The Department of Art History provides students with extensive opportunities to work with the Ottawa art community as part of its practicum program.
Second year masters student in Art History Emma Hamilton-Hobbs had the opportunity to do her practicum with Library and Archives Canada in Place de la Cité, Gatineau. She gained experience handling glass plate and nitrate negatives while collaborating with former and current archivists. She described her work as sometimes “solving a mystery” as she worked on the arrangement and description of the Topley Studio fonds. “I learned how to take initiative when given a project, and I learned that archival work can be both frustrating and rewarding at the same time,” she shared.
Her advice to future students? “I would definitely encourage art history students to participate in a practicum program. Not only do you develop and learn new skills as you progress throughout your placement, but you also make important connections with colleagues at your institution that may lead to professional opportunities down the road. You are getting a “hands-on” experience that would not be available to you in a classroom setting. I also think that it provides you with an opportunity to discover what it is that you want to, or perhaps don’t want to do, in terms of a future career.”
Members of the Ottawa art community also were highly impressed with the program. Catherine Sinclair, Senior Curator at the Ottawa Art Gallery praised the practicum for establishing “valuable connections with future workers in the curatorial/museums/archives fields and hands-on help with research projects and day-to-day office work.”
Professor Stephane Roy, a supervisor of the Art History practicum program shared that “learning Art History in the classroom is one thing, practicing it is another. The practicum program gives students a unique opportunity to work behind the scenes, contribute to a vast array of research projects and exhibitions, and to gain valuable experience before hitting the job market.”
“The City of Ottawa Public Art Program (PAP) benefits from the specialized skills of Art History graduate and undergraduate students to research and write information pertaining to specific artworks in the City of Ottawa Art Collection. These skills enable us to expand the information available to the public pertaining to the artworks on public display. In general students often add to the discussion of new technology and its use. The PAP also benefits from providing the ongoing interaction and skills training that benefits the overall arts community, students learn about conservation, exhibition planning and general museum management. The PAP has hired past conservation, museum management and art history interns and practicum students as temporary and full time employees.”-Development Officer for the Public Art Program Jonathan Browns on Carleton Art History practicum students
If you are interested in being involved in the Art History practicum, visit the Art History website for further details. Some community partners for the practicum program include:
- City of Ottawa’s Public Art Program
- National Gallery of Canada,
- Ottawa Art Gallery
- War Museum
- Museum of Civilization
- Library and Archives Canada
- Society for the Study of Architecture in Canada
- Canadian Artists’ Representation (CARFAC)
- SAW Gallery
- Parks Canada
By Heather McAlister
If you enjoyed reading this article, you might also enjoy reading a first-hand account of an Art History student practicum at the National Gallery and Carleton’s Library and the hands-on opportunities provided by the History and Theory of Architecture program.