2019 SCHAPIRA Scholarship Award – Cristiana Sandeva & Ben Schapira

As confirmed by the Museum itself—particularly by Allison Kupietzky, Head of Internship Programs—our two Italian interns who departed this year in June, Cristiana Sandeva and Ben Schapira, had the opportunity to work across a wide range of museum departments, both curatorial and operational.

Their work assisting with the cataloguing and management of the collections, as well as helping to streamline the Museum’s complex internal workflows, proved highly beneficial to the students’ professional and personal development. In addition to the hands-on experience gained, they were also able to enjoy other aspects of working within an institution of the stature of the Israel Museum, such as participating in behind-the-scenes tours with curators, attending exhibition openings, and taking part in other events hosted by the Museum.

This experience continues to inspire both amazement and enthusiasm and serves as a true springboard for a promising future in museology and curatorial work.

With our warmest congratulations to our Italian interns, we are pleased to share below a selection of photos and notes we received from them during the course of their internship.

Dear Italian Friends of the Israel Museum,

I am delighted to be writing to you from the Netherlands on this sunny yet cold Saturday afternoon, October 5, 2019.

I landed in the land of milk and honey on June 7. I had never been to Israel before, and I could never have imagined that I would end up actually living there for an entire summer—at just twenty years old.

Born and raised in Brianza to Bulgarian parents, I moved to Amsterdam shortly after coming of age to study journalism and eventually specialize in the Middle East (initially driven by a vague mystical calling sparked by the music of Franco Battiato). Nothing could have led me to imagine that I would be fortunate enough not only to visit this sunny, fragrant, and complex country—Eretz Israel—but to live and work there. And not just to work in any job one might find anywhere in the world, but to immerse myself in one of the most significant and vibrant cultural environments that Israel and Jerusalem have to offer: the Israel Museum.

Ms. Allison Kupietzky, who very quickly became simply “Allison” to all of us, welcomed us into her department and consistently sought placements and collaborations within the Museum’s various curatorial sections that best matched each intern’s skills and interests. From the very beginning, she made us feel like part of the “family”—both the one at the Museum office and her own at home. She invited all of us interns to a Shabbat dinner at her newly moved-in home and organized a group outing to Caesarea, where we visited the Port Museum and later enjoyed a picnic on the beach by the ancient aqueduct.

I had the opportunity to collaborate with the departments of Modern Art, African Art, and Traveling Exhibitions, working closely with the wonderful curators leading these sections. I was actively involved in proposing new projects and exhibitions, contributing ideas, and assisting in both the conceptual and installation phases.

Knowing that my main interest lies in journalism, Allison also ensured that both Ben (my colleague and housemate, also a journalism student) and I were able to attend conferences and events outside the Museum. We later wrote articles and reports—both individually and collaboratively—which will be published in the future on the Museum’s online platforms.

Everyone in the office was immediately warm and welcoming, and it felt natural to become part of what the Israel Museum truly is: a project that may not always run on perfectly rigid timelines, but that functions efficiently within its Middle Eastern complexity. It succeeds in offering both staff and visitors a stimulating experience without being intrusive, grounded in a calm yet productive daily rhythm.

Collaborating with the other interns was just as formative an experience as the internship itself. We became close friends almost instantly, as if we had known each other for years. From the very first day, a warm, international, and open family-like atmosphere developed among all colleagues. Ben and I—AIMIG’s Italian interns arriving from the Netherlands and the United States—together with another Italian student from Milan, a young woman from South Africa and one from Zimbabwe sent by the South African Friends of the Israel Museum (SAFIM), a young man from Philadelphia, and another young woman from Toledo, quickly formed a small family. We often organized dinners and weekend trips together to discover all that Israel has to offer.

I would like to thank Associazione degli Amici Italiani dell’Israel Museum (AIMIG) once again, from the bottom of my heart, for making possible a summer that I could never have imagined even in my boldest dreams.

I send you my warmest regards and hope to hear from you soon and to collaborate again in the future.

To close coherently, I press the ‘Send’ key on my computer and open my Hebrew textbook, which I have begun studying at university this semester after returning from Israel.

Warm greetings from Amsterdam,Cristiana SandevaIntern at the Israel Museum 07/06/2019 – 23/08/2019”