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Curator of Education Anne Lambert to Retire
After forty-one years as the museum ’ s Curator of Education , Anne Lambert will retire in January 2017 . The museum ’ s longest-serving staff member organized countless lectures , panel discussions , poetry programs , artists ’ demonstrations , workshops for educators , visits to civic groups — virtually any type of educational outreach imaginable — and trained generations of docents during her four decades at the museum .
“ Anne ’ s leadership is the reason the docent program has been so long lived and effective ,” says Chazen Director Russell Panczenko . “ It ’ s going to be a hard act to follow .”
Lambert grew up in Clemson , S . C ., where her father was a professor and her mother a civic volunteer . She earned a B . A . in art history at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and then an M . A . in art history at the University of Michigan . She returned to
ABOVE : Anne Lambert , 2016 LEFT : Anne Lambert ca . 1995
North Carolina to take a position at the Mint Museum in Charlotte , and then decided to join her sister in Madison . While working at the Memorial Union , Lambert volunteered at the brand new Elvehjem Art Center . In 1975 , she was hired as the full-time curator of education , and the rest , as they say , is history .
“ I thought I was the luckiest person in the world to get this job ,” says Lambert . “ From the beginning , I had the support of art and classroom teachers from around the state , and the faculty from the University . It was quite unusual to have a university art history department in the building , where students could go to art history classes ; on the next level , an open stack university art library ; and then upstairs — original works of art . All under one roof ! It was extraordinary at the time . The Chazen addition in 2011 has continued this tradition of excellence in art museum resources for the state and the University .”
The Elvehjem Art Center became the Elvehjem Museum , and then the Chazen Museum of Art with Lambert leading an instrumental regiment of volunteers who are the face of the museum and introduce thousands of visitors to the collection and temporary exhibits . Lambert has trained hundreds of docents over the years . “ I ’ ve had a steady group of people that I inherited in 1975 . Some of them are still emeritus docents ,” she says . One constant through the years and the changing demographics is a loyal core of volunteers . “ The people who are docents here have the broadest goodwill toward the University and personal learning for themselves in mind ,” says Lambert .
Lambert has plenty of ideas for what she ’ ll do with newfound free time . “ I ’ ll go to plays ,” she says . “ I ’ m going to read the books in my book club .” Those who know Lambert ’ s dedication to and passion for art and the museum won ’ t be surprised to learn that some of her plans don ’ t seem very different from her work at the Chazen . “ Perhaps I ’ ll bring children over for a tour — I am grateful to be a citizen who can wander in [ to the Chazen .]” She doesn ’ t plan to stop learning , either . “ I would like to be a senior guest auditor and attend classes of the fine art history faculty or go hear Bill Cronon give his lecture class on the history of the American environment ,” she says . artscene January – June , 2017