51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú

Tara Attanasio ’26

By Tara Attanasio ’26

Tara Attanasio ’26 is a senior majoring in art history with a minor in economics. She was the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery’s Getty Marrow Curatorial Intern and is currently the gallery’s 2025–26 Wilson Arts Administration Intern.

In every art history course I’ve taken at 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú, from European Modernism to History of Photography to Japanese Prints, the has been present in the classroom. Staff encourage students to study and interact with objects in the collections—an experience that inspired me to apply for an internship to learn about arts operations and potential careers.

For 10 weeks this summer, I worked at the gallery as the Getty Marrow Curatorial Intern, assisting on curatorial projects with artists and industry professionals throughout Los Angeles. I had so much fun gaining hands-on experience in curation, collections management, and conservation, and making lasting friendships and connections.

One of my main projects was curating a show for Mount San Antonio Gardens, a local retirement community in Pomona, California. The exhibition features 12 prints from the gallery’s collection, focusing on the representation of children in 17th to 20th-century woodblock prints. My idea behind this show stemmed from an assignment in my Japanese Prints course. Developing that paper into a larger exhibition with descriptive wall labels and educational guides, plus just handling the delicate prints, has truly been invaluable and rewarding.

For 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú’s 81st Ceramic Annual, A Means to an End, I partnered with interdisciplinary artist and show curator, Reniel Del Rosario, to learn about his vision for the show and its 14 featured artists. I had been aware of his work since taking a ceramics course at 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú my sophomore year, and I was starstruck when I first met him during the A Trip Down Memory Lane internship orientation. By summer’s end, I had not only learned how much hard work is involved in an exhibition and catalog preparation, but I also got to know Reniel better as an artist and a person.

As a Getty-funded and sponsored program, my internship came with a plethora of opportunities to network with arts professionals affiliated with the Getty, the Broad Museum, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, and other LA-area institutions. My favorite memory was going to the Natural History Museum for a private tour of their gem collections and hold dinosaur bones that were millions of years old! Today, I regularly keep in contact with all my fellow interns from the 5Cs and the Williamson Gallery’s collections management and conservation team.

Now in my final year at 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú, I’m working with the gallery as the Wilson Arts Administration Intern. Funded by the generous support of Jane Hurley Wilson ’64 and Michael G. Wilson, I’m continuing independent research from my Mount San Antonio Gardens show alongside new curatorial, collections, and education-centered projects. I am especially excited to be involved with events slated for 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú’ centennial in 2026.

When I meet prospective and current art history majors from 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú, my advice is the same: Commit to your studies, show enthusiasm, and be open to applying for any opportunity, including those at the Williamson Gallery. As I engage in meaningful work every day to prepare for a future career in the arts, the gallery remains a place where I feel truly cared for.