Garnai Poised for the Field... PEOPLE OF MUAM SHERRI KRAZL, MARKETING/ COMMUNICATIONS
A senior Art & Architecture History major with minors in Arts Management and Museums & Society, Bridget Garnai has been an actively engaged member of the Miami University Art Museum since day one of her Miami career. Discovering her affinity for art and history during her high school years, she took a college course to see if it was something she wanted to major in and decided, yes. “I have always loved going to museums with my family—something that we did a lot. I really liked learning about the artists and how the artwork relates to history,” she shared. A lengthy chat with Art History professor emeritus Dr. Ann Wicks on Arts Day helped her decide on Miami (her Mom’s alma mater). “She spent a lot of time with us and I could tell she really cared about the program and the students.” Bridget was excited about all of the faculty that she met and also that Miami had its own Art Museum. Her first interaction with the Art Museum was at the lawn party, one of the museum’s signature fall events welcoming students to campus and celebrating the new exhibitions. She heard of the lawn party at MegaFair where she signed up to join the Art Museum Student Organization (AMSO) which she has led as president for the last two years. She also has completed several internships at the Art Museum. Through these experiences she has been able to work with the staff in all areas. Currently, she is completing a year-long Arts Management internship and is managing the student blog [blogs.MiamiOH.edu/art-museum]. During the fall, she was part of the Art History Capstone class that put together Advance/Retreat: Prints and the Great War. This past summer she also interned at the Cincinnati Art Museum. As for next steps after graduation—knowing that she wants to work in a museum—she has been applying to museum studies graduate programs.
Volume 5, Issue 2 | Spring 2017
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Bridget is passionate about her work and has great things to say about the role the Art Museum has played in her studies, “The Miami University Art Museum is an important part of campus. The museum really enriches the things that I learn about in my classes. It is an important space to think about and do different things. I even like how the building looks so different than the rest of campus. That really sets the stage for different things to happen—space to be creative and have new and unique experiences that can’t happen in other places.” Preparing to graduate in the spring, her advice for other Miami students is to, “take advantage of every lecture (especially at the Art Museum), that is one of the most rewarding things to attend on campus. I think I could count the one’s that I have missed on one hand.” She especially enjoys meeting and hearing from the artists who have presented over the years. Her most inspiring advice is this, “Don’t be afraid to be a nerd about stuff that you love.”
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