Internships & volunteers

Would you like to lend a helping hand in describing, organising, and opening up our archives? Are you interested in working with the archives of previous curators, departments, and organisations in the museum? Then we would like to welcome you as a volunteer. Master students wishing to conduct an internship in our archives department are of course also more than welcome. We have a range of exciting subjects waiting for you:

  • Inventories - While the larger archival funds of the RMAH are now nearly fully inventoried, there are still a large number of smaller funds awaiting to be processed. How about an inventory of the archives of the plaster cast workshop (18 metres, but structured), the family archive of the famous goldsmith Wolfers, the archives of the Japanese Tower and the Chinese Pavilion in Laeken, or the CRBEI (the commission that regulated the international exchange of casts)?
  • Archival guides - Archival guides are back! Meanwhile, the old-fashioned paper versions are being replaced by smart online tools that assist readers in finding archival documents linked to a particular theme or topic. Currently, we have prepared an archival guide that highlights traces of colonial collections, but a series of similar guides on a variety of topics such as World Wars I & II, women curators, antique dealers, or other themes can be drafted.
  • Archival processing plan - One of the most important archival funds of the RMAH awaiting processing is the fund Administration. This is the Director’s archive from the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Before we start, an archive processing plan has to be drawn up. In such an APP, you lay down the outline of future processing. Do selections have to be made beforehand? What sorting and description criteria do we adhere to? How much will the processing cost in terms of staff?
  • Archival selection list - Just like other archives, the RMAH also dispose of an archival selection list. This list requires regular updating. Together with the relevant museum departments, you evaluate and examine which parts of the selection list need to be revised.
  • Valorisation and communication - The stories told by our archives are fascinating. Why not help us to share them with the general public through publications, virtual exhibitions, guided tours, educational activities, or communication via social networks?

Interested to join us as an intern or volunteer? Please contact the archival department:

Sylvie Paesen
T: + 32 (0)2 741 72 38
E: s.paesen@kmkg.be