Opening its doors in 1993, The Biggs Museum of American Art quickly became one of the most important museums in Delaware. The Museum displays the finest Delaware-made furniture and silver collection as well as the only painting and sculpture collection in the region able to track the history of American representational art. 

We are so thrilled to have Biggs Museum on board The Big Draw Festival this year as Sponsor Partners! It was great to catch up with Kristen to find out more about the Museum and what's in store for their #BigGreenDraw. We hope you enjoy the interview!

Interview: Matilda Barratt in conversation with Kristen Matulewicz.

Taking our questions from the ground upwards, let’s discuss the very beginnings of the Biggs Museum of American Art. What was the inspiration behind the museum?

The Biggs Museum of American Art was founded by Sewell C. Biggs, a Delaware philanthropist and art collector, to house his collection of American fine and decorative arts from around 1700 to the present. Sewell's friend, former First Lady Elise duPont, shared with Senator Nancy Cook the idea to display his collection on the top two floors of a new visitor center being constructed at 406 Federal Street on the capital's Legislative Mall and they were able to cultivate support for the museum statewide. Sewell had always been involved with regional preservation efforts and this interest developed into a large collection of art forms that reflect Delaware, the Mid-Atlantic Region and the nation. The success of the state and private partnership that opened the Biggs Museum was exemplified in the establishment of the Biggs Museum's Board of Trustees made up of volunteers and governor's appointees. Soon after this display was inaugurated in Dover, Sewell and the Board hired staff and together they initiated educational programs, publications and feature exhibitions.

Could you tell us a little more about the Biggs Museum and your work there? How has the museum expanded since it’s opening in 1993?

After Sewell passed away in 2003, the museum continued to grow with public support. After hiring a curator of collections, the museum grew to encompass an administrative staff, a fund raising staff, a collections manager, an educational programming staff and visitor services team. In the past 18 years, the museum's collection has doubled, its staff have published more than a dozen additional titles, organized hundreds of feature exhibitions and maintains an enviable calendar of public events for all ages. In 2010, Governor Markell and Secretary of State Jeff Bullock moved the visitor center staff and allowed the Biggs Museum to take over the entirety of the building at 406 Federal Street. A successful capital improvement initiative integrated the new galleries of the first floor into a cohesive design that is the basis of the Biggs Museum's footprint today.

Why is it so important to encourage the understanding and appreciation of art?

Understanding and appreciating art is such an integral part of society as a whole. Every day we are inundated with images, architecture, patterns, and colors. People are so engaged with art at all times that it often goes overlooked. Drawing attention to its presence and helping people understand that there is no wrong way to look at art can help them appreciate the world around them in a deeper and more connected way.  

I understand that art education is at the core of the Biggs Museum’s mission - could you tell us a little bit about the various opportunities that you offer year-round for your visitors? 

Education is very important to the Biggs; throughout the year we offer a variety of school programs, workshops, lectures, and tours. Since COVID-19 many of our programs have been adjusted, for example we have a regular monthly series of virtual dinner-time live tours and lectures related to our collection or exhibitions. We now offer our workshops in a hybrid-model and have added virtual-only workshops to our programs. We are happy to report that, as a result of these changes we now have regulars from across the country participating in our programs. We have also adjusted our school programs to better fit the needs of teachers by offering virtual live tours, student art-making workshops, or pre-recorded info sessions.  

There is such a close relationship between viewing and drawing – we firmly believe in ‘drawing to learn, not learning to draw’. Do you believe that drawing is an essential tool for better understanding art, and the world around us? Do you ever see visitors inspired to take pencil to paper?

Drawing is such an important part of understanding the world around you, we believe this goes beyond just understanding art. Yes, drawing and tracing are important ways to understand how our eyes interact with an artwork, but beyond that drawing helps us understand the world around us whether that is understanding how the body moves, the scale of a building, or how shadows change shape. At the museum we have activities that encourage visitors to draw pieces of the art or create their own versions of artworks. Visitors have been enjoying engaging with the collection in such a hands on way. 

What role do you think that museums will play in our post-lockdown world?

The Biggs Museum has dedicated itself to continue to represent the best of Delaware's and our nation's past but has made conscious decisions to work harder to also reflect the ideals and values of the culture that our community wants to be. We understand that museum's have the unique ability to demonstrate what is possible within a community and the Biggs is responding to the demonstrated need for racial equity within an institution formed to reflect social ideals. The Biggs Museum is working to be a model of racial equity within collections, interpretation, educational programs, feature exhibitions, community engagement, and staff and Board makeup.

Our Festival theme this year explores humans' relationship with our living environments and ecosystems, encouraging drawing as a means of positive activism. With this in mind, what is your opinion on the role of art in communicating a message and bringing about change? 

Art can give meaning and a tangible voice to something that is hard to put into words. Through images, whether that is drawing, painting, sculpture, installation, or performance, people can engage with a message and create a personal connection to something they might not understand otherwise. 

What about The Big Draw Festival inspired the Biggs Museum to take part? 

We decided to join The Big Draw Festival for this first time this year partially because of the theme but also because obtainable art education is becoming more necessary in this time of shutdown and we want to be able to provide for those who need that moment to express themselves or relieve the stress of being at home for months at a time the opportunity to creatively explore art and the world around them. 

Finally, what do you have in the pipeline for this year’s #BigGreenDraw Festival? Why should people get involved?

We are doing a lot this year including weekend children’s tours and workshops all month long, self-instructed drawing activities for both adults and children, and two evening workshop events: Gestural Drawing on October 15th, where participants will have the opportunity to learn about gestural drawing and apply that to both the human and animal body; and we will close out our month with a color pencil workshop on October 29th. 

Thank you Kristen!

If you were inspired by this interview with Kristen and would like to find out more about the Biggs Museum of American Art, head to their website here. 

Registrations are now open for The Big Draw Festival 2020: A Climate of Change! Find out more about the benefits of becoming an organiser here and other ways to support The Big Draw's mission here.