This last semester in DC has shaped how I think about art museums. Concerning my future before the semester, I pegged myself into a future profession in only social history museums. I never truly understood or was excited to go to art museums until this year. 

One of the first times that I got to go to an art museum and thoroughly enjoy my time there was in June when I was on a study abroad in London. We went to the National Gallery of Art, and I loved knowing the historical context of some pieces. I also enjoyed how the galleries were set up. 

That trip was also one of my first experiences with modern art. Before June, I had no interest in modern art. My class went to the Tate Modern in London and Meredith Shimizu gave us a small tour of one section. After that tour I explored a different thematic exhibition and got completely lost. It was an overwhelming experience, especially when I accidentally encountered Babel, a tower of radios that are all playing different frequencies. Even though it was overwhelming and scary, I loved the pieces that I saw, and they stuck with me. 

In Washington DC, I was placed at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the National Museum of Contemporary and Modern Art. At the start of my internship, I was nervous that my internship was going to be a complete waste because I was at a modern art museum. Over the course of my internship, I slowly gained a love and appreciation for modern art. This can be attributed to spending so much time in the museum thinking and talking about pieces and reading The Museum Effect. After reading different theories of how people interact with art in the book, I went to work and got recurring opportunities to observe how I and others interact with art. I thoroughly enjoy witnessing other people being impacted by art and now seek out opportunities to be impacted myself.

 Looking into my future I am still determined to work in museums, however the type of museum I’m interested in working in has expanded. I would love to work in a social history museum, however I can say confidently that I would love to work in an art museum.