Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lynne Zacek Bassett. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Lynne Zacek, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?
Yes, I am very happy as a business owner, though like any job, there are good aspects and difficult aspects to it. I basically have no choice but to be a freelance curator, because I am committed to staying where I am due to my husband’s job. For five years I did have what I thought was my dream job in my field, but it happened during a difficult period for the museum I worked for and the leadership there left a great deal to be desired. At 5:00 one day when my tasks had left me particularly frustrated, I got a call from a friend who knew I was unhappy. She offered me an opportunity to work a temporary, but long-term (two and a half years) grant-funded job and I saw it as my opportunity to begin a new chapter in my career as a curator specializing in historic fashion and textiles. It has worked out remarkably well. In the 24 years since that call, I have never been unemployed, and every single job that I have taken has come to me via word-of-mouth recommendations. What I like best about being freelance is the variety of jobs that I get to work. I have had opportunities to study fashion and textiles from the 17th century to the 20th. I have had far more opportunities to create exhibitions, to write for publication, and to present lectures than I ever would have in a permanent, full-time position. I have also been able to work with dozens of collections, which gives me access to far more objects than I would have if I had stayed where I was. I also have a wide network of friends and colleagues now that I would not have had the opportunity to cultivate if I’d stayed in a full-time, permanent position. The other great thing about being freelance is being able to walk away from a job if—as happened in one case for me—the administration is abusive. The most serious problem with being freelance, though, is the inability to control the workflow and when your office is in your home, it is impossible to get away from it. I have been juggling multiple clients for years without a serious break, often working through weekends and holidays to meet deadlines. Making time for a vacation or even just a day to go meet a friend is often difficult and I recognize that it’s not healthy. Fortunately, I love my work and it gives me great satisfaction—but I am learning to say “no.” Being close to the traditional retirement age, I did consider recently going for a full-time permanent position that would have been a nice capstone to my career. However, it would have been an hour’s commute, and the loss of the ability to write off various expenses on my taxes would have seriously reduced my income (my health insurance is covered by my husband’s employer, fortunately). I would have lost the flexibility in my schedule and I still would have been over-worked. So, I withdrew my application after the first interview. Happily, a friend of mine got the job and they have invited me to participate in a major project, so it is a perfect ending!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My mother gave me my first sewing machine when I was six, and I have always had an affinity for textiles. I grew up in Montana and did not have exposure to museums until my parents sent me to Europe for a summer when I was 16. The first museum I ever stepped foot in was the Victoria & Albert Museum, which was NOT on the tour schedule. I took myself to see it the first afternoon of our arrival, while everyone else slept off their jet lag. I don’t remember now how I knew that the V & A was only a couple of blocks away or what made me want to see it—but it was formative! (You can imagine how thrilling it was 40 years later to be asked by the V & A to be a lecturer in one of their courses on fashion history.)
I discovered the possibility of working in a museum as a student at Mount Holyoke College, where I worked in the art museum and art history department slide library for three years. My American Studies major–focusing on history, art, religion, and literature—provided the perfect foundation for what I do now. My expertise in the fashion and textile field is putting things into the context of social, labor, and economic history—understanding WHY a dress looks as it does, not just considering it from the point of view of design. Once I entered the museum field, patching together three or four part-time jobs much as I do now, I was often pushed into dealing with the clothing and textile collections because I was the only person on staff who sewed and understood textiles and clothing construction. I was fortunate to have a mentor early on (Nancy Rexford), who recognized my skills and interests and who encouraged me to get a master’s degree (which I did at UConn) and who led me to my first permanent position as the curator of collections at Historic Northampton. From there I went to Old Sturbridge Village as the curator of textiles and fine arts, and in 2001, I went freelance.
As a freelancer, I have worked for all-volunteer local history museums as well as major fine and decorative arts museums. I have had to get down on my hands and knees to scoop mouse nests out of the back of closets, and I have dressed in my best bib and tucker to be entertained in the home of one of the country’s leading arts patrons. (I preferred the latter.) I have brought order to utter chaos in collections and guided volunteer and paid administrations in the development of responsible stewardship policies and practices. I have developed award-winning exhibitions and written and lectured extensively for general audiences. One of the skills that I am most proud of is my ability to create a mannequin that displays a garment accurately and beautifully. Mannequin dressing demands excellent problem-solving and hand skills. I have mostly developed my techniques on my own, but I have always been led by the advice of Nancy Rexford, who taught me to let the garment tell me what it needs.
I am also incredibly proud that my work has been recognized by the American Antiquarian Society, the Massachusetts Historical Society, the International Quilt Museum, and Historic New England, which have all elected me to their honorary or advisory groups.
Virtual tours of two of my exhibitions are available.
“Pieces of American History: Connecticut Quilts” at the Museum of Connecticut History & Culture: https://www.connecticutmuseum.org/exhibition/pieces-of-american-history-connecticut-quilts/
“New London County Quilts and Bed Covers, 1750‒1825” at the Florence Griswold Museum: https://capturevisualmarketing.com/3d-model/new-london-county-quilts-bed-covers-1750-1825/skinned/
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I’m know that I am not alone in having faced sexism and dismissiveness by administrators in my work. Fashion and textiles in general are typically at the bottom of the totem pole in the consideration of museum administrators (especially if they are men), even though they are extremely popular with museum visitors. I recognize and am grateful for the security offered by my husband and his job (he does not work in the arts), which has allowed me to leave toxic situations on more than one occasion. My resilience though, is that I have always landed on my feet and had another job literally within days. I credit this to my work ethic and my ability to develop warm friendships with my colleagues. When students and young professionals ask me for advice, I always tell them: “Work hard, play nice, give credit where it’s due, and make friends.”
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Former clients. Every job I have had as a freelance curator has come to me by word-of-mouth.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @lynnezwoolz
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynne-bassett-79449411/
Image Credits
Allen Philips, Lynne Zacek Bassett