Daniëlle N. Carter, MA Arts and Heritage

About her time in Maastricht she says: “Studying at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences allowed me to broaden my idea of what cultural education looks like. I had focused so much on museum and arts education during my bachelor's and in part-time jobs that I'd had in the United States, that I wasn't really aware of what was happening in the performing arts, for example. I think the broad scope of the Arts & Heritage programme helped me begin to see the parallels among these different sectors, as well as the different approaches they took towards participation, audience engagement, and learning. I drank many coffees at coffeebar Banditos and spent way too much time studying and on my own. I wish I had taken more advantage of that time to better connect with the great group of people in my cohort, but it took me some time to adjust to living abroad and I was a bit too introverted for my own good.”

Danielle worked in arts and museum education from about 2011 until about 2018.  “I worked for, among others, Context Travel and the Thinking Museum as a museum docent at the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum. I've shifted from working in arts and museum education to working as an English-language copyeditor for academic publishers and cultural organisations (including the Amsterdam University Press, TASCHEN, Thames & Hudson, Denver Botanic Gardens, A24, and Tinker Imagineers). Working as a freelance copyeditor has also given me the room to work on my own side projects, so I am also the co-founder and editor of a new project, Culture Caleidoscoop, that I'm launching with my colleague Lorna Cruickshanks. It combines my two areas of interest and expertise: arts and culture, and publishing and language. Culture Caleidoscoop is an online, open-access, peer-reviewed platform for sharing research and reflections on socially engaged practice in the arts, culture, and heritage sectors". You can find out more about Culture Caleidoscoop here: https://culturecaleidoscoop.norby.live/.

Arts and Heritage helped Daniëlle with her career. She states: "The master's programme gives me the grounding and expertise I need to copyedit texts written by academics and professionals in arts, culture, and heritage. I still rely on my background in art history and the arts and cultural sector in my day-to-day work, and I get to read a lot of interesting work by experts in the field of media studies, fashion, history, architecture, museums, and more. I love it! I also find that cultural organisations feel more comfortable working with me as a language professional, because I speak their language, so to speak. The master's has helped me to carve out a niche in my profession where I can use my interests, skills, and background to my advantage and pursue my ideal type of clients.”

Danielle is still in touch with a friend she made during the master’s. “I also keep in touch with a few of the professors. Anna Elffers, Emilie Sitzia, and Vivian van Saaze have been particularly helpful in helping us to think about the Culture Caleidoscoop project; they've been very generous with their time, ideas, and networks.”

Daniëlle N. Carter
Co-founder and editor of Culture Caleidoscoop
Year of graduation: 2015