Alex was first photographed with her family in North Canton. As the Executive Director of the Massillon Museum and a mother of twin girls (age 5), Alex has seen many changes over the past five years.
“Everything was perceived through the lens of the pandemic, so I became a lot more introspective,” Alex said. “It influenced the way I managed the museum and engaged with my staff, artists, and the community. I figured out how best to communicate with patrons and take other peoples’ safety or feelings of anxiety into consideration. From a public perspective, I was sorting out how long the museum should be doing virtual programming. I feel like we were able to mobilize effectively and had great support. I'm proud to say that I was able to have a part in keeping everyone employed, but I felt a constant sense of awareness that this was always going to linger and forever change the way we do business.”
Throughout 2020-2024, Alex noted they saw a lot of shifts in their family life, including a lot of attention paid to their house through gardening and improvement projects. They also put more attention toward their time spent together and being more open in their communication.
Her daughters were in preschool when the shutdown happened. That fall, they entered kindergarten. “We made the decision to put them into a classroom instead of engaging remote learning,” Alex said. “We exercised precautions the best we could. They didn't have any gaps in their socialization or their learning, for which I'm really grateful.
My husband was among those whose job was impacted; his career of 25 years managing the Regal Cinemas ended in 2023. There was a complete shift in the movie industry and several of his staff were let go over a period of time. The writing was on the wall and eventually he was let go. He was caught in a spiral of not knowing where he fit in and was having this realization that he had been in an industry for over two decades that was no longer sustainable. He felt disconnected from the skill sets that the workforce was looking for in a new employee. It really affected his self esteem. I was at an interesting point where I was raising daughters with my partner, but also concerned about my partner's lack of self-confidence in his ability to find gainful employment."
Alex said that Josh losing his job opened an opportunity to welcome a new family member into their home. “We met and fell in love with a cattle dog, Mustard, who became Josh’s salvation. They quickly became staples in the neighborhood. Josh now has this new persona as a “dog dad” which I never imagined.
Josh started managing a Chipotle in February 2024. He sacrificed a lot so that my work didn’t have to change and so that I didn’t have to alter the responsibilities that I had as an active member of the community, being on several boards and being able to meet the needs of the museum. We had really honest conversations about how to balance someone else’s chance to pursue a career that melds passion with the practical needs of the other people in their household. My daughters have been privy to the conversations as they get older and they are more cognizant of what happens in a household."
Alex expressed that the pandemic has had lasting effects, and not all negative: altered perceptions of time, making it difficult to measure events accurately. “I used to measure everything by exhibitions, and then it was milestones that my children experienced. I'm an art historian by academic training, so that's how I make sense of the world. But now my recall is totally altered. In some ways that seems so far the rearview mirror. And in many respects, it’s still so present. I don't for a second fail to recognize the fact that we were in a privileged position to some extent, and some things were just a matter of dumb luck and timing. We had a home, great neighbors, and were able to continue to work. I felt grateful, but consistently recognized that we are forever changed from this pandemic.”
October, 2020
North Canton