Art 492: Exhibition PracticeThe museum director teaches one course per year in the spring. This is a broad course offering students across disciplines a combination of museum history and exhibition practice. Students gain hands-on skills with museum and archival collections, work closely with artists, and curate their own exhibit in Gallery 2001. This class counts for an art credit and does not have a perquisite.
The Ross employs 2-4 students per year as Gallery Assistants who have specific future interest in the arts and museums. These students support gallery hours, installations, special events, and may be assigned projects in their areas of focus. They act as members of the Ross Student Advisory Board that advises the museum on student events, outreach, and engagement. Student Board members are frequently the first to be invited to meetings of the Museum’s Advisory Board, pilot programs, and grant opportunities.
The museum has periodic, project-specific, opportunities for internships. These can fall in the areas of curatorial research, collections management, and preparation/installation. These opportunities are not specific to students of Fine Arts. Because of limited staffing, however, opportunities are frequently on an invitation-only basis and are usually created for students who already have a strong working relationship with the museum and its partners. For this reason, students are encouraged to take Art 492—or to be referred by a faculty member who has previous experience with the museum—before investigating an internship. Approved internships are tailored to a student’s interests and skill set. These opportunities are funded whenever possible.
Student-led groups, organizations, and initiatives are welcome to host events at the museum with a faculty or staff sponsor. All events held during regular museum hours should be available to the campus and community as a whole. Private events held after hours are considered on a case-by-case basis. The museum is a designated safe-space on campus, and all events must be inclusive. The space is free of charge for OWU events, but organizers are responsible for set up, clean up, food costs, marketing, and public safety if required. All events must be approved by museum staff. To explore holding your event at the Ross, please contact ramuseum@owu.edu.