By Karis Regamey
You know the phrase “if you’ve got it, flaunt it”? All too often the things that are flaunted definitely should not be. In the Museum’s case, we have waited too long in my opinion! For those of you who do not know Audrey, she is our Museum Specialist, meaning she knows almost everything there is to know about Lang Pioneer Village Museum and then some. Audrey has been working at the Museum for the past 31 years. During this time, she has been an interpreter, exhibit designer, in charge of accessioning and deaccessioning artifacts, cataloguing the archives and so much more. While she is talented at everything she does, I think one of her greatest talents is drawing. Over the years Audrey has done many drawings for the Village. If you have visited the Museum, you may have seen pen-and-ink drawings on text panels in the Village. You may have also seen our Guide Book, the Village Map on our website or streetscape on various collectibles like mugs that were once sold in the Museum Shop to name a few. Nevertheless, if you have seen a hand-drawn image in the Village or on promotional material for the Village, it was most likely drawn by Audrey. Unfortunately, as is the case with most things, many of these amazing drawings have been tucked away and forgotten- until now, that is.
This season we are finally flaunting the artist that we have and are turning the gallery into a display room for the many wonderful drawings that Audrey has done over the years. Audrey once said to me, “I was actually amazed how many bits of paper I found with artwork. Had I known I would ever use them again I might have taken better care of them. The coffee stains make them original right??”. I think that if we had really realized all those years ago what an incredible talent we had on-site, we would have made sure that every drawing was saved in perfect condition. It may be too late to rescue some of those drawings but it certainly isn’t too late to show our visitors the artist we have with the artwork we have remembered to tuck away.
Above: Just a couple of Audrey's drawings
You can come see some of these hand-drawn masterpieces for yourself when the exhibit opens on Father's Day. We are lucky to have our very own artist, and this season our gallery is going to flaunt it.
Karis Regamey is the Marketing Consultant for Lang Pioneer Village Museum, She has been with the Museum since February of 2009. When she is not busy overseeing the advertising of the Village, she can be found chasing after her two little ones.
