Sarah Burton, pictured in the Long Gallery alongside her favourite painting from the collection
University of York graduate Sarah Burton, 23, originally from the Peak District, joins the team at Kiplin Hall and Gardens in North Yorkshire this winter. Sarah takes up the new role of Winter Intern. A temporary, paid post to help care for the collections during the closed season.
Sarah has a degree in Curating and Art History from York, having worked hard to complete her studies (in part) through distance learning due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Sarah explains her delight at securing the role.
“Before the interview I visited Kiplin to find out more about the place. During that visit I was so impressed by the friendliness and knowledge of the volunteers working as room stewards. After months of lockdown it’s a real pleasure to join such a warm team and work with a treasure trove of museum objects and of course the House itself.”
Sarah’s enthusiasm for historic houses stems from a childhood spent visiting National Trust properties with her family, and more recently time spent volunteering at Chatsworth House. Her love of costume design and academic skills lead her to pursue a career in the heritage sector.
Sarah will be undertaking specialist cleaning inside the museum, including working at height on the scaffolding to reach the ornate ceilings and other objects.
Although Kiplin Hall and Gardens closes to the public during the darkest winter months, there is still a lot of activity behind the scenes cleaning and caring for the collection. Sarah will be kept busy with duties including the removal of dust from the ornate ceilings and chandeliers, only accessible via a portable scaffold whilst wearing a back pack vacuum cleaner! As well as an audit of the electronic collections database, ensuring the information on each object is correct and up-to-date. Volunteers are also an important part of the winter cleaning team and will be working alongside Sarah and other staff at Kiplin.
Director of Kiplin Hall, James Etherington welcomes Sarah to the team. “We are thrilled to have Sarah with us at Kiplin. We are sure she will gain some excellent hands-on experience with us and we are delighted to be here at the beginning of her career. Caring for the collection and building during the winter months is ever more important as the popularity of Kiplin grows. Welcoming record-breaking numbers of visitors this year means the building and collections need extra attention to have them ship shape for next year, and many generations to come.”
Whilst winter conservation work is already underway on the top floor, the ground and first floor of Kiplin Hall have one more flourish before their winter hibernation. This year’s festive theme “A Time Traveller’s Christmas” opens to visitors from Sunday 2nd to Friday 18th December (closed on Thursdays). Visitors are invited to discover Christmas traditions from around the world today and in the past as Kiplin goes back in time for Christmas.
