In August 2024 Rollins College Student Stella Morris(’26) began work as the Fred W. Hicks Curatorial Fellow at Rollins Museum of Art (RMA). Six months in “it feels like I’ve worked here for about two weeks and my whole life all at once.” No stranger to the museum, this art history major with a minor in sexuality, women’s, and gender studies has been a member of RMA’s student council since sophomore year, volunteering for events that engage Rollins students with RMA and for family events like Spring and Fall Fling. Learn more about Stella’s experience at RMA in her own words in the Q & A below.
What are you career aspirations?
I hope to continue to work in curation, but I might also be interested in museum education. I laugh when I think of how I entered college wanting to major in international relations.
Were you interested in the arts as a kid?
The arts have been a massive part of my upbringing and identity always. I was a certified museum kid. My parents were constantly taking me to art museums; loving art was their main shared interest, and it was important to them that I be exposed to arts and culture from a young age. My most vivid childhood memories are the unique experiences I’ve been lucky enough to have.
Some key moments that have made me the person I am include standing in front of George Seurat’s Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte at the Art Institute of Chicago and being completely mesmerized by the dots that comprise it, and how giant it was compared to me; walking through the Alhambra in Spain and seeing the colorful geometric tiles all over the walls and ceilings; visiting Claude Monet’s garden at Giverny in France on an early morning, where it really did feel like you had walked into one of his paintings; seeing an opera in a Romanesque church in Italy where they were also actively excavating Roman ruins; wandering through castle ruins near my aunt’s home in Northumberland, England. I’ve had an extremely unusual upbringing and I am so grateful that it has shaped my passion, my studies, and my career.
What about Rollins Museum of Art inspired you to work here?
It was really important to me, once I determined I was studying art history, that I leave college with real-world work experience, not just an academic background. I love the environment of the RMA. The staff is small so you work with everyone at some point on something. My advisor, Dr. Kimberly Dennis, introduced me to the fellowships available here and David Matteson, the Associate Curator of Education here at the RMA (who I got to know through my involvement with the RMA Student Council) really encouraged me to put in my application for both the Hicks and the Salvatori Education Fellowship. I turned in my application and I was really nervous until I got called in for an interview, because I really wanted a position!
I’m really involved on campus in other areas and disciplines, so it made a lot of sense time-wise and geographically to stay on campus, but also because I love being entrenched in this community. It’s going to be really difficult to leave it behind when I graduate.
I also love where my desk is. I face Holt Avenue, and I can see up the hill through the oak trees to the belltower on the chapel; everyone walks by the Museum at some point. I’ve waved to a lot of friends. I take lots of pictures out the window as the seasons change. To me it is the perfect, happy work environment.
What aspect of the job have you enjoyed most?
This is really difficult to narrow down, because for the first time in my life I feel like I am working in the right place. I enjoy the creative freedom with writing and researching. I know it doesn’t seem like research can be creative, but it is, in a way—you have to be intentional with what you’re gathering information on.
What aspect of the job have you found most challenging?
Writing wall labels and producing audio guides has been the biggest joy and source of pride in my job here, but it has also been my greatest challenge. I tend to be prosaic and once I compile research about an artwork, it’s easy for me to go on a tangent about the artist, what the painting means, the style, the historical context… I’m used to writing huge, long papers for my professors, but it’s the opposite in a museum. Wall labels and audio guides are about conveying as much information in as few words as possible. It’s definitely been a challenge, but an important one and certainly one I enjoy.
“I’m used to writing huge, long papers for my professors, but it’s the opposite in a museum. Wall labels and audio guides are about conveying as much information in as few words as possible.” – Stella Morris, Fred W. Hicks Curatorial Fellow, Rollins Museum of Art
What’s next?
I am currently a junior and have one more year, but I will be applying to graduate schools this fall and hopefully some jobs the following spring and we’ll just see what happens.
Give to Rollins Museum of art this Giving Day to help students like Stella gain real world experience
The Rollins Museum of Art connects our campus and community to a world of creativity and discovery. Your support preserves this vibrant cultural hub, making art accessible to students and sparking inspiration for all who visit.
MATCH: If 50 donors give to the Rollins Museum of Art, this Giving Day, Jeremy Lang ’68 and Lynn Stern will donate $25,000 to the museum!
The Rollins Museum of Art features rotating exhibitions, ongoing programs, and an extensive permanent collection of over 6,000 objects that spans centuries, from examples of ancient art and artifacts to contemporary art. Open to the public year-round, its holdings include the only European Old Master paintings in the Orlando area, a sizeable American art collection, and a forward-thinking contemporary collection on view both at the Museum and The Alfond Inn.
