Written by Christina Dragonetti
When my friend (and CVNL Event Coordinator) Sarah Darcey-Martin told me she needed some help at the Marin Designers Showcase house, I reluctantly agreed to take on a volunteer shift as a docent. I expected it would be four boring hours of telling people where to go and not to sit on the furniture. What I got instead was a lot of fun! I discovered that while docents do direct visitors, we also got to tell them all about the rooms, using information provided by the designers. And even though I did have to tell a few people not to sit on the furniture, I unearthed a love of discussing design elements and watching the sometimes glazed-over stares turn into delight or distaste when I showed them how the shower walls in the Master Bedroom had a lace pattern etched into the stone. I chatted with older ladies who recognized the wall-sized painting in the Young Ingénue Suite (decorated by Val Fiscalini) as a replica of one they’d seen in the Louvre and talked to dragged-along husbands about the plastering technique in the third floor guest room. My first shift went so quickly that I decided to stay an extra couple of hours and before I left I signed up for three more shifts. By the time the Showcase closed, I’d served seven volunteer shifts and could talk knowledgeably about 80% of the House. As much as I’m looking forward to the Mimosa Party and the generous gift bag that the Center put together to thank volunteers, a part of me wishes the House was still open so I could go back and learn more about the rooms I didn’t get to “host”.
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