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Museums on campus provide W&L students academic opportunities including internships, undergraduate research and work experiences, independent study and capstones, special classrooms and programming, student engagement, and more.
The Art and Art History Department offers a Minor in Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies. In support of the minor, the Museums at W&L offer ARTH 398: Seminar in Museum Studies and ARTH 348: Chinese Export Porcelain and the China Trade, 1500 to 1900, instructed by museum staff.
Named after the former Director of the Reeves Collection, the Thomas V. Litzenburg Jr. Prize recognizes outstanding academic work on objects in the Museums at Washington and Lee University.
Past Recipients:
During the academic year, the Museums at W&L provide a mix of art, food, and entertainment programs, both virtually and in person. Including lecture series, interactive experiences, mindfulness workshops, gallery talks, and much more. Follow us on social media for event updates.
Studies have shown that art enhances brain function, well-being, and boosts creative thinking. Surrounded by art, the Elisabeth S. Gottwald Gallery is the perfect place for quiet study and contemplation. Quiet hours are held every Monday and during exam week, with limited stations. The gallery is located between Tucker Hall and the Admissions Office in the Reeves Museum of Ceramics.
The Museums at W&L wishes to help each student grow into engaged and change-making citizens. It’s essential that Washington and Lee students know that they are seen, heard, and valued by the Museums. Incorporating student reflections into exhibitions and programming is a continued goal. Below are just a few ways in which students engage with and reflect on Museums collections.
Throughout the year the Museum at W&L offers various paid employment opportunities for WLU undergraduate students. These can include curatorial work and museum education, and positions in the Museums Shop. Student employees contribute to, and experience, diverse areas of Museum work. It is an exciting opportunity for someone with a passion for art, business, culture, history, and/or museums. Work schedules for student staff are flexible to accommodate class schedules and include some evening and weekend hours.
Positions include:
What are you going to do this summer? The Museums at W&L have some suggestions!
The Museums at Washington and Lee University is offering two eight-week paid summer internships that focus on collections management and exhibitions to currently enrolled W&L students. The internships will start on June 13 and run through August 5. The eight-week program consists of regular workdays, Monday through Friday, beginning at 9:00 AM and ending at 4:00 PM.
Collections Management:
This position will assist the Collections Manager with inventory, photography and updating collection records. The intern's projects will include finding objects using the museum's collections database, maintaining storage areas, marking and rehousing objects, and documenting new information about the objects in the database.
This position will assist the Senior Curator of Art with curating and installing an exhibition for Fall 2022 in the Watson Galleries. Duties will include, but are not limited to: managing exhibition checklists and timelines; collections research; writing interpretive materials, including labels and text panels; and exhibition layout and preparation for installation. In addition to this general support, the intern will also curate a small exhibition of figure drawings that will be on display in September 2022 in Wilson Hall.
Please call 458-4120 or email kswanson@wlu.edu if you have any questions. Washington and Lee University is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to excellence through diversity.
Stay connected with the Museums at W&L through our Instagram and Facebook, or join our Museums at W&L mailing list.
Students are active and hands-on in museum, exhibit and gallery spaces across campus.
A student analyzes a piece of Chinese porcelain in the Reeves Center.
W&L students help install a temporary exhibit on Latin American art.
Museum studies students install an exhibit of artwork in Leyburn Library.
WLU students installing Modern Arts Goes Pop exhibit
Students catalog work in the Reeves Center.
Professor of Chemistry Erich Uffelman (left) and Jennifer Mass, senior scientist at the Winterthur Museum (center), led an Art History 288 class on analysis for Ron Fuchs, Reeves Center curator (right).
The Museums at W&L advance learning through direct engagement with the collections and facilitate an interdisciplinary appreciation of art, history, and culture.