In 2005, the writer Paul VanDeCarr approached Esopus with an idea for an ongoing series for the publication which would feature commentaries by museum guards about the artworks and exhibitions they oversaw.

As Paul put it in his intro for the first installment of the "Guarded Opinions" series: "Guards spend more time with a given show or work of art than almost anybody—maybe even the artists. They must have a response to it, must see things in it that we average museum-goers, who usually spend seconds on a work, miss." 

"Guarded Opinions" ran from 2006 until Esopus ceased publication in 2018, ultimately presenting fascinating commentaries from 14 museum guards across the country. 

On the occasion of the exhibition A Lot More Inside: Esopus Magazine at the Colby College Museum of Art, we have created a final video installment of the series, with Kelly Roderick, a security guard at the museum.  The stewardship of, and enthusiasm for, the show from Kelly and all of the guards at Colby have been one of the highlights of the exhibition, and her commentary about the show is both insightful and entertaining.

A Lot More Inside: Esopus Magazine closes on May 12, 2024.