In my previous blog post on museum careers I discussed briefly how to get ahead in the museum world especially at a time when many museums are or have already cut staff. This is not to discourage you about the museum world just to bring reality into what can be a cut-throat industry for jobs! Read on for more practical advice for a career in museums.
So you fancy a career in museums? You just don’t want to me one of these lovely ladies above peering at the art but working with the art work? Read on for some seasoned advice from a museum career veteran (seriously though I’m not that old and have only been working in museums and heritage for ten years!)
As you may have guessed I love museums, art galleries, country houses etc. A lot. Like a whole heap of a lot. I make my living working in museums and heritage and as an historian of Irish dress. Naturally, I like to visit museums both at home and abroad both to fuel my love of museums as well as provide interesting reading matter for those interested in my blog.
Irish female historians have been making waves since the 19th century with historians such as Emily Lawless, Alice Stopford Green, Mary Hayden etc. paving the way for historians of Irish history and inspiring generations of future Irish historians. And as any historian will let you know finding a place that collates resources, sources, and courses (I couldn’t resist an alliteration!) for their particular discipline can be hazardous if that discipline is either niche or under-researched.
Greta Garbo is often misquoted of saying ‘I want to be alone’ in the 1932 film Grand Hotel whenever she said ‘I want to be let alone’ according to John Gainbridge’s 1955 book entitled Garbo. Garbo’s character utters these words before other character’s leave, and she relishes her ‘aloneness’ when she closes the door to her hotel room. The satisfaction in her face is palatable as she finally relaxes after a hectic ordeal but how realistic is this satisfaction for women who crave, indeed need, as Virginia Woolf describes both a room of one’s own and time to oneself in order to pursue hobbies, self-employment or any other activity that requires time alone?