Jody Gifford applied to My Museum Monday after reading about it in the Art Center newsletter. She wanted to use her time in the galleries to write in complete silence. Jody described her desire to apply: “To understand this request is to understand that my life is full of noise. I’m a mom of three busy teenagers, I have a full-time job, I volunteer with several non-profits, and I write professionally, and for fun. Writing in itself is an art form and I have always had to do it amidst lots of noise and activity. Rarely do I ever get the chance to sit quietly and just…write. Three hours in an empty art museum was literally going to be a dream come true.”
Jody spent the beginning of her experience wandering the galleries, studying different artworks up close, including works in the Alison Elizabeth Taylor exhibition in the Anna K. Meredith Gallery. Then Jody found the her place to write: “The perfect spot ended up being the Pei building, where I sat on the ledge overlooking the Rose Garden. I opened my laptop to start writing when it hit me—I couldn’t hear a thing. No footsteps, no voices, no sound of any kind. It was completely still. I closed my eyes, rested my head against the concrete pillar and took a breath. THIS was what I wanted. THIS was what I was craving.”
We are so glad that Jody was able to find tranquility during the My Museum Monday program and continues to support the Art Center through membership. “It wasn’t until I had a family that I realized how important it was to support the Art Center as a member. Until then, I’d always made small contributions when I visited, but stopped short of fully realizing how far my contributions could go. It took me a long time to understand that the Art Center needed my support if it was going to be around for my children (and theirs) to enjoy in the years to come.”
Thank you, Jody, for participating in My Museum Monday and continuing to support the Art Center as a member!
