Julie Dickover, director of the Crisp-Ellert Art Museum, studied Art History as an undergrad and spent a semester in New York City which cemented her desire to work in the arts. She was specifically interested in contemporary art. In 2000, Dickover and her husband moved to Los Angeles, where they got jobs in commercial galleries. And in 2003, she was hired as a Registrarial Assistant in the Hammer Museum at UCLA. Dickover worked her way up to Associate Registrar, handling their rotating and traveling exhibitions. As a museum registrar, she was a steward of artwork, dealing with things like conservation, packing and shipping, overseeing installation, and deinstallation. She got to travel all over the world couriering exhibitions the Hammer had organized, and loans from their various collections. They moved to St. Augustine when current Department Chair of Visual Arts, Chris Balaschak, was first hired as faculty in the Department of Visual Art.
This month, The Office of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion will be honoring Dickover, as the Flagler College Excellence in Diversity Award 2022 recipient at the 38th Annual MLK Breakfast for her time and dedication towards diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives on campus.
How long have you been at Flagler, and what does your position entail?
I have been at Flagler since August 2010. My job is Director of the Crisp-Ellert Art Museum, and Curator of Campus Collections. As the museum director, I organize all aspects of 5-7 exhibitions a year and oversee the CEAM Artist Residency program. I wear all the hats – curating, artist liaison, public programming, academic engagement, etc. I only recently took on the position of overseeing the campus art collection(s), where I will make sure that the artwork across campus is catalogued, stored properly, safe, and accessible. The collections are a great resource on campus!
What do you enjoy most about working at Flagler?
I love working with students! It’s very exciting to provide the opportunity for students to engage with a diverse group of artists every year. I also really enjoy mentoring students who work in the museum as gallery assistants, interns, and work study students.
What is a stand-out memory you have from interacting with students?
I’ve had the chance to tag along on the spring break study away trip to New York City that’s organized by the Department of Visual Arts, and I would have to say that being able to experience NYC with students definitely rises to the top.
What is your proudest moment, personally or professionally?
I’m going to offer up a few proudest moments! One is that I have raised a wonderful, newly turned 13-year-old daughter, alongside my equally wonderful husband. Secondly, I became CEAM’s Director after working in galleries and museums in Los Angeles. Prior to moving here, I had been an exhibitions registrar, which is a very focused position within a mid-range to a large museum. Being a “Director” who is responsible for this (albeit small) space felt very daunting to me, and still does to some degree.
I feel incredibly grateful to have been given the opportunity to do this work, and the grace to learn as I go. Especially because I felt so ill-equipped when I first started. The fact that my career revolves around art is amazing.
Lastly, this past year we received a two-year Warhol Foundation grant for general programming. These are highly competitive and awarded to institutions like the Met! The MoMA! I still can’t believe they saw CEAM as worthy of their financial support, but it is very validating.
If you could choose anywhere in the world to travel, where would you go and why?
I would go to either Tokyo, Japan or Seoul, Korea. For the arts, culture, architecture, and the food of course! Recently my family and I have been watching this show on Netflix called Korea #1 which is sort of what has prompted this, as well as eating a lot of Kimchi fried rice lately. If you watch the show, you’ll also want to travel there!
