Opening Doors

The museum is a destination for discovery. It’s a place to gather for education and cultural enrichment. So when Berkley One considered ways to connect with clients through a meaningful, community focused lens, the museum came quickly to mind.

“Museums are the custodians of cultural legacy,” says Katja Zigerlig, Berkley One’s Vice President of Art, Wine and Collectibles Advisory and Director of Berkley One’s Community Museums Program.

“Museums serve as stewards of collections in the same way our clients are stewards of their collections at home.”

The Berkley One Community Museums Program debuted last year and features partnerships with six museums across the nation—each one an institution for cultural expression and creative engagement within their communities.

The Bruce Museum

“Museums are so much more than a repository of cultural history; they are actively engaged with contemporary artists and make the past become relevant,” says Zigerlig, who notes the importance of how museums extend their educational value through disciplines beyond visual arts, such as lectures, dance, cinema, and theatre. “When museums feature these holistic modes of art and expression, it helps to get so many audiences excited about the arts, from kindergarteners to seasoned collectors.”

Boston Athenaeum

For the Community Museums Program, Zigerlig and team knew they wanted to partner with museums that had distinct personalities within their cities, with thoughtful exhibits and robust programming that engaged their communities. The team first partnered with The Bruce Museum, a Greenwich, Connecticut institution established in 1912 and beloved for its dedication to the arts and sciences. Soon, the Community Museums Program grew to include The Morris Museum in Morristown, New Jersey (a Smithsonian Affiliate preserving New Jersey’s artistic identity), The Cincinnati Art Museum (a local and national treasure with its extensive collection, featuring more than 73,000 works), The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis (renowned for its dynamic programming, from sensory friendly days to art and chess clubs), and, new this year, The Athenaeum in Boston (one of the nation’s oldest independent libraries, with a collection of more than half a million books).

To recognize clients in the collector car space, Berkley One extended the Community Museums Program to the world of automotives, too. Last year the team partnered with the Automobile Gallery and Event Center in Green Bay, Wisconsin, a center celebrating automobile art, engineering, and preservation. This year, the team plans to announce a collaboration with another automotive museum. “We really wanted to take our collector car program ‘on the road,’ highlighting the variety of collector and classic car museums across the country,” says Zigerlig.

Walker Art Center

And though museums may present traditionally as static structures, Zigerlig notes that the museums’ constantly shifting collections and conversations are what continue to fuel innovation and moments for connection. “Every time we visit a museum, there is a new idea to get and a new conversation to have, whether it’s with a curator or a friend you bring,” she says. “The museum is a living, dynamic place—you never step in the same river twice.”

What does stay the same, Zigerlig notes, is the importance in preserving and sharing cultural heritage—something richly alive in both the museum and in our everyday lives as collectors.

“So many individuals are passionate about collecting because of the thrill of being inspired and connecting with others, and the museum is a wonderful place for this dialogue and community.”

This story appears in One Adventures, Berkley One’s digital magazine celebrating creators, experiences and stories. Read the issue here.

Want even more One Adventures? Read our other issues: Issue 01; Issue 02; Issue 03; Issue 04; Issue 05; Issue 06; Issue 07; Issue 08; Issue 09; Issue 10; Issue 11; Issue 12

—
Berkley One is a Berkley Company.
Cover/header image: Walker Art Center