Anthropology
My projects, research & academic writings related to anthropology.
Undergraduate Thesis- American Art.pdfAmerican Art & Artists at the Weisman: Negotiation, Labels & National Identity in the Art Museum (Senior Thesis- 2024)
“American” as a descriptor for art and artists is prominently used in art museum labels. But what does American actually mean? Which artist identities are welcome and who is excluded? How can American Art be differentiated from other forms of art? What are the boundaries of the American category? And, who decides what and who is given that label?
This paper attempts to untangle these questions through an ethnographic reflection and analysis of my experience working on the Re-envisioning the Weisman Art Museum's American Art Collection Project.
In it, I argue that the practice of defining America in the context of art and artists is a paradoxical task and that "American" is a dynamic, debated and evolving category for art and artists.
Multimedia Research Projects
Anthropologies of Death Final: A study of the Poole Funeral Home
After a semester of studying the relationships between death, dying, the dead and human culture, I was tasked with completing a final project which expanded on our course materials, exploring death practices in a new way. Seeing as I had a personal connection via my best friend and roommate to a family owned American funeral home in Port Washington, WI, I decided that my study would focus on that institution, which has served its community for three generations. As of December 2023, however, it has officially closed its doors.
This series of blog posts served as my course final and follows the conversation I had with owner Patrick Poole as I toured the home-- from how the business and funeral practices have changed over time and what services the funeral home provides, to what the future may hold for the historic building.
Museum Collections & Communications
As part of my Managing Museum Collections course (Fall 2023), I was asked to explore and research any topic related to museum collections.
As an aspiring museum professional with a background in communications, I wanted to understand the relationship between collections and communications departments in a museum space. To do so, I connected with professionals in each department at Minnesota's Science Museum and the Weisman Art Museum.
Explore my findings in this presentation!
Collections & Communications Presentation.pdf