ART HISTORY MA GRADUATE SELECTED FOR PRESTIGIOUS GETTY GRADUATE INTERNSHIP
Anna Smith, ’22, is currently interning at the Getty Research Institute, one of the country’s foremost art history research libraries.
For Anna Smith, enrolling in a graduate art history program that incorporated real-world, professional experience into the curriculum was crucial. She found that at the University of Houston School of Art.
“I knew that the MA program provided internship opportunities at several museums and collections across the city,” Smith said. “This professional experience was a major factor for my enrollment.”
Smith, a spring 2022 graduate of the UH art history MA program, interned at the Blaffer Art Museum on campus as well as the Menil Collection during her time as a student. Her groundbreaking MA thesis, focused on the Venezuelan artist Gego, drew from resources and experiences at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, including an art history course taught in the museum’s galleries. Recently, she began a prestigious Getty Graduate Internship in Los Angeles.
Offered by the J. Paul Getty Trust, Getty Graduate Internships are geared towards visual arts students and graduates with focus areas in curating, education, conservation, research, grantmaking, and more.
Smith is currently working at the Getty Research Institute, one of the constituent organizations of the Getty Center and the larger Getty Trust. The Getty Research Institute is one of the country's foremost art history research libraries.
“It holds fantastic archives of artists, architects, arts scholars, and art works themselves,” Smith said. “I am working with two curators at the GRI to create exhibitions from the archives, which is a unique opportunity.”
“I am also working with curators to acquire new material for the GRI’s archival holdings, and I hope to expand my knowledge in this area.”
Smith credits her success in being selected for this prestigious internship to her time in the UH art history MA program.
“The art history faculty at UH helped provide me with a solid foundation from which I confidently moved into the professional museum world,” Smith said.
Smith said the art history MA was not without its challenges, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. But she said the connections she formed with fellow students proved to be invaluable during difficult times.
“As for everyone in grad school, and in the world at large, being removed from my professors and peers during lockdowns and online working was challenging,” Smith said. “That being said, I was able to form a small community with my cohort.”
“Looking back, I think this was one of the strengths of the program that I hadn’t anticipated. I was able to get to know each of my peers in my cohort of five and rely on them for support during lockdowns, and thesis research and writing.”
Smith said the UH art history MA program’s prioritization of research, in addition to its emphasis on professional experience, is one of its selling points for prospective students.
“This program will give you the time necessary to develop your projects,” Smith said. “Whatever that thing is that you’ve been considering researching, but can’t find the resources to develop, whether it be time, money, or a good sounding board, could be pursued at UH.”
“Research and travel grants, as well as faculty, and peers—both artists and art historians—can help you realize your goals.”
Built with Shorthand