Meet Michèle Jubilee: NUMU's Education Programs Manager

Hi my name is Michèle Jubilee and I’m the Education Programs Manager at NUMU. I began my role at NUMU in January of this year, 2021, and I am so delighted to be on the team. I’ve launched NUMU’s blog in the hope that over time it can reflect the diverse voices of our community and give a window into the lives of artists in the Bay Area, the joys of art practice and learning, and give a special window into education programs and exhibitions at NUMU. 

A little bit about me, I love a good cup of tea with friends and taking walks to appreciate flowers and trees. I was born in Montreal, Canada, and I grew up in the heart of San Francisco, right next to the De Young Museum. I used to walk over to the museum regularly and spend hours just taking in all the art. Museums and art making have always been a huge part of my life. I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree, with a double-major in Art History and Visual Arts, from the University of British Columbia (UBC) located in Vancouver, Canada, on the unceded territory of the Musqueam People. It’s such a full circle moment to be living, creating and working in the Bay Area again, on Ohlone Land, working at NUMU. I also work as a freelance multidisciplinary artist and illustrator and invite you to visit my portfolio. You’re welcome to follow my art journey on instagram @michelejubilee_art.

A continual work in progress, I see my work in museum programs and my own art practice as integrally connected, and all part of one path of learning. The arts are so special because we can share in our individual and collective experiences.

Painting a mural titled Something Unfolding, Vancouver, Canada

Michèle Jubilee, Work in Progress, Ink Illustration, 2019

Painting a piece titled Nothing Left Behind, 2019, Vancouver, Canada

Live painting during Missy D’s event Hip Hop in Colors, Vancouver, Canada

Michèle Jubilee, In Bloom, digital illustration, 2020

During my time in Vancouver, Canada, I had the pleasure of working at the Museum of Anthropology, Gallery 1515, and the Contemporary Art Gallery, as well as participating in many grassroots arts initiatives. From conferences, to dance festivals, mural projects, exhibition openings, and workshops, I love working with communities, meeting artists, and empowering youth. The arts deeply shape culture and society and I find creating arts programming an ideal platform for articulating social purpose and meaning. 

Online platforms present a multitude of new ways to engage in art making and conversation. I believe that arts programming in museums must adapt to rapidly transforming notions of creativity and art by asking questions, exploring new artistic mediums and methods, questioning traditions, and learning alongside communities. I look forward to the programs and collaborations yet to come!

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to introduce yourself by emailing me at programs@numulosgatos.org. I hope you are all staying safe and inspired. You can submit a blog post idea here, and to all the artists, please consider applying to lead a workshop at NUMU by filling out this form! 

-Michèle Jubilee, NUMU’s Education Programs Manager

Photos from past programs I’ve organized:

Meet Alexandra Schindler: NUMU's Collections Registrar & LGHP Program Coordinator

Hi!  My name is Alexandra Schindler, and I am currently the Collections Registrar & LGHP Program Coordinator at NUMU.  I have been working in museums for 10 years, including locally at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, The Tech Interactive, and History San José, in addition to one summer at the National Museum of the United State Navy in Washington, D.C.  I have held a variety of roles in many different departments, from curatorial to education to education management to collections management.  I received my Master’s in Museum Studies from San Francisco State, cementing my commitment to working in the museum field.  

I first got into the museum field when I was in undergrad.  I was a history major at Cal Poly, SLO, and wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my degree; many of my peers were planning on becoming teachers, and I already knew that I did not want to go into formal education.  Cal Poly’s motto is “Learn by Doing,” and so I started thinking - how can I be hands-on with, and “do,” history?  That thought process led me to museums, as the repositories of our history.  The objects that museums have in their collections are the physical representations of our history, and proof that events happened.  I wanted to be a part of caring for history and sharing it with the world.

I love museums because I love learning, and I think that museums are spaces where learning can happen in unique and unexpected ways.  The flexibility of museum spaces allows for a greater diversity of content, programs, and experiences that can really affect people’s lives - so many people I know, whether they work in the museum field or not, got the “spark” for their career during a museum visit.  I am especially passionate about bringing history to life in museums.  I believe that there is a serious lack of historical knowledge and understanding in our society, and museums have the opportunity, and the responsibility, to help remedy that by sharing their collections in ways that are relevant to their community and bridge the gap between the past and the present.

I am excited to be at NUMU because I have the opportunity to learn about Los Gatos, a town that I have visited my whole life, but didn’t know anything about its history, and how it’s story is distinct within the larger South Bay.  Opening each box in the collection is a thrill, because I never know exactly what is going to be inside, and what I can learn from each object. I feel like every day I am handed a piece of the puzzle that makes up Los Gatos, and I cannot wait to share that puzzle with the public.  Stay tuned for more updates from the collection cataloging process and history-based programs!