For the past two months, since I’ve last posted, we’ve all worked
together on preparing for the upcoming exhibition. As an assistant to
both curatorial and community engagement, I’m in a wonderful position to help connect the two areas. With Gordon Matta-Clark’s work, art and community more than overlap—they blend seamlessly.

Specifically, I’ve helped Lisa, our Manager of Community Engagement,
prepare for events that explore and celebrate the social aspects of
Matta-Clark’s work. For example, we’re talking about ways to highlight
Matta-Clark’s interest in food and cooking (he helped found a New York
City restaurant called Food in 1971), and how to integrate culinary
arts into our programming. Research has been tasty, to say the least.

I’ve also assisted with some of the content that could make its way
into the catalog. Matta-Clark was a very comfortable, articulate
writer and interviewee, and we’ll have plenty of original quotes and
statements from the artist himself.

Overall, the curatorial and community engagement departments have been quite busy and very exciting. I’m looking forward to seeing what other ways the two will connect over the next few months.

Returning to the Pulitzer Foundation feels like coming home. For two years I worked as a Gallery Assistant here, and now I’m glad to be back as an administrative assistant in the curatorial and community engagement areas. My first two weeks have been surprisingly smooth, thanks to the great staff and exciting stuff that’s always going on around the offices (including cookies-thanks, Lisa!).

Before I accepted this position, I had signed up as a volunteer docent for the Exploring Art program. Through the program, we hope participants will relax and have meaningful experiences with the artwork and each other. We, as docents, are responsible for facilitating honest and dynamic conversations in the galleries, inspired by the exhibition. Last Friday was our first training session, and I’m already excited about getting started with our groups.

The best part about working at the Pulitzer (besides the amazing staff, being surrounded by artwork, the location, our visitors, etc.) is that I get to put my coursework to good use. I graduated from UMSL’s Museum Studies program in May and feel fortunate to work in an innovative institution that’s constantly rethinking education, curatorship, and the relationship between art and community.