2023-24 New Faculty

Never having been to a museum before I was 18, I have always experienced the power and enigma of art very strongly, and I would like to try to communicate something of the beautiful strangeness of art. I always find art has some exciting excess even after the best class discussions. I’ve continued to explore those qualities in my research projects and curatorial work, and so encounters with art, real and immediate, are important for teaching and successful classes. I began my graduate career and early publishing on topics related to medieval theories and practice of iconoclasm, and I am continuing to think through these positions, but now from a very strong view to explaining the material and experiential strangeness of art. I've taught at the University of Texas at Austin and Syracuse University (I'm emeritus now), and I aim to continue this exploration of art's otherness in my class on Late Antiquity and Disability Studies. We'll investigate the holdings in WCMA, Special Collections, and also the Clark in order to analyze some aspects of the history of the diversely abled, healing and conservation.