Each month, we ask a museum staff member to answer five questions about their position at The Walt Disney Family Museum, their fondest Disney memories, and personal tidbits. This month, in celebration of our new major exhibition--Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: The Creation of a Classic--we're thrilled to introduce to you someone who played an integral part in getting this exhibition up and running. So today we're BEN PETERS... what do YOU do?!
What is your title and what do YOU do here at The Walt Disney Family Museum?
I am the Chief Preparator here at our museum. People are always skeptical that “preparator” is a real word, and outside of the museum community it probably is not, but it is a great descriptor of what I do here. Preparators prepare, install and maintain exhibits. We frame art, make mounts so that precious objects do not fall over in earthquakes, we hang everything in the galleries and we make sure it keeps looking good for the whole life of the exhibit.
What is your fondest Disney memory OR what is your favorite gallery at the Walt Disney Museum and why?
Right now my favorite gallery is our Theater Gallery. This is where we have small, temporary shows on all sorts of subjects. From old drawings of scary creatures to cute stop motion animation puppets, I love the variety of objects you can see there.
How does your job communicate and interpret the legacy of Walt Disney?
The WDFM exhibits (both permanent and temporary) are important tools to teach our visitors about the man Walt Disney, what he created and all that grew from those creations. It is exciting to be involved in preparing these exhibits so visitors can see amazing objects from our collection and experience stories that might inspire them.
Describe your workspace OR your favorite item on your desk:
My job requires a lot of interaction with other staff members and work within all our galleries which are spread between two buildings. This means that although my desk is in a windowless basement room I am constantly moving around to all corners of the museum and my replacement window is the incredible view of the Golden Gate Bridge that I see as I walk back and forth between the two buildings. So I am counting that view as my favorite item on my desk.
Tell us a little known fact about you!
Blue is my favorite color of clothing to wear. Sometimes I imagine getting rid of all my non-blue clothes and just having a monochromatic wardrobe. Then I wouldn’t need to worry about my clothes matching.