Student Docent Program

Inaugurated in the fall of 2013, the Student Docent Program offers a unique work experience in a collegiate art gallery. Each student docent acts as a liaison between the gallery and its visitors, providing information and insight into the exhibitions on view in the gallery. Through our docent’s knowledgeable and enthusiastic interaction with these audiences, each docent becomes a facilitator of learning, building on visitor interest, in an effort to create lasting audiences for the visual arts at Union College and beyond.

Student Assistant – Permanent Art Collection 

This position focuses on learning how to care for objects in a permanent art collection. The program teaches fundamental collections management skills and preventive conservation techniques, such as how to create safe housing with archival materials for delicate art objects, and how to perform condition reports. Students also learn proper art handling practices while installing, deinstalling, and transporting artwork on campus. Experience with environmental monitoring, as well as tracking works of art through inventorying, cataloguing new acquisitions, and updating a cloud-based content management system is also part of the program.