Among the initiatives completed in 2022, AIMIG is happy to announce the return of the Scholarship dedicated to Italian university students for an internship in Israel, which was paused in the latest years due to the pandemic. Through the creation of an Internship Agreement with IULM University, Daniela Stefanelli (a student in the Bachelor of Arts, Performing Arts and Cultural Events degree program) completed in July and August a period of internship at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
Scroll down the page to see some photos of her experience and read her report.
Report of the summer internship period at the Israel Msueum, Jerusalem (July-August 2022)
by Daniela Stefanelli
Undergraduate student attending a Bachelor of Arts in Arts, Media and Cultural Events at IULM University in Milan, Italy.
Jerusalem, 08/29/2022
The Israel Museum in Jerusalem is among the leading museums in the world, as well as the largest cultural institution in the State of Israel, preserving works from prehistory to the present day, collected in four main areas: Archaeology, Fine Arts, Jewish Art & Life and Youth Wing, which are themselves divided into departments according to specific themes and historical period. The organizational chart is highly structured and involves a broad list of highly qualified professionals, some of them technical, administrative and managerial, others characterized by academic backgrounds from humanities, history and art faculties.
During my internship period at the Museum, I was involved in various activities:
- In the Collections Database department, in collaboration with the Information Center of Israeli Art, I contributed to a research project concerning the gathering of information on Israeli artists, dealing with different media and sources such as the Museum’s physical and digital archives and the Internet, in order to update the website dedicated to the topic https://museum.imj.org.il/artcenter/newsite/en/;
- From my collaboration with a research project with the Image Resource department, focused on updating information on copyright of artworks, I gained knowledge about the dynamics regarding the entities holding the rights to publish images of artworks for commercial and educational purposes;
- Interesting project was the correspondence between Arturo Schwarz and important figures (such as Marcel Duchamp, Tristan Tzara and Umberto Eco), whose letters are preserved in the Prints&Drawings department. Aimed at the future creation of an interactive map, the project required coordinating the work of digital cataloging on excel of the written content and matching it with photographic shots taken in the Photography lab, which will then be entered into the Museum’s database.
Within the International Relations and Development department, I was able to hone my organizational skills in planning events such as VIP guided tours and the Israeli Friends Association’s upcoming trip to Venice. I also helped edit updates to the “Support Us” section of the website. - In addition to the Museum’s proposed projects, during the same period I continued to help the Association of Italian Friends of the Israel Museum planning the upcoming events and pursued the research project of my Graduate Thesis (Competitive Strategies and Fundraising in the Museum Sector: the Israel Museum Jerusalem Case Study).
The museum internship program is carried out in a manner consistent with the interests and inclinations of individual participants, increasing efficiency and incentivizing them to maintain a proactive and multi-tasking attitude. Although adapting to a different country and coordinating all the activities described required great effort, working in such a dynamic and multicultural setting as the museum is a rich experience and food for thought. The activities and tasks performed allowed me to acquire and refine skills and knowledge that will be useful for any career path in the cultural field.