– When was the last time you worked on a hang off this scale?
“The only other time I’ve worked on a hang even close to this was in 2010 when we opened the new building. We reinstalled the entire building in six weeks. We’ve raised the bar a little with this project. We’re hanging everything we own in one gallery. It’s a tEAM effort. Everyone is helping. I’ve never worked with so many people hanging a show. On any given day you’ll find Josh, our director, Susan, our curator, Torie, our registrar, James, my fellow preparator, Courtney our intern, and my main man, Ron, plus four of five other volunteers who just stop by to help out. People just want to be a part of this. It’s cool.”
– What’s it like to see some of these pieces again?
“I’ve worked here for 22 years and was responsible for the collection for 14 of those years so I’ve seen nearly every single work that has come into the Museum during that time. Its been a very very long time since I’ve seen most of the works going up. It’s like seeing old friends. I am also particularly excited to hang the things that have never been on view before. Plus, I’m able to put some of my personal favorites with things and in places where I’ve always wanted to see them!”
– Anything surprise you about the installation?
“What surprised me was that we were going to hang from floor to ceiling. It’s similar to old-time Paris—salon-style. Plus, it’s something that other museums just don’t do. I love that we are putting it all out there. People are already walking in and mouthing ‘wow’. I think that’s a good sign.”
– What do you hope people take away from this show?
“I want people to see the tremendous variety in our collection. We have incredible diversity. It will definitely get people talking. I think that is what is so exciting about this project. To see people just walk in and start talking about what they like and what they don’t is something special. It’s like by doing this we’ve given people permission to have an opinion and told them it was ok to share it.”
