Athens, Georgia, January 25–27, 2013: Carissa DiCindio (presented “Visual Literacy Seminar”), Melissa Rackley (presented “How To Engage and Motivate Volunteers”) • Georgia Museum Educator Meeting, Athens, Georgia: Carissa DiCindio (presenter and moderator of panel, “Working with University Audiences”) • Patience Russell Peterson Seminar for Museum Educators at Georgia College and State University, Milledgeville, Georgia, March 22, 2013: Carissa DiCindio, Melissa Rackley • Museum Store Association annual conference, Los Angeles, California, April 13–15, 2013: Amy Miller • Southeastern Museums Conference annual meeting, Williamsburg, Virginia, November 7–9, 2012: Lynn Boland, William U. Eiland, Paul Manoguerra, Tricia Miller, Christy Sinksen, Sarina Rousso • Teaching Museums in the 21st Century: Moving Our Practice Forward, Dartmouth College: Carissa DiCindio (received travel scholarship) AWARDS • Award for Distinguished Service to Museums, American Alliance of Musems, William U. Eiland • Best in Show, Southeastern Museums Conference