Fig. 1. Storage mount bodice insert in progress. Zenzie Tinker Conservation, Brighton. Personal photograph of the author. 26 Feb 2020.
I’m from the US, so my first year was a big change and I was pretty homesick. In my second year, I decided to try new things and take every opportunity that came my way. I saw that The Old Police Cells museum were advertising a volunteering role through the university’s volunteering service, so I made an appointment with a member of the team called Kat and she set up a placement for me.
As well as knowing of my subject knowledge in fashion history, Kat took note of my broader interests like sewing, which was great because she was then able to assign me a further work placement at the specialist textile conservation company Zenzie Tinker. The photographs [Figs. 1-2] show aspects of the mounting process for historic garments under conservation.
Fig. 2. Storage mount arm inserts. Zenzie Tinker Conservation, Brighton. Personal photograph of the author. 26 Feb 2020.
I’ve also completed a volunteering placement at the Brighton Museum in preparation for the Queer the Pier exhibition. Fig. 3 shows me preparing a mannequin for garment display in the Museum Lab space.
It’s been great to know one of the benefits of using the volunteering service is that if there were a problem, the university would be able to directly support me.
Fig.3: Costume Mounting for Brighton Museum’s Queer the Pier, Brighton. Personal Photograph of the Author. Jan 2020.
From undertaking work placements and volunteering I have gained so much. I now have real work experience on my CV and knowledge that I can apply to future jobs when I am finished with university. But more than that, I have made so many new friends and connections that I feel a lot more tied to the Brighton community.
I have learned so many different things, beyond technical skills, including people skills that you can really apply not just your future job but to everyday life too, and that is what is great about it. I now have a much clearer idea of what I want my future to look like – and I realise everything that teachers say about volunteering is actually very true!