The Art of Giving:
Meet Julia Kilgore
“ I would say that my original interest in art stems from its visual prowess and its ability to tell stories both in terms of the history they hold and their visual qualities.”
Julia Kilgore has joined the museum staff as Pierre Daura Curatorial Research Assistant.
She was previously a provenance research assistant and a museum host assisting with special events and other museum experiences at the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University (EMA). While at the EMA she also assisted with educational initiatives as a volunteer. Kilgore earned degrees in art history and library science from Indiana University Bloomington. Her love of art started at a young age. “When I was young, I was always producing art in some form or another,” said Kilgore. “Wherever I went, you would always see at least one of three things with me: a book, my camera or a drawing medium of some sort. At the root of it all, however, I would say that my original interest in art stems from its visual prowess and its ability to tell stories both in terms of the history they hold and their visual qualities.” It’s those stories that act as muses for her, but Kilgore finds herself magnetized the most by connections. “The interaction between people and the arts inspire[s] me most of all,” she shared. “[Artists’] ability to share that love and devotion to their craftmanship, relate their stories and the ability to inspire others through it is what I love most about working in cultural insti- tutions, especially museums. But more than that, it’s the people who come to view and learn about the art, especially younger children and how they interact with art, that inspire me.” Kilgore’s research interests range from the Hudson River School in American art to baroque painters like Rembrandt, Peter Paul Rubens and Nicholas Poussin. She also admires Pierre Auguste Cot and
William-Adolphe Bouguereau’s works, as well as Japanese Ukiyo-e prints. She prefers the latter to include “scenes from history and folk tales as well as travel scenes and landscapes.” Some of Kilgore’s past research areas have also deepened her topics of interest. “My research for Indiana University’s Lilly Library on Gustave Doré has inspired me to con- tinue to explore the world of 19th-century literary illustration,” said Kilgore. “My work in conducting provenance research at the EMA has helped me develop a curiosity in the history of collecting and exhibitions, and the intersection of modern art and politics during the World War II.” In her new role at the Georgia Museum of Art, Kilgore is looking forward to melding her previous experiences with new opportunities. “I’m thrilled that this position combines multiple areas of museum-related work that I’ve done in the past whether it be research, curatorial, education and archival-based work. It’s exciting that I will be able to continue to delve into all of these facets in one job.” As the Pierre Daura Curatorial Research Assistant, she is enthusiastic about explor- ing the archives. She stated, “The amazing thing about working with archival material is that you get to be immersed in the prima- ry source material and, to a large extent, explore the world of that artist from their
perspective as well as those contemporane- ous with them.”
People may be surprised to know that Kilgore is a Colorado Springs native and a triplet. Though she and her siblings — a sister and a brother — are not identical, she and her sister share a twin telepathy despite now living thousands of miles apart. Kilgore recounted the two of them simultaneously wearing the same colors or eating the same foods on the same day. She also shared an- other interesting tidbit about her childhood: “I grew up in prairieland Colorado with ostriches for neighbors; fun fact: they hate the color red, and what was the color of our family's van? Red, of course.” Kilgore has spent much of her life in the Midwest, including time in Michigan and Indiana. In addition to her new position at the museum, she is excited to experience Athenian culture. At a time of reduced state budgets, the museum was able to welcome Julia thanks to the generous support of Martha Daura and the Daura Foundation. Martha Daura has been a steadfast patron of the Georgia Museum of Art from the transformative gift in 2002 of her father’s work and archival material, Catalan-American artist Pierre Daura (1896-1976), to ongoing special projects, exhibitions and acquisitions. She is truly an expert in the art of giving.
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