This week, my Archivist Fellowship at the ICI comes to a final close. It has been an eventful journey, filled with friendships, inspiration and excitement, with so much to be thankful for.
I first started at ICI during the thrill of the 100/10 project, when it swept steadily through its many iterations until finally halting at ∆10, some five months into my internship. When I was asked to coordinate this final iteration with another ICI fellow, I was thrilled. 100/10∆10: Mappa Mundi: The Earth Project embodied the value of process in art projects, teaching me to let go of expectations, to move with the ebbs and flows of a project’s lifespan, and to trust the mind and its creative instincts.
Since the conclusion of ∆10 in August, my fellowship has involved me in new ICI endeavors. Our latest project, Forget Foucault, aimed at shedding new light on AIDS awareness and remembrance in the 21st century. Done on December 1st – World AIDS Day, this event was indeed a collaboration between ICI’s curatorial fellows Sue-Na Gay and Kaylie Wilson, ICI Director Lise Patt, Social Media consultant Kelly Barrett, Library intern Eliana Ruiz, and myself, along with a number of other ICI associates and collaborators. My biggest task for this project was digitizing ICI’s AIDS Archive and preparing these materials so they would be available to view electronically the day of the event. It was a great feat getting all this material prepared, and I felt a huge sense of satisfaction knowing a large portion of ICI’s collection had finally been digitized.
But now, we wind down. The end of the year is near, another round of internships and fellowships is drawing to a close, and ICI progresses forward. Where will it take me next?
‘The future’s not set. There’s no fate but what we make for ourselves.’ – John Connor, Terminator 2: Judgement Day