Weatherspoon Art Museum
The Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition at UNCG’s Weatherspoon Museum is an important part of your graduate education. The Weatherspoon Art Museum enjoys presenting this exhibition and seeks to make it a memorable capstone to your graduate education. The Weatherspoon Art Museum is accredited by the American Association of Museums and adheres to AAM’s high professional standards. The staff of the Weatherspoon will expect you to meet museum standards in the presentation of your art. By following the guidelines to which all artists who exhibit here are subject, you ensure that the Weatherspoon will in turn afford you and your art proper care and consideration. Below are some guidelines that you will find helpful as the thesis exhibition draws near.:
Before the Exhibition
The exhibition is held in the Weatherspoon’s Falk and Tannenbaum Galleries. The number of works you will be able to have in the exhibition will depend on the exhibition space assigned to you by the curator, the size of your work and the number of students in the exhibition. You are responsible for bringing selected works to the Weatherspoon during the first week of the installation period. The drop-off dates usually follow closely after your graduate reviews. Please be prepared to have your work framed or otherwise ready for installation immediately after your reviews. You must also complete loan forms for each of your works in the exhibition. You will need to include insurance value and sales price on the forms. Loan forms will need to be completed when you drop off your works at the Weatherspoon.
Drop off your work in the Museum Registrar’s office between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on the assigned date.
Emily Stamey, Curator of Exhibitions at the Weatherspoon, will be the project director for the MFA Thesis Exhibition. She will visit your studios prior to the exhibition and will work with you and your thesis committee to select works for the exhibition. The curator is responsible for arranging your work within the gallery and has the authority to edit your work after it has been dropped off. Work is installed by the Weatherspoon’s preparators, Susan Taaffe and Joel Vanderkamp. If your work is installation-oriented, or if you feel it requires any special or unusual considerations, you must make the curator and preparators aware of this at least three weeks in advance of the installation period. If you need pedestals, the Weatherspoon has a variety available, depending upon what is already in use at the time. Pedestals are available on a first-come, first-serve basis, so call the preparators in advance to reserve them. If your work requires special exhibition furniture other than what the Weatherspoon has on hand, you are responsible for providing it and delivering it to the Weatherspoon after obtaining the curator’s approval.
All works of art must be delivered ready for installation (this includes frames with attached hanging wire and hardware, when applicable). The preparators are more than happy to confer with you regarding any framing, matting or other presentation challenges you may have. Any unusual installation methods must first be approved by both the curator and the preparators.
Your art works in the exhibition will be made available for sale unless you request otherwise. A price list for works that are for sale will be made available to the public. The list will include your name, the price of the work and a phone number where you can be reached. The Weatherspoon does not take a percentage of your sales; therefore, you are responsible for dealing with the buyer, collecting money and delivering the work to the purchaser at the close of the exhibition. If you sell a work, please notify the Museum Registrar’s office immediately. They will attach a red dot to the work’s label to signify that it is no longer available for sale.
After the Exhibition
After the exhibition closes, you must collect your work during the time period noted on the loan agreement. Work cannot be removed before the exhibition closes for any reason.
Pick up your work between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on the assigned date.
If you plan to be out of town at this time, you have two options:
- Have someone else pick up your work for you, such as a friend, a family member or a buyer. You must make prior arrangements with the Museum Registrar’s office authorizing the release of your work to someone else.
- Have your work shipped to you. You are responsible for making shipping arrangements and paying the costs to pack, ship and insure your artwork. The Weatherspoon insures the work only while it is on our premises. Please call the Museum Registrar’s office at 334-5770 or stop by Room 129 Cone if you have questions or concerns.
Other Important Information
The Weatherspoon provides an opening reception for the MFA Thesis Exhibition, lasting approximately one hour. Light finger foods, such as cheese, crackers and fruit, will be provided, as well as punch, napkins and cups. Your graduating class may wish to supplement the refreshments or provide wine. If so, please contact Museum Administrator at 334-5770.
If you wish to serve wine, a student must first contact the Office of the Chancellor, as well as the Museum Administrator, at least one week in advance of the opening reception for the appropriate paperwork.
The Weatherspoon sends out announcement cards on which the MFA Thesis Exhibition is featured along with concurrent exhibitions and events. A limited number of these invitation cards will be made available to the Art Department, and you will each get a few for your files. If those of you graduating wish to send out separate individual exhibition announcements, it is your responsibility to design and pay all costs to produce and distribute them.
The MFA Thesis Exhibition may also be mentioned in other Weatherspoon publications such as the newsletter. The Weatherspoon will send out a news release several weeks prior to the exhibition opening. It is the graduating class’s responsibility to elect a student representative to contact Loring Mortensen, the Museum’s Public Relations Coordinator, prior to the end of the fall semester about scheduling a group photograph for the invitation card and news release. The coordinator will send a memo close to the end of the semester as a reminder of the photo deadline. The Weatherspoon will pay for the photograph, to be taken by a University Publications photographer. MFA students may arrange through University Publications to obtain prints at a modest charge from a local photo lab.
Remember, the Weatherspoon staff is here to make sure that your MFA Thesis Exhibition is the best it can be. If you have any questions or concerns at any time, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem, please do not hesitate to contact Emily Stamey at 334-5770.