The de Young's show, Fashioning San Francisco, is a visual feast but lacks historical grounding or contextualization.
Fashioning San Francisco
Category: museumology
Miner Street, Canton, in 1900
I can't believe I've been working on this exhibition since the spring. Well, technically, I spent quite a few months in between researching a walking tour of Main Street - originally my brother agreed to make an ambitious app for it, which was then scaled back into a page on our website, and then recently … Continue reading Miner Street, Canton, in 1900
Running the Show
This past weekend was the first reenactment that I've actually been in charge of. (Some of you may pause to chuckle.) At last year's Civil War Weekend at Robert Moses State Park in Massena, I attended with the director of the museum as a kind of deputy - running errands that needed to be run, … Continue reading Running the Show
Nostalgia for the Ordinary
This past month, my director was out on medical leave and I was technically acting director, if only in my mind. (To people walking through the door, I was still "probably the receptionist".) This led to my having to write down notes to remember to ask the director about when she came back, and the … Continue reading Nostalgia for the Ordinary
Patterns: Chapman Historical Museum
A little while ago I reported to you that I'd posted thousands of Victorian and early 20th century photographs at the Chapman, where I was working. And they are lovely sources, especially since I gradually added more and more portraits, plus a batch of pattern envelopes from the 1900s and 1910s. Just try out the … Continue reading Patterns: Chapman Historical Museum
Mimic of Modes 