This week in the Staff Spotlight, we have Gibbes Program & Tour Coordinator Megan Zembower!
How long have you been at the Gibbes?
I’m the greenest member of Staff right now; I’ve been here since November 2017.
Describe your role here at the Museum in a few sentences.
As does every member of the Gibbes team, I wear a few different hats here! As the Program & Tour Coordinator, I coordinate the logistics for each tour group that comes through the Museum. This includes many school groups, as well as some senior communities and special interest groups. I also handle registration for our highly anticipated summer camp (almost every session sold out in under a week – wow!) run by Associate Curator of Education Becca Hiester and manage registration for lectures, concerts, member previews, and special events like our recent Street Party. I assist with the logistics for some of these events as well and help Lasley Steever, the Director of Programs & Digital Engagement, to manage the blog and assist with the Visiting Artist series.
What brought you to the Gibbes? Tell us about how you ended up here!
I first came to Charleston around 2005, when my family was vacationing in Pawleys Island and decided to visit Charleston for the day. I became enamored with the city and the history that created such a unique urban environment. Upon that first visit, I vowed to my parents that I would attend College of Charleston and live in Charleston someday. I made many return visits with my family, but when college-decision time came around I realized I preferred the small-school atmosphere and chose to attend Denison University, a liberal arts college in Ohio. Still in love with Charleston, though, I pursued opportunities and lived downtown during the summer of 2015 while interning with Juliana Falk. Upon graduation with degrees in Art History & French, I completed an internship at Charleston’s City Gallery and then moved to Dallas, Texas where I worked in the curatorial department at the Dallas Museum of Art as the McDermott Intern for African Art. When the internship ended, though I loved my experience at the DMA, I knew that I wanted to be back on the East Coast and closer to family in Pawleys Island, so I began to pursue job opportunities in Charleston. I was thrilled when I found an opportunity at the Gibbes and eagerly applied.
What is your favorite work in the collection and why?
I have many favorites in the collection, but I’m particularly excited for one of our recent acquisitions that is soon to arrive at the Gibbes, Leo Twiggs’ Requiem for Mother Emanuel #3. Not only do I love Twiggs’ batik work in general, but this piece holds a particularly special place in my heart as it was a part of the first exhibition I worked on in Charleston during my time at City Gallery. I also chose to focus my senior thesis project on the artistic reactions to that particular tragedy and art as a catalyst for activism. I’m happy to see that the Gibbes is putting forth a concerted effort to include more works by African American artists in the collection as well as works that directly address contemporary social justice issues.
Tell us about an interesting project you’ve worked on. This could be an event, a program, an exhibition, etc.
I have truly enjoyed having the chance to interface and spend time with the Visiting Artists. The Gibbes has brought in some really excellent artists to have open studio hours and create bodies of work in the renovated studio spaces. Most recently, Tom Stanley welcomed young school groups into his studio during his residency on an almost daily basis, and I am in love with Fran Palazuelos’ prints (and so happy to see that they are now for sale in our Museum Store!). I’m also always thrilled to work with our talented Museum Educators and teaching artists – they make the art on the walls come alive for each student who comes into the Gibbes and they are such enthusiastic and encouraging educators.
I’m also preparing for a “Gibbes on the Go” trip to Pawleys Island and I’m so happy to be helping with this outing, as Pawleys is one of my favorite places. Not only will I have the chance to learn more about a place I’ve called home, but I’ll have the opportunity to visit with old friends while I’m there. Win-win!
Besides the Gibbes, where do you take friends and family for the quintessential Charleston/lowcountry experience?
There are honestly too many good restaurants here to name! My friend and fellow Gibbes Girl Megan Hoffman introduced me to Lewis Barbecue and my life has been forever changed for the better based on that introduction. The wine list at Bar Normandy is incredible and merits a visit itself (not to mention that their food has been recently lauded in Bon Appetit, the highest praise in my book), as does Bin 152. Queen Street Grocery is my go-to breakfast spot. As far as activities, I think I’m still a bit of a tourist here – I’m a big fan of historic walking tours and recently went on a ghost tour for my birthday (highly recommend!). I take each member of my family and friends who come to Charleston on a historic guided tour because I always end up learning something new about the city myself and its unique history myself. I’ll also echo Chris Pelletier’s recommendation to take a stroll South of Broad, as it was that architecture and historic charm that initially made me fall in love with the city on my first visit.
— Megan Zembower, Program & Tour Coordinator & guest blogger
Top Image: For the 9th annual Gibbes on the Street event, Gibbes veteran Amanda Breen handed her ticketing duties off to one of two Megans working at the Gibbes.
May 11, 2018