FALL/WINTER 2016 President Begins, I’D Like to Share Forward to Working with You, As Also in This Issue
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Each day since taking up my duties, I‘ve learned about many more of you. LIFE, LOVE, DEATH Whether you’ve been volunteering THE BALLANTINES since the 1980s or longer, or whether ...Page 2 you are one of the new volunteers who’ve recently joined our ranks, you bring the same something special to the Museum: a depth and breadth of experience and enthusiasm that is truly awe-inspiring! NATIVE ARTISTS Prudence Bradley, As the Newark Museum OF NORTH AMERICA NMVO President undergoes some changes, the next two years will be a ...Page 3 particularly exciting time to his fall 2016, the NMVO volunteer. This winter and coming president’s gavel spring, construction will begin T passed from Brenda to relocate some galleries and Jackson to me. Under Brenda’s to reopen the main Washington CHIEF CURATOR steady leadership, we developed Street entrance. ULYSSES DIETZ and implemented a host of It will also be a challenging time. ON eMUSEUM new initiatives that will keep us So, more than ever, the Museum growing, both as a group and as will rely on us to give our ...Page 5 individuals. The NMVO Board singular style of support to its and I thank Brenda for a job programs and events. well done. This is a challenge you are all As my two-year term as NMVO well-equipped to meet. I look FALL/WINTER 2016 President begins, I’d like to share forward to working with you, as Also in this issue... a little about myself. I began together, we ensure that the volunteering in the Education Museum continues to thrive. HOT, HOTTER, Department in September —Prudence HOTTEST ....................... 08 2013. Before that I worked in Pharmaceutical Research and Development for about 20 years. P.S. The NMVO Annual Tea will be DOCENT'S CHOICE......09 Prior to that I was an educator and held May 16, 2017. The Tea committee is looking for volunteers to help education supervisor with the New with the event. If you are interested, AWARDS.........................11 York State Office for People with please email the NMVO Developmental Disabilities. at [email protected]. newarkmuseum.org LIFE, LOVE, DEATH NEWARK MUSEUM STAFF The Ballantines Long-term Installation Steven Kern Director & Chief Executive Oficer Deborah Kasindorf Deputy Director of Institutional Advancement Shunzyu Haigler Director of Membership Services Leland Byrd Membership Associate VOLUNTEER OFFICERS Prudence Bradley President Gwynne McConkey Secretary Arlene Gerencser Treasurer Brenda Jackson Past President eer built this house. One child found happiness here. One child found tragedy here. A half-century before becoming Hugh Michael Brown part of the Newark Museum complex, this National Historic Volunteer Vistas Editor B Landmark mansion was home to one of the country's most important beer dynasties. Through new interactive galleries, discover what really happened here during the Gilded Age. NMVO MISSION Above Left: Facade of Ballantine House. Above Right: Jeanette Ballantine, her daughter Alice Isabel Young, and her granddaughter, Alice Young Lindabury, ca. 1905. The primary purpose of the Newark Below: The Ballantine family on a picnic ca. 1890-95. Editor's Note: Volunteer Vistas Museum Volunteer Organization is thanks Ulysses Grant Dietz, Chief Curator and Curator of Decorative Arts, for this to serve, to support and to interpret article. the Newark Museum and its goals through volunteer participation. In the words of founding director John Cotton Dana, “A good mu- seum attracts, entertains, arouses curiosity, leads to questioning— and thus promotes learning.” DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS TO THE SPRING 2017 VOLUNTEER VISTAS IS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2017. SEND SUBMISSIONS TO: Hugh Michael Brown, Volunteer Vistas Editor, at: [email protected] 2 | VOLUNTEER VISTAS Fall/Winter 2016 NATIVE ARTISTS OF NORTH AMERICA Long-term Installation Diné (Navajo) artist, Arizona or New Mexico, Blanket, late 19th century. Wool, 49 ¼ x 34 ¾ in., Gift of Mrs. Herbert Michael Wilson, 1942 42.302 his fall 2016, the Newark Museum unveiled its newly redesigned, reinterpreted Native American galleries. Featuring more than 100 Tobjects from throughout the United States and Awa Tsireh (Alfonso Roybal), Canada, Native Artists of North America San Ildefonso Pueblo, New Mexico. Bird, ca. 1930. showcases an exciting selection of works from Watercolor and black ink the permanent collection, dating from the early on paper, 14 1/16 x 11 1/16 19th century to the present, including many in. Gift of Amelia Elizabeth objects never exhibited before. White, 1937 37.224 Among the works on view are expertly woven Pomo baskets, exquisite hand-made items of dress from across the continent, and Southwestern pottery and textiles. Other highlights include works by the Haida master carver, Charles Edenshaw and Pueblo painters Tsimshian artist, Fred Kabotie, Tonita Peña and Awa Tsireh. In British Columbia. adjacent galleries, American artists have been Chief’s Headdress installed, including recent acquisitions by Jeffrey Frontlet, 19th century. Wood, paint, and Gibson and Preston Singletary. This permanent abalone shell, 8 ½ x installation celebrates the great diversity of 8 x 5 ½ in. Gift of Dr. styles, media and creativity of Native artists William S. Disbrow, 1919 19.775 and places them in the broader context of American art. newarkmuseum.org | 3 MUSEUM STAFF PROFILES Leland Byrd, Heidi Warbasse, Membership Associate Database Administrator eland Byrd became Membership eidi Warbasse 's career allows her to Associate in April 2014. She combine her technical skills and love of art. L says, “My job is a mix of customer H She began as a volunteer doing database service, administrative work, and event entry in 2000 and became fulltime Database planning. I tend to member inquires and Administrator in the Registrar’s department in beneit fulillment, in addition to assisting 2004. Her work involves updating ARGUS, the with projects relating to membership and management system that tracks the cataloguing, volunteers.” location, condition and activity information about all the objects in the Museum’s collection. She continues, “I’ve been working with the Information Technology (IT) staff members Says Heidi, “My long term project has been putting to eficiently integrate two new softwares a subset of the collection data and images into into the Membership department’s day-to- eMuseum, which is a mini online searchable day functions. I have also trained other staff database, accessible on the Newark Museum’s to use the new softwares. Other aspects of website. Right now we have nearly 8,000 objects my job include preparing for our Annual Hot in eMuseum and that number continually grows. Chili and Cool Brew event, bringing back Thanks to the internet, now the whole world gets to our MuseumKids program, and helping to see highlights of our superb collection.” plan Members’ Openings and Members’ Mornings whenever new exhibits open and She continues, “Having been able to train more during the holiday season.” She ended than 150 staff members, interns and volunteers is saying, “I am quite proud of having learned the favorite aspect of my job. Training improves two new systems and of having trained accuracy. Without accuracy a database is useless. others to use them. This would not have Plus, witnessing that “aha moment” when a new been possible without support from our user gets what I do is so very rewarding and fun." amazing staff and volunteers.” 4 | VOLUNTEER VISTAS Fall/Winter 2016 VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT olunteer Spotlight articles help volunteers learn a bit more about each other. Here is an informative excerpt about the volunteer experience V of Amy Hopwood, and also a quote from Chief Curator and Curator of Decorative Arts, Ulysses Grant Dietz, relating to Amy's eMuseum assignment. card catalog, object iles, Chief Curator Dietz continues, research and publication "The challenge of eMuseum is history—updating the ARGUS one of staff resources. Before any system when necessary. object can be put on eMuseum, the ARGUS records (our database) Once my work is checked, need to be checked, standardized Heidi uploads the appropriate and corrected. We also need to have ARGUS information to the a presentable image of the object Museum’s eMuseum.” (not necessarily book-quality, but good enough that we’re not going to Amy adds, “Only a fraction be embarrassed by it!). If no image of the collections are on exists, it either needs to be taken, or display or on eMuseum. I an older printed image scanned. my Hopwood am honored to help increase Finding staff resources to do this is graduated from that number piece by piece. And, as I help current and not easy. Amy Hopwood (as have A Amherst College, past volunteers) has been working future curators, docents, and where she majored in Fine on my collections—focusing on the Arts, studying art history, with researchers understand the objects that are in or are going to be a focus on costume and social collections, I also build on my in exhibitions on my schedule. This history. She holds a Masters knowledge.” is a huge help, but of course it only degree from the University of offers limited scope. Delaware and was the Curator For example, Amy worked on for Costumes and Textiles CHIEF CURATOR at the San Diego Historical the New Jersey ceramics gallery Society from 1993 to 1997. ULYSSES DIETZ content that opened this fall: COMMENTS ON about 100 objects made in New Jersey. Thing is, our New Jersey She began volunteering in eMUSEUM ceramics collection numbers a the curatorial department couple thousand objects, so even in April 2015, assisting with all her help, our eMuseum "The aim of the eMuseum Chief Curator and Curator representation will not fully relect the of Decorative Arts Ulysses project is to get as much of scope and scale of our New Jersey Grant Dietz and Database our global collection (some ceramics—much less the rest of Administrator Heidi Warbasse 130,000 objects) online as our global ceramic holdings.