PRESS RELEASE

January 28, 2004

Contact:
Katie Sproles, (541) 346-0942, ksproles@darkwing.uoregon.edu


UO SEEKS GALLERY GUIDES FOR NEW MUSEUM OF ART

EUGENE-The University of Oregon Museum of Art is seeking enthusiastic volunteer gallery guides to give tours to diverse audiences in the newly renovated and expanded facility. Applications for the new museum's first gallery guide training class are now available and should be returned by Wednesday, Feb. 25.

The 12-month training program for new guides begins in April and offers instruction on museum education, inquiry-based discussion, visual thinking strategies, public speaking, art history and the UO Museum of Art's collection. Gallery guides contribute to the museum experience in several ways, including offering tours, providing visits to schools before a tour, presenting art lectures to schools and community groups, and preparing research.

"The experience of being a gallery guide is extremely rewarding, as it provides the opportunity for intellectual challenge and continual learning in an atmosphere that values human creativity and spirit," explains Lisa Abia-Smith, the museum's director of education. "The joy of learning the collection and tour techniques is combined with the rewards that come when a visitor makes a personal connection with art and is enriched by the museum experience."

Additional benefits of the program include meeting with curators; attending field trips at neighboring museums; and receiving invitations to lectures, gallery talks and other continuing education events.

Interested applicants simply need a love for sharing art with visitors and a commitment to the program and educational mission of the museum. After completing the training, certified gallery guides are asked to make a two-year commitment to the program, which requires approximately five hours a week.

For more information or an application, contact the UO Museum of Art at (541) 346-0910 or visit the museum's website at http://uoma.uoregon.edu.


###