The Art of Collecting at a University Museum | Geoffrey Shamos | Museum Backstage | EP 102

What does it take to build and steward a university art collection in a way that actually serves students, reflects the community, and respects history?

In this conversation, Geoffrey Shamos brings an unusually transparent and practical look at what really happens behind the scenes of academic museums.

Key Discussion Points

• 00:00 – Welcome + intro to Museum Backstage

• 00:36 – Meet today’s guest: Geoffrey Shamos

• 01:14 – Why university collections deserve a closer look

• 01:52 – What actually counts as a “collection”?

• 03:28 – Preserving the past while speaking to the present

• 05:08 – How academic collecting differs from traditional museums

• 06:20 – Curriculum, research, and learning as drivers

• 08:01 – Activating collections across campus (not just in galleries)

• 09:55 – The reality: many university collections begin haphazardly

• 11:50 – DU’s early collecting story

• 13:05 – DU’s shift toward purposeful collecting

• 14:22 – Listening to faculty + student needs

•16:00 – Public art, visibility, and beautifying campus spaces

• 17:40 – Representation, identity, and belonging

• 19:25 – Filling gaps in historical narratives

• 21:18 – Space, funding, capacity: the honest limits

• 22:55 – Why supporting living artists matters

• 24:40 – Artist donations, tax law, and inequities

• 26:05 – How institutional recognition impacts artists

• 27:48 – What the Study Center actually is

• 29:15 – Hands-on learning: conservation, handling, registration

• 31:05 – Treating students as emerging professionals

• 32:40 – The three categories: Main, Study, Campus Art

• 34:55 – How each category gets used

• 36:18 – When works are declined or deaccessioned

• 37:50 – How to turn down gifts respectfully

• 39:12 – Why transparency builds better long-term relationships

• 40:40 – DU’s Center for Art Collection Ethics

• 42:15 – Restitution and the evolution of museum ethics

• 44:30 – How to break into museum work

• 46:00 – Networking that actually works

• 47:32 – The “backdoor” paths: development, fundraising, operations

• 49:05 – Creating opportunities when they don’t exist

• 50:22 – Persistence and the zig-zag path

• 52:10 – Geoffrey’s unexpected route to his role

• 54:00 – From art history to fundraising to academia

• 56:05 – Early memories of art and influence

• 58:00 – How to access DU’s collection + community programming

• 59:20 – Final reflections

Whether you’re inside the museum world, adjacent to it, or just curious about how culture gets shaped at universities, this episode gives you a rare and grounded view into the process.

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