Tour guide training at Fitchburg Art Museum

FITCHBURG - Get a backstage view of the Museum this fall. Fitchburg Art Museum seeks docents (tour guides) and will train participants. This free program begins in September and continues for five months.

"You should have a strong interest to learn about art and history, although participants need not have a background in art. We want individuals who want to share what they learn with children and adults," explains Ann Descoteaux, the director of docents. "Our knowledgeable education and curatorial staff oversees this program, which includes visits by guest experts. Our docent program combines educational themes with art history and can a springboard to graduate work in museum studies, art history, archaeology and classical studies."

Participants in the docenttraining program will study the Museum's varied collections and art on long-term loan from other institutions. These include: Impressionist paintings (American and French); European and American landscapes, portraits, and still lifes; Greek and Roman antiquities; African sculpture; Asian art from the Sackler collection; 18th- and 19th-Century decorative arts; Egyptian artifacts, and Joseph Lindon Smith's paintings of Egyptian tomb interiors. Docents will also learn about changing, temporary exhibitions, such as the upcoming exhibitions on origami art, Italian photography, and Californian impressionist paintings.

After training is completed, a two-year commitment to giving tours in the Museum and attending regular meetings for more training is expected. In return, docents enjoy ongoing learning, socializing, and the satisfaction of introducing children and adults to art.

"The docents are a marvelous group of people," said Descoteaux. "They come from so many different walks of life and they tend to be a lively-minded and an intellectually curious group. It makes for a stimulating and fun time whenever we meet."

The program will begin in September, but the Museum will be speaking to prospective docents throughout the summer. For more information, or to schedule an interview, call Ann Descoteaux at (978) 345- 4207, ext. 302.