Nikki Gough is the Collections Manager at the High Desert Museum in Bend, OR. Nikki is an experienced Collections Manager responsible for object handling, registration, exhibit installation/deinstallation, condition reporting, emergency preparedness, Integrated Pest Management, preventive conservation, outdoor sculpture restoration, collections management policies, loan agreements, fine art shipping, and volunteer training. Hardworking, detail-oriented, and passionate in every part of collections management.

Nikki Gough graduated in 2020 from Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) with a degree in Art History and Museum Studies. Through internships at Christies Art Auction House (New York City, NY), Greenhill Center for North Carolina Art (Greensboro, NC), Weatherspoon Art Museum (Greensboro, NC), and Cheekwood Estate & Gardens (Nashville, TN) Nikki found that working in registration and collections was where they wanted to be.

Nikki Gough recieved their Masters in Public History from North Carolina State University (NCSU) in 2022 and learned that her love and passion within history, art, and material culture fit perfectly into the museum world of Collections Mangement and Conservation. Nikki began working at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon in 2022 as the Collections Manager. In 2023 Nikki gained an M.A. certificate at George Washignton University in Collections Management and Conservation where skills on conservation and bronze restoration were sharpened.

Nikki Gough decided to expand their expertise in sculpture cleaning and restoration in 2025 when customers at local galleries in Bend showed a need in caring for their bronze sculptures. Now Nikki Gough and her partner Sonny Smith work with clients in central Oregon restoring their sculptures through their business, Jackalope Bronze Resotration.