Interning Abroad: One Student's Story
Art History student Rima Garsys will graduate from Florida State University in December 2012 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Art History and a minor in Museum Studies. She is spending her final undergraduate semester completing her Museum Studies internship at Printroom, a contemporary art gallery in London. Her experiences working with clients and artists, preparing exhibits, and learning all aspects of the gallery business have added invaluable practical skills to her education in art history, as she describes in a recent post:
Through Florida State’s International Internship Program, this fall semester I travelled to London to intern full time at Printroom, a small contemporary print art gallery. Upon arrival I helped re-open the commercial gallery space after being closed for the summer holiday by rehanging, cleaning and preparing the gallery for a private exhibition and art fair.
At the gallery I have learned many practical skills of running a small business such as creating sales invoices, creating framing orders for clients, processing framing orders, managing the gallery’s website and taking a payment. I have also had the privilege to work with both clients and artists. I assisted in putting together a private exhibition, Images of the City, where we hung the gallery owner’s private three story Victorian row house. I assisted in the hanging and exhibition process, opening night and weekend events. I also interned while Printroom participated in its first ever art fair, Christie’s Multipied. I helped organize art works, frame art work, prepare all works for delivery, hang the stall space and work the event. Since finishing both the exhibition and art fair I have turned my focus to help make artist folders, package and return artist work, update and manage the website and spread social media.
My time at Printroom has given me invaluable experience of not only in learning how to deal with a small gallery, artists, clients and experiencing the print world and greater art world in London. I have had the honor of working with two motivated, connected and welcoming women who want to give me as many varied experiences as possible. Because I have come to intern at the Printroom, I know that I want to stay in London and I plan to apply for my master’s here at City University.
To learn more about Art History internships and the Minor in Museum Studies, visit our Undergraduate Programs page.