"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it -- Aristotle."

Meg moved back to the midwest as part of the requirement in her graduate program at the Universiteit Maastricht (Masters in Arts and Heritage). She needs to work/document in an internship - and she was accepted at the Art Institute of Chicago in the Department of Exhibition (well I think it is there). So here are some random pictures. Starting with Shane at my office, Jon and Nita in Chicago, the famous yellow boots, and loads of other images.

Special links: Meg's First Day at the Art Institute.

Dad Visits Meg, March 21, at the Art Institute.
















Click to see a large image.





Meg's First Day
Click here to see a larger version of Meg's First Day
The automatic tray belt, taking my tray away to get clean :-)  I looked super cool picking my tray up and re-placing it on the belt and re-posiotioning it so i could get a good pic. Here I am, working. Please note that I've got a highlighter in my hand, and I'm 'highlighting'  a piece of paper with a picture on it....hehehe.

End of first day.

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Really cool lettuce leaf Nita got today at Whole Foods. Mom, you might know what it is. I asked her, but I forgot.


Shot of my coat and boots before taking them home for the weekend....they worked hard our first week of internship. I'm really eager to get to work, so I'm always the first one there. I use my free time to take very useful and important photos.


Nita's little friend, Cy, came with us to the Garfield Park Observatory. I know what you're thinking, and the answer is 'yes.' They did in fact name the park after me. The greenhouses were super fun! Cy and I looked for the monkeys, we decided they were hiding. (Editor's note: Wait. I see two. Oh, never mind.)

 

On Valentine's day Nita made a traditional Venezualan dinner, Yum!! At Union Station, waiting for my bus to visit Carly. Archiving ...

Archiving...
Back in Dubuque. Carly made a gorgeous dinner, and I put on an apron and pretended to help.




I've been working at archiving 5 past exhibitions. I write down all the folder titles, and then type them into the digital database. Fun.
More archiving ..

.
Faye Wrubel, head conservator, restoring a Rousseau, "The Waterfall". Everyone thought the sky was a merky green, but Faye's restoration proved the sky to be a brillant blue!

 Her tools ...
View of Modern Wing construction.


 Proof reading the Kimbell catalogue, a series of works owned by AIC, being lent out while work on the Modern Wing is completed.

A Day (a Spring Afternoon) in the Life of Meg, the Intern,
at the Art Institute of Chicago: March 21, 2008


I drove in, parked, got into the Museum and then called Meg from the Member's Lounge.
Nasty snowy day but beautiful in the Lounge.


There's our girl with her official ID.


The guy in charge of the lounge took our picture.This is nice, but I wanted a tour...


Picassos and Leger room. Meg said she took pictures of a number of these works for the new wing.


I don't remember seeing these small Miros, but Meg knew alot about them.


Magrittes and a 1937 Dali. By this time, Meg was attracting a number of people; they thought she was
going to be giving a lecture, I think. So I asked one guy to take our picture.


Probably the most famous/recognizable picture at the AIC, Seurat's Sunday Afternoon at the Island
of Le Grand Jatte from c. 1887.French-type girl in front of French-type painting. Meg said that this
picture has never been conserved.


In the Impressionst room, with Monet's paintings and a sculpture by Rodin.


In the older building, the famous stairs.


View of the main door on Michigan Avenue.


Past the partition and we were in part of the "redo galleries". New paint. Not grey, not green. Definite green base.


Meg's work area. I needed to sign in and get an ID. This area is where the Director, Curators,
Conservators and staff - the brains of the AIC - are.


"Walk this way", she says.


We walk quietly down the hall. Faye's conservation lab is at the end of the hall.


Here is Meg's office, actually the office of a curator. Lately, she has been working on archiving information
on the AIC's modern collection for its eventual display in the new wing.


Jill Shaw on the left, a researcher. In black is Jennifer Paoletti, the woman Meg answers to.


Meg in Jennifer's office. She was very, very warm and positive about their work in general and Meg's work in particular.


Enough with the tour, let's eat. Meg took me to the cafeteria.


Simple and good chef salad. Can you see the 6 inches of snow that fell on March 21?


Laurence, a guard, I imagine. Very nice and so positive about Meg. Lively guy.


That's it. That was my tour. It was about 4pm and time for me to go. The guard took the picture.
Thanks, Meg, for letting me come up and hang out for a while.

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I went on a tour Faye was giving about pieces she's conserved.

Me doing research for Jennifer in the book stacks.

Me doing research for Jennifer in the book stacks. More.

My friend Jess visited the weekend of St. Patty's Day.

Becky, Jess, and I visited the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, it's on the south shore of lake Michigan, home to the largest fastest moving dune.

The dune.

The dune moves an average of 4ft. a year!

More dunes.

Dunes.

Dunes.

On top the Sears Tower.

Riding the elevator made our ears pop. Great visit, thanks Jess!!