SCHOLARSHIP & NONFICTION
Exploring Intersections of the Histories of Women's Crafts and Experiences, Nature, and Design
My research interests vary, ranging from eighteenth-century shellwork to twentieth-century sculpture gardens, and from nineteenth-century wallpaper production to the history of the American mystery publishing industry. All my projects start from captivating objects, like the shellwork pictured above, and expand to encompass difficult questions about the stories and people underrepresented in the historic record.
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I hold a BA in Art History from Syracuse University, and an MA in American Material Culture from the Winterthur Program. I have presented my research at Colonial Williamsburg, Historic Deerfield, the Winterthur Museum, and more.
SELECTED PROJECTS
NEW ORDER FROM YOUR HAND, NEW LUSTRE FROM YOUR EYE: THE ART, CRAFT, AND SCIENCE OF PHILADELPHIA SHELLWORK GROTTOS
In eighteenth-century Philadelphia, women made miniature shellwork grottos: sparkling, dark interior scenes on a small scale, filled with shells, wax, and glass. In doing so, they created objects that contained worlds - biblical and mythological scenes, whole buildings, and wild caves. A convergence of an interest in meticulous craft, natural study, and Linnaean taxonomy, shellwork objects represented the rich interior lives of the women who made them, and acted as follies in the home. This Masters Thesis coins the term "interior folly" and offers ways to understand the enigmatic grottos through their role in the American interior, and their representation of women's involvement in Enlightenment-era scientific collecting.
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Presented: Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, May 2019; Antiques Forum, Colonial Williamsburg, February 2020
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FLIGHTS OF FANCY AND IMAGINED LANDSCAPES...
...in Historic Deerfield's "Clayton's Ascent" Bandbox. This paper explores the complex visual imagery on a bandbox in the collection, and argues that the women who would have used the bandbox for storage took a vicarious and intentional experience of "travel" from the wallpaper used to cover the box.
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Presented: Historic Deerfield, August 2015
THE ARTIST, THE WORK HORSE: LABOR IN THE SCULPTURE OF ANNA HYATT HUNTINGTON
This Honors Capstone Project for Syracuse University, which won "Best Capstone in the Humanities," discussed the work of Anna Hyatt Huntington in the context of her sculpture garden, Brookgreen Gardens, in South Carolina. The thesis explores how Hyatt Huntington elevated animals as paragons of labor in her art, and how her value of work translated into WPA-era encouragement of other artists.
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Presented: Syracuse University, May 2015
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