The American Folk Art Museum is the premier institution devoted to the creative expressions of self-taught artists, past and present. Since 1961 the American Folk Art Museum has been shaping the understanding of art by the self-taught through its exhibitions, publications, and educational programs. As a center of scholarship and by showcasing the creativity of individuals whose singular talents have been refined through experience rather than formal artistic training, the museum considers the historical, social, and artistic context of American culture. Its collection includes more than seven thousand artworks dating from the eighteenth century to the present, from compelling portraits and dazzling quilts to powerful works by living self-taught artists in a variety of mediums.
The American Folk Art Museum Library and Archives
The American Folk Art Museum’s 1961 charter mandated the creation of a museum, library, and educational center and has since provided dedicated exhibition space for art by the self-taught and has also been a center for scholarship and education.
Spring 2016 American Folk Art Museum Library Internship:
The museum’s library and archives are non-circulating research collections providing comprehensive coverage in areas of primary interest to the museum. The library and archives are currently undergoing a major cataloging project and will be available to researchers by appointment at the forthcoming Library and Archives Study Center, which will open in winter 2016.
The American Folk Art Museum Library contains more than 10,000 volumes, including monographs and exhibition and auction catalogs, as well as substantial runs of nearly two hundred periodicals. It is a singular repository of scholarship in the field, unique in that its holdings include resources on both traditional folk art and art by the self-taught from the twentieth century to the present together under one roof.
The Collections and Education Center, located in Long Island City, Queens, houses the administrative offices, the art storage and the library and archives. The library still in the process of unpacking the collection and will soon have additional shelving and be able to complete the shelving of the remaining library materials.
Projects for Intern:
General Shelf Reading - This involves checking one shelf at a time and reading the call numbers to see that media are in the proper order. It will most likely include updating the online catalog.
Periodicals – Need to look at the periodicals on the shelves and create a list of volume/issue/date for each of the periodicals and enter the information in the AFAM library catalog (LibraryWorld).
Auction Catalogs – Many of the auction catalogs have not been entered into the online catalog…this is an opportunity to do some copy and original cataloging.
Oversized books - The books must be identified and relocated in one area on the shelves. The list of books must be checked with the online catalog and entries made in LibraryWorld to identify where the book is located.
There is also a possibility of working with the Archivist on projects.
Qualifications:
Familiarity with database procedures recommended. Preferred candidates will have completed at least one semester of graduate work in library studies. Interest in museum studies or art history would be a plus. The internship is unpaid but may be taken for course credit. The expected schedule is 1-2 days a week and must include a Monday.
To apply, please send a cover letter and resume to lmasarof@folkartmuseum.org.
To learn more about the American Folk Art Museum:
Visit our website at
http://folkartmuseum.org/ and find us on Facebook
