Five SI students spent Alternative Spring Break in Queens at P.S.1, Contemporary Art Center . P.S.1 was preparing to launch the biggest show in their history called Greater New York 2005, where new work by over 160 artists was being catalogued and set up inside their facilities. The students gained a greater understanding of inner workings of a non-collecting museum and had the opportunity to use some of their skills to help organize both new information flowing into the organization for the show, as well as some archived materials. 

The students felt welcomed by the staff, especially the site supervisor, who made sure everyone was having a meaningful experience. They also had a chance to explore Long Island City , making sure to visit the newly built pier with a fantastic view of the Manhattan skyline, as well as visit some interesting exhibitions at the Sculpture Center . The students also all received an intern pass which enabled them to go to MoMA for free and to get discounts on purchases in the MoMA stores. At the end of the week, the site supervisor bought everyone lunch in the P.S.1 café and sat for an hour discussing their backgrounds, interests and their week-long experience.

Gwen Amsbury spent the week with the installations department and doing some work for the curatorial department. She created an A/V inventory spreadsheet and started a lender list database for the curators. She also had the opportunity to help some artists set up artwork for the show as it came into the facility.

Nicole Cho & Kathryn Stine worked with the curatorial department to gather metadata about artists’ works to create a database for the labels for each piece of artwork in the show. They also worked to gather information for the exhibition catalogue. By the end of the week, they had created labels for over half the works included in the show.

                  

Jonathan James spent the week helping to organize and create a spreadsheet of “back-catalogues” from previous shows. He also had a chance to help an artist install her mural on the wall. He spoke with various staff members within the organization making suggestions on improvements regarding databases, tutorials and web applications.

Olga Khroustaleva worked closely with the registrar to help organize information and maintain the flow of artwork into the building for the upcoming exhibition.
                  

What the students had to say:

“[My experience] helped reinforce my belief that there are more organizations that need some sort of “info professional.”

“We got to see the Director of MoMA wander through the halls of P.S.1.”

“…it was a lot of fun! I wish I could [have been] there for the opening!”

“Our supervisor was fantastic…[he] was supportive and encouraging and never missed an opportunity to let us know how we were doing.”

“I passed John Lithgow in a crosswalk!”

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