From Duchamp to Diamond Dust: My Research at the Warhol

Museum Studies Intern at The Andy Warhol Museum - Spring 2016

I’m currently a Curatorial Intern at the Andy Warhol Museum. My official job description entails assisting the Associate Curator, Ms. Jessica Beck, with two upcoming exhibitions: Andy Warhol/Ai Weiwei, from June through August of 2016, and Andy Warhol: My Perfect Body, scheduled for later in the fall of 2016. ‘Assisting’ is quite a broad term, but as a whole, most of my work encompasses utilizing the library here as well as scholarly databases for research, namely on the biographies of artists involved in the exhibitions as well as their individual works of art and exhibition histories – needless to say, I’ve done a number of searches on Warhol.

Ultimately, my research is compiled into concrete documents for either the public or the curatorial department – I’ve written up bibliographies for exhibition research, wall texts, and the like. My current big project is working on a blog post - on Warhol’s ties to China and Chinese contemporary art - that will hopefully be published on the Warhol’s blog in tandem with the upcoming exhibition.

My experience as a whole has been absolutely inspiring so far. I love research, so getting to learn about Andy Warhol’s fascinating life has been a treat in itself, but beyond just that, the experience I’m getting here at the museum has only reaffirmed my love for both art history and museum studies. From running around the offices to waiting in line at the café to overseeing actual exhibitions being put together, my internship at the Warhol has given me a taste of what working in a museum environment (and an office!) is like, with all of its varied departments (that come together in the most excellent ways) and talented staff. I know that the skills I’ve learned – compiling exhibition materials, working with a varied staff, and powerwalking through the Cultural District to catch the bus on time – are all skills that I will utilize many more times in the future, and I’m grateful that I got the chance to learn so much here as well.

Working at the Warhol has been a humbling, inspiring, and incredibly rewarding experience. I haven’t got much time left here, but I know that there will be new projects for me to work on, and new things for me to learn about Warhol, his work, and his legacy even in this brief span left until the end of the term. If there’s anything that this internship isn’t, it’s unexciting!