FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR APPLICANTS Application Reference letters University transcript Statement of motivation Deadline Proficiency in Italian University credits When is the best period to apply for the internship? In what specific department are the internships offered? Financial obligations INFORMATION FOR NEW INTERNS Accomodation How much will it cost? Do I need to pay a deposit? What are the apartments like? How many interns participate in the program? How should I prepare my seminar? Do I need a cell phone? What should I wear to work? Will I have computer access? When do I receive my stipend? Where should I have my mail sent? Direction to Venice from the airport About Venice About the Collection Preparing for the internship Recommended Peggy Guggenheim bibliography Recommended Gianni Mattioli Collection Bibliography FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR APPLICANTS APPLICATION The application must include the following: (I) a completed application form; (II) a statement of motivation clearly articulating the candidate’s reasons for applying; (III) a CV comprised of relevant information regarding your education, previous work experience and skills; and (IV) two reference letters attesting to the candidate’s academic and professional attributes as well as personal character. University transcripts may also be included as evidence of academic competence, however they are not required. top REFERENCE LETTERS Reference letters, together with their respective reference forms, must be submitted in a sealed and signed envelope, and included in the application package. They must be either in English or in Italian. Should the referees be unable to provide a reference in either language, a translation must be submitted and signed by the referee. We recommend to submit both an academic reference (e.g. from a university professor) and a professional reference (e.g. from a museum). Although the letters do not exclusively have to be related to the art field, referees testifying to the candidate’s abilities in a related sector are more relevant as the Peggy Guggenheim Internship Program is an art museum-specific. top UNIVERSITY TRANSCRIPTS A university transcript is an official record of one’s university qualifications. It itemizes all subjects studied, together with the marks received and the final grade point average (GPA). Transcripts may be included as evidence of academic competence, even though they are not required. If submitted, they must be in English or Italian. top STATEMENT OF MOTIVATION The statement of motivation should not exceed one A4 page in a 12 point font. top DEADLINE The application must be postmarked by the deadline indicated. top PROFICIENCY IN ITALIAN Candidates must be conversationally competent in Italian. The internship involves daily interaction with an Italian staff, Italian interns and an often Italian speaking public. For applicants with little to no Italian background, it is recommended they show evidence of their efforts to learn the language (e.g. enrolment in an Italian language course). top UNIVERSITY CREDITS The internship does not qualify as course credits unless special arrangements are made with the applicant’s university. top WHEN IS THE BEST PERIOD TO APPLY FOR THE INTERNSHIP? As it is a very competitive program with a 1 in 10 success rate, it is best to apply for months outside the summer holidays (May to August). Many excellent applicants are declined for this particular period as there is simply an over-abundance of applications with very limited places. top IN WHAT SPECIFIC DEPARTMENT ARE THE INTERNSHIPS OFFERED? The Peggy Guggenheim Internship Program is not department specific.  It is designed to enable interns to understand the mechanics of a small museum, to have an interface with all its staff members, to deal with the visiting public, and to participate in the daily running of the museum. Interns’ tasks range from visitor services, education and support to assisting various departments of the museum. top FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS The stipend of €750 per month is designed to cover basic rent and some living expenses. Travel expenses are not subsidized. top FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR NEW INTERNS ACCOMODATION Incoming interns are sent a list of available rooms and apartments three weeks prior to their arrival. Although this may appear limited in terms of time, there is rarely a problem in successfully arranging accommodations prior to their arrival. The rooms and apartments on the list are regularly rented by PGC interns and, as interns come and go every month, there is a regular turnover and exchange. Should interns wish to view the apartments beforehand, a list of recommended hotels and hostels will also be provided. The museum is available for any assistance required, including liaising between tenant and landlord. top HOW MUCH WILL IT COST? Rent varies depending on the apartment (e.g. single room, double room, apartment, old, new, etc), but ranges from €400 to €800 per month per person and may or may not include bills. top DO I NEED TO PAY A DEPOSIT? Certain apartments require a deposit that is returned at the end of the rental period. In such cases, the deposit is usually the equivalent of one month’s rent. Please be sure to clarify this matter with the landlord. top WHAT ARE THE APARTMENTS LIKE? Apartments vary substantially. Those on the PGC Housing List have been inspected by the Intern Coordinator. They may be a studio, one bedroom, two bedrooms, furnished simply, furnished with antiques, etc. They may be shared with other interns or with local residents (e.g. students, young professionals, and landlords). Photos of some of the apartments are available. Bed linen and towels are normally provided and most are equipped with a washing machine. Apartments, however, generally do not have a phone/landline or internet access. top HOW MANY INTERNS PARTICIPATE IN THE PROGRAM? In 2010 there was a total of 147 participants. Each month there are about 25 to 35 present at the museum, 5 to 15 of which begin that particular month. top HOW SHOULD I PREPARE MY SEMINAR? Seminars should be nearly complete upon arrival in Venice. They are delivered in the last month of one’s internship, allowing interns to edit and fine-tune it once they arrive. As the internship can be quite demanding, we highly discourage participants from leaving preparations to the last minute. The seminar may be dedicated to any aspect of art, art theory, art criticism, museology, curatorial issues, or specific exhibitions. It does NOT specifically have to be about any artist or work of art in the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. Ongoing projects or theses are usually good topics. Images may be in the form of a PowerPoint or other audio-visual supports (video, CD, etc). As each intern will present their seminar to other participants in the program, seminars which foster group discussion are encouraged. It does not need to be a traditional paper presentation but rather dynamic and thoroughly researched. The seminar should last approximately 30 minutes in length. Noteworthy is the Peggy Guggenheim Collection’s strong modern/contemporary multi-lingual art library, which may be of use to one’s research. top DO I NEED A CELL PHONE? Cell phones are not a requirement, but are highly recommended especially since landlines are uncommon. It is possible to purchase a phone for approximately €60 or an Italian SIM card for €15 that would function in a European or triband cell phone. top WHAT SHOULD I WEAR TO WORK? There is no work uniform. The museum operates on a semi-casual dress code. We suggest interns dress comfortably, but that they remember they represent the museum and should therefore be dressed appropriately. Interns are also asked to bring at least one formal outfit for exhibition openings or special events. Note that comfortable and practical shoes are essential for work as well as for walking around Venice. top WILL I HAVE COMPUTER ACCESS? Computers with internet access are available for interns. They are PC formatted and equipped with CD and USB drives. Note that the Peggy Guggenheim Collection does not have wireless internet. top WHEN DO I RECEIVE MY STIPEND? Stipends are released on the first day of each month (unless this falls on a weekend, in which case interns will be paid the following Monday) in the form of a cheque for €750. Cheques may be cashed at the Banca Nazionale del Lavoro very close to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. To cash this cheque you do not need to open an Italian bank account, but must have a passport on hand. top WHERE SHOULD I HAVE MY MAIL SENT? Personal mail from family and friends may be sent directly to the museum and addressed as follows: Your Name c/o Internship Program Peggy Guggenheim Collection Palazzo Vernier dei Leoni Dorsoduro 701 30123 Venezia Italy Please note that the Peggy Guggenheim Collection does not subsidize postage expenses. top DIRECTIONS TO VENICE FROM THE AIRPORT (I) From Marco Polo Airport take a bus to Piazzale Roma. There are two options: (a) an ATVO bus that leaves every 20 minutes from directly outside the terminal, costs €3 and takes 20 minutes or (b) public bus #5 that leaves every 30 minutes, costs €2, and takes 30mins. Tickets may be purchased at the bus stop. Bus timetable (II) From Piazzale Roma take a vaporetto (public boat) to the closest stop to your destination. Tickets may be purchased at the ACTV ticket booth at the Piazzale Roma vaporetto stop. Note: Venice is a pedestrian city often described as a labyrinth of narrow paths, bridges and canals. It is highly recommended that interns travel with backpacks and suitcases with wheels and that they have very precise directions to their respective destinations. top ABOUT VENICE Interns may want to familiarize themselves with Venice prior to their arrival. There are a number of useful guidebooks that may be purchased as well as informative websites. These websites include the following: www.timeout.com/venice www.agendavenezia.it www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/europe/venice/ www.invenicetoday.com www.veniceworld.com www.venicehotel.com www.youthhostelvenice.com top ABOUT THE COLLECTION The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is a comprehensive collection of modern art exemplifying some of the major art movements of the first-half of the 20th Century. Included within its walls are some of the masterpieces of Cubism, Futurism, Constructivism, Surrealism and Abstract Expressionism. It is housed in the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, a 17th century palazzo on the Grand Canal. This long, wide building with only a basement and a ground floor was formely Peggy’s home from 1949 until the year of her death in 1979. She began showing her private collection to the public beginning in 1951. Before her death, she entrusted the collection to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation in New York, but was insistent that it remain in Venice and open for the public to enjoy after she passed away. There are over 380 works in Peggy’s permanent collection. The museum also exhibits important works from the Gianni Mattioli Collection which represents Italian art from 1910 onwards, with an emphasis on Futurist painting. The Patsy R. and Raymond D. Nasher Sculpture Garden, other courtyards as well as the Grand Canal terrace exhibit, in addition to works from the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, sculptures on long-term loan from other foundations, estates, artists and galleries. top PREPARING FOR THE INTERNSHIP It is wise to prepare for the internship by doing some reading or research on the collection and the major art movements represented in it before arriving, if you are not already familiar with them. As an intern you are intrinsic to the public education program of the museum and are therefore asked to deliver short presentations on the life of Peggy Guggenheim, on specific works in the Collection, sculpture gardens and temporary exhibitions. You will also have the opportunity to deliver detailed tours of the Collection, the Gianni Mattioli Collection, the Patsy R. and Raymond D. Nasher Sculpture Garden, the temporary exhibitions and themes or works of choice in the Collection. Interns will be sent a resource package three weeks prior to their arrival. top RECOMMENDED PEGGY GUGGENHEIM BIBLIOGRAPHY Peggy Guggenheim, ed., Art of This Century, New York, 1942.  Facsimile edition, New York (Arno Press) 1968. Rare. Peggy Guggenheim, Out of This Century, New York (Universe Books) and London (André Deutsch), 1979. This incorporates earlier autobiographies, as well as her essay on Venice. Italian edition: Una vita per l'arte, Milan (Rizzoli Editore), 1982. Also in French, German and Spanish. Aline B. Saarinen, The Proud Possessors, New York (Random House), 1958, esp. 'Appassionata of the Avant-Garde. Peggy Guggenheim,' pp.326-43. Angelica Zander Rudenstine, The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, New York (Abrams), 1985. The catalogue riasonné of Peggy Guggenheim’s Collection. John H. Davis, The Guggenheims. An American Epic, 1st edition, New York (William Morrow and Co., Inc.), 1978. 2nd edition, updated, New York (Shapolsky Publishers Inc.), 1988. Lucy Flint and Elizabeth C. Childs, Masterpieces from the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, New York (Guggenheim Museum). Currently in print. (Also Italian, German and French editions). This is the standard collection handbook for the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. Virginia Dortch, Peggy Guggenheim and Her Friends, Milan (Berenice Art Books), 1994. An anthology of short memoirs by Peggy Guggenheim’s friends. Laurence Tacou-Rumney, Peggy Guggenheim. A Collector’s Album, Paris, New York (Flammarion), 1996. English, French, German and Italian editions. Rich in photographs. Karole P. B. Vail, Thomas M Messer, Peggy Guggenheim. A Celebration, New York (Guggenheim Museum and Harry N. Abrams), 1998. Centenary exhibition catalogue. Mary V. Dearborn, Peggy Guggenheim Mistress of Modernism, New York (Houghton Mifflin), 2004, and London (Virago Press), 2005. An excellent biography. Also in German, Ich bereue Nichts, Bergish Gladabch (Bastei Lübbe), 2004. Susan Davidson and Philip Rylands, eds., Peggy Guggenheim & Frederick Kiesler, The Story of Art of This Century, New York (Guggenheim Publications), 2004. The most important source for the formation of Peggy Guggenheim’s collection and for her New York sojourn, 1941-47. Irwin Unger and Debi Unger, The Guggenheims. A Family History, New York (Harper Collins), 2005. Francesco Paolo Campione, ed., Ethnopassion. La Collezione d’Arte Etnica di Peggy Guggenheim, Milan (Mazzotta), 2008. In English and Italian. top RECOMMENDED GIANNI MATTIOLI COLLECTION BIBLIOGRAPHY Flavio Fergonzi, The Gianni Mattioli Collection. Masterpieces of the Italian Avant-garde, Milan (Skira), 2003. Italian Edition. Collezione Gianni Mattioli. Capolavori dell’avanguardia italiana. With an essay by Laura Mattioli Rossi. top credits: Hangar Design Group