Ursinus Students

The Berman Museum of Art provides Ursinus students with several opportunities to learn about art and museum work. Students can take on an active role at the museum through employment, coursework, and events.

Annual Student Exhibition

Every spring semester, the Berman Museum of Art celebrates the achievements of Ursinus College’s student artists through the Annual Student Exhibition. The exhibition showcases the work of Ursinus art majors and minors from disciplines including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, installation, mixed media, and photography.

The museum publishes a catalog with excerpts from the artists and professional photography of their work to accompany the exhibition.

Programs

The Berman Museum of Art hosts several events a semester to support the arts on campus. Art-making events like screen-printing and pumpkin painting are casual ways for Ursinus students to decompress. Artist-led workshops and speaker series are open to the public as well as Ursinus students. They aim to help participants learn more about art and develop a deeper understanding of the museum’s current exhibitions.

Student organizations are welcome to use the Berman as a venue for meetings, events, or performances. Student leaders or their faculty advisors should complete the form below to request event space.

Museum Assistants

The Berman Museum employs several students each semester to work at the reception desk and as tour guides. Those with a particular interest in collections management and conservation also have the opportunity to work with the Berman Museum’s Collection Manager, Catherine Sirizzotti. Please note, work at the Berman Museum does not fulfill the Museum Studies internship requirements.

Students may reach out to Betsy Witt, Operations Manager, to inquire about current openings at the Berman Museum. All students are welcome to apply regardless of their area of study.

Museum Studies minor

The Museum Studies minor helps students gain first-hand experience in one or more areas of museum work, such as curating, education, registration, collections management, conservation, or technology. Courses in the program introduce students to the historical development of museums and current exhibition practices.

One highlight of the program is MS-200, Curatorial Practice. In the course, students engage in the activities, processes, challenges, skill-building, and thinking relevant to the display and interpretation of objects in museums. Students will collaboratively create an exhibition to open in the Berman Museum the January following the fall semester course.

Research with artist-in-residence

Once a year, an artist-in-residence works with Ursinus students to develop a site-specific installation in the Berman’s Baldeck-Hollis Gallery.

Any Ursinus student can be a research assistant for the project, but it is a particularly valuable experience for students whose studies align with the message of the artist’s work. For 2022’s installation, Immigrant Flora: Rising Under, Bahar Behbahani worked with biology, chemistry, environmental studies, and studio art majors.

The research cohort meets the artist in the second half of the fall semester and collaborates with them virtually until January. From the end of January into early February, the students help the artist bring the work to life. Students looking for a shorter commitment can still assist with the project by participating in the installation process.

Interested students should contact Deborah Barkun, Creative Director, for more information.

Ursinus Students

The Berman Museum of Art provides Ursinus students with several opportunities to learn about art and museum work. Students can take on an active role at the museum through employment, coursework, and events.

Annual Student Exhibition

Programs

Courses that directly engage with the Berman Museum of Art:

Events

Art Gallery Meditation

MLK Week: Artwork Close-Looking Exercise

Request Event Space