Last Day

Hello McFaddin-Ward friends,

Today is my last day of interning at the museum. It is a very bittersweet day. I am sad to be leaving the museum and all the wonderful people I've met here. You have all taught me so much. But, I am also excited for the next stage in my life. I will be moving back "home" to my parent's house in Jakarta, Indonesia. (My father is a geologist for Exxon Mobil.) There I will be an assistant spa manager at Jamu Traditional Spa; a spa that my Aunt owns and operates. I will also have the chance to volunteer my time at an orphanage in the city, and hopefully, the art museum. I am very excited for this little adventure! I will be back either next summer or fall, ready to start graduate school. I plan to study either art business, art education, or museum studies.

I hope to be back in Beaumont and the McFaddin-Ward House soon, to see all you wonderful people soon! I had a blast working with you all! Thank you for having me.

Love,

Aelish

Radio & Television

Communications Coordinator, Carol Cuccio on left, Jack Pieper in middle, I'm on the right

Last Friday I was interviewed on AM 1300 KSET with Jack Pieper about my lecture and exhibit on American Art Glass. It was a little nerve-wracking thinking about all the people that were listening and how silly I would sound if I said something wrong or stumbled on my words. But it turned out to be fine, and actually, fun.

At the channel 4 studio

On Monday afternoon Carol and I had an interview about upcoming events at the McFaddin-Ward house and again, I talked about my lecture and exhibit. This was quite an experience! Live t.v. is more intimidating that radio, but like on Friday, everything turned out fine. It was an exhilirating experience. There were 2 more interviews on Tuesday morning at 6 with channel 12. By then, I was a pro! They were all great experiences, and I feel fortunate to have those and to write them on my resume!

Live interview for Channel 12 at the Visitor's Center

-Aelish

Jack-in-the-Pulpit

The back is just as beautiful as the front.

Quezal Art Glass & Decorating Company, Jack-in-the-Pulpit vase, 1907-1919, blown glass

American Art Glass Exhibit

Hello McFaddin-Ward Friends!

The exhibit that I researched all summer on American Art Glass, is up in the Visitor's Center! There are some beautiful pieces from the Reserve Collection, that you most likely have never seen. This includes the display of modern, brightly colored Blenko glass, two Steuben marmalade jars, and a beautiful Gundersen-Paripoint perfume bottle.

The Jack-in-the-Pulpit vase by Quezal (usually displayed prominently in the music room) shines brightly in the case. I think it's a treat to see it up close and under a bright light! All the colored and cut glass really shines in the case. I hope you'll come by and see it!

I will give a talk on some of the companies and highlight a few of the major pieces on Tuesday August 30 at 10:00 am.

-Aelish

Trunk Show

Hello McFaddin-Ward Friends!

A previous intern had started a new program describing and showing images of Mamie and Carroll Ward's fashion choices in the early 20th century. I completed this "trunk show" by adding an activity at the end of it- paper dolls.

Several weeks ago a group of kids from a local church came by for a few hours at the museum. I introduced them to Carroll and Mamie and showed them the photographs of them in their fabulous clothes. Afterwards they took a tour of the first floor of the house and then came back to the Visitor's Center and cut out their paper dolls. They loved it! Many of the kids even took home extra dolls to cut out and play with at home.

-Aelish

Hello McFaddin-Ward friends!

Today I would like to share with you what I am working on as of late (I completed a "trunk show" last week which I'll share later). I'm working on an exhibition that I have the privelege to curate for the Vistor's Center. After spending a few hours with the reserve collection I fell in love with all the Blenko Glass (over 200 pieces!) and of course, the Tiffany Chandelier. Wanting to include these items, I decided on an exhibition of American Art Glass. Sadly, the chandelier cannot be included in the exhibition, but there will be plenty of other beautiful artifacts to look at (Blenko, Stueben, and Quezal to name a few).

I hope you'll come see it once it goes up!

-Aelish


Image source:
photo 1

Welcome to the museum, Aelish!

The staff at the McFaddin-Ward House museum is excited to introduce our intern, Aelish Wilmot. She is a recent graduate of Baylor University, where she studied Art History with a concentration in late 19th and 20th century art. She has an interest in Fauvism, specifically Maurice de Vlaminck and Henri Matisse, and German Expressionism and has done extended research on Egon Schiele during her time at Baylor.

Aelish was born in Conroe, Texas and attended high school at the American School of Doha in Qatar, where her father works for ExxonMobil. She loves to travel and was able to combine this passion with her studies at Baylor when she traveled to Los Angeles, Venice, and Vienna with the Allbritton Art Institute to study and experience art firsthand.

Her ultimate goal is to own and operate an art gallery, so much so that she feels her next stop will be to attend graduate school to pursue a masters' degree in art business.

We are thrilled to have her here at McFaddin-Ward to teach her what we can about running a historic house museum, and look forward to what all we will learn from her. During the remainder of her time here in Beaumont, she will be updating this blog to share her experiences and give some insight on what it is like to intern at the museum.

Welcome to the museum, Aelish!