I spent my onsite day this week mostly going through some files that the librarian believed were part of the Brundage archive that had been removed but not re-filed. The files were in bad shape with paperclips rusting onto the paper and multiple copies of newspaper articles. All of which made me suspect that no archivist would have left them in this condition. This was confirmed when I tried to match it to the finding aid, which are really pretty good, and they just did not match. So, so I cleaned up the files and we determined that they were likely from some vertical file not related to Brundage which had never been processed. It was interesting from the point of gaining information about the museum in general but a waste of time from my specific mission.
I received approval from the site supervisor on my proposal and forwarded it to Pat. I also had to run the proposal by HR who were afraid I was doing an unsanctioned internship. But that has all been smoothed over. I managed to get contact information for the curators and as soon as I formulate my questions I can start setting up interviews.
Sounds like a busy week. I think when we see the mishandling of archival materials for the 1st time, it really hits us hard and drives home the learning that we have done. Like you, I got my proposal signed this week, I think some of the management (HR) hurdles and red tape are things we tend to not think about. Good luck in working through your interview question selection.
ReplyDeleteLinda