They go almost unnoticed. They are, however, essential players in the cultural milieu. The duty offers a series of portraits of shadow trades, through the confidences of professionals who practice them or have already practiced them. Today: museum guards.
Stéphanie Boucher knows the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) by heart. For just twenty years, it has criss-crossed its corridors and showrooms at the rate of twenty kilometers daily. “As a patrol, I’m the guardian who always walks, who runs from side to side,” she explains cheerfully. Every morning, at 7:30 a.m. sharp, she begins the opening round of the museum. Functional lighting and audiovisual, unlocked doors, open or closed rooms, works in place, etc. : the list of tasks she must accomplish before the first visitors at 10:00 a.m. is long. “I have to have time to open everything and make sure everything is in order for the public. Later in the day, she will be in charge of distributing the mail and ensuring the proper distribution of supplies within the establishment.
On January 3, 2003, Stéphanie Boucher began her adventure at the MMFA as a room attendant after studying art and photography. These discreet employees, posted in every corner, are the eyes of the museum, and we sometimes rub shoulders with them without noticing their presence.
In two decades, the typical day for museum room guards has not changed, since it always begins with a verification tour. But the role of these goes far beyond surveillance tasks, as they become true companions. “Whether they like an exhibition or not, some visitors come to us to discuss it,” says Stéphanie Boucher.
Since she hears everything and sees everything, Stéphanie Boucher has more than one anecdote to tell. If, during her rounds, she has never come across onlookers who would have liked to play hide and seek after the MMFA’s closing time, she has however already found people dozing in the toilets. “It’s not so improbable that a person who doesn’t have a great interest in art and who accompanies a loved one falls asleep. It is for these visitors that we carry out regular checks, in order to be sure that no one has been forgotten, ”specifies the guard.
Stéphanie Boucher has also already dealt with a woman who had begun to adopt yoga postures in the middle of an exhibition hall. A first ! “The conversation had become completely absurd,” she recalls. I kindly had to tell him that you had to be on your own two feet in a museum, because otherwise there was a risk of falling on the works. »
A profession that is far from boring
Joking aside, the museum custodian maintains that at the MMFA, it is the safety of visitors and works that counts above all. “We do everything we can to ensure that there is no malicious gesture at the museum,” says Stéphanie Boucher. Since the wave of attacks that have raged in Europe over the past few years, agents have been hired and additional checks with the public are necessary. And what about the recent soupy attacks on master paintings? According to her, this is one more threat to be taken seriously. “We have an established protocol if something ever happens, and we put a lot of effort into awareness and prevention,” she adds. To do this, the various teams work in close collaboration. “We are never alone, for anything, and we are all in constant communication. »
Finally, to those who believe that the profession of museum guard is monotonous, Stéphanie Boucher wants to prove them wrong. “Our profession is always evolving, and it fluctuates with each exhibition,” she says. Then, the activities related to his responsibilities are numerous. In 2015, when the Museum presented the installation From Here to Ear by Céleste Boursier-Mougenot, the mission of the MMFA’s security department was to take care of some 70 zebra finches, these little birds which, left free in one of the rooms of the museum, went to perch on guitars and bass to create a melody. “At the time, nobody agreed on what to do with the birds. Finally, we were asked to feed them and give them water”, recalls, a bit nostalgically, this passionate enthusiast.