When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, museums around the world closed their doors — a challenge that some used as an opportunity to reimagine the museum model. At University Museums, closing to the public presented a chance to bring renewed focus to creating connections with faculty, staff, and students.

“It was refreshing to sit back and listen,” says Heather Campbell, curator of museum programs. “We were able to figure out what the campus wanted from us.”

In the early months, that meant interviewing artists around the world, facilitating virtual museum tours, and curating timely exhibitions in response to nationwide protests following the death of George Floyd. But museums staff also saw an opportunity to align their resources more strategically with Richmond’s educational mission.

The art history department is an obvious partner, and the sciences benefit from the Lora Robins Gallery’s extensive collection of natural objects and artifacts. However, departments like sociology, classics, leadership, and political science have just as much to gain. For instance, students in a Spanish language class could be tasked with describing a set of objects from the collection, giving them an opportunity to practice their vocabulary.

Megan Driscoll, assistant professor of modern and contemporary art history, asked students in her survey course to select a work of art to study and write about, and produce a podcast for extra credit.

“The museums staff made the space accessible and helped my students feel comfortable,” Driscoll said. “They put together the wonderful collections and touring exhibitions that gave students an opportunity to explore artworks in person.”

In her Museum Studies seminar, Elizabeth Schlatter, interim executive director of museums, partnered with Elena Calvillo, chair of the department of art and art history, to create a cabinet of curiosities. These object collections were first created in the 16th century by European rulers, aristocrats, and scientists, and they served as the precursors to museums. The exhibit featured works of art and natural specimens from the Lora Robins Gallery.

Students selected a series of objects from the collection and arranged them in a cabinet where the left side reflected the original design and purpose of curiosity cabinets, while the right side explores contemporary issues of nature conservation and sustainability.  

The cabinet was also a tool for thinking critically about museums and their role as gatekeepers who decide which objects and stories are collected.

“When you’re in a museum, you’re not just getting your own interpretation of an object,” said Daisy Forbes, a junior studying anthropology and classics. “The curator guides the story that you take away.”

Schlatter and Campbell agree that the upheaval of the pandemic and a two-year closure and renovation of the Lora Robins Gallery — has given them a clean slate. As they reopen to the public, staff are reaching out to academic departments to share upcoming exhibitions, and to make connections between syllabi and museum collections. They’re also preparing to unveil a new database that will allow users to better engage with the collection virtually.

“The last two years gave us time to reflect on what was working and what wasn’t,” Schlatter said. “There are a lot of opportunities for experimentation without having to say, ‘This is how we’ve always done it.’”

<sub>Images: Duane Michals (American, born 1932), Meryl Streep, 1975, gelatin silver print with hand-applied text, 5 x 7 1/4 inches, © Duane Michals, Courtesy of DC Moore Gallery, New York

Andy Warhol (American, 1928-1987), Reigning Queens (Queen Beatrix), screen print on Lenox Museum Board, image 39 3/8 x 31 1/2 inches, Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center, University of Richmond Museums, Gift of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc.; Extra, out of the edition; Designated for research and educational purposes only, H2013.12.06, © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc., photograph by Taylor Dabney</sub>