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Texts & Technology PhD Program 

Current Research

Using inclusive, culturally responsive pedagogies, I examine the impact of STEM-based collaboration on museum engagement – particularly for marginalized communities. My goals are to increase the technological resources available to museum staff and audiences and foster collaborative projects that enhance intellectual access and equity through immersive content. 

Recent Talks/Presentations

  • Panelist, “Reality of Artificial Intelligence,” University of Central Florida, Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Orlando, Florida. What is AI, or Artificial Intelligence? What’s the connection between AI and art, and how does that challenge our values around creativity and content? It’s legal, but is it ethical? Hosted by the UCF Center for Ethics, in collaboration with the Center for Computer Vision and the School of Visual Arts and Design, this panel discussion includes experts in ethics, visual art, industry and computer science.

  • Presenter, "New Directions: Considerations for Experimentation and Innovation in Textile Practice," Textile Talk Webinar Series, Studio Art Quilt Associates and Surface Design Association, 2023. Increasingly, contemporary artists are pushing the perceived boundaries of textile practice, creating both challenges to tradition and dynamic new possibilities. The collaborative work of artists, researchers, and museum professionals is key to understanding this changing landscape and engaging public audiences. This illustrated talk presents a diverse group of artists whose innovative work provides unique opportunities for inclusive scholarship and public engagement.

  • Panelist, “Walking the Walk, Rebuilding Connections” Webinar, POLARIS: The Museum Mentor Network’s IDEA Summit, Claremont Graduate University, 2022. In this panel, moderated by Melody Kanschat, professor of practice and arts management at Claremont Graduate University, museum professionals share their strategies for identifying and embracing their own values. They provide examples of strategic actions taken in advocacy, intervention, professional responsibility, or leadership to change their communities for the better.  

  • Presenter, "Mending the Narrative: Re-viewing Textiles in American Art," Studio Art Quilt Associates Virtual Conference, 2022. The forthcoming publication This is America: Re-viewing the Art of the United States (Oxford University Press, 2022), prioritizes underrepresented stories through the inclusion of marginalized makers, vast geographic regions, and diverse media. This illustrated presentation “Mending the Narrative: Re-viewing Textiles in American Art” focuses on the authors’ advocacy for textile scholarship in the academic study of American art and visual culture.

  • Moderator and Session Organizer, "Fiber Art and Museum Practice: A Conversation," Studio Art Quilt Associates Virtual Conference, 2022. In this moderated panel discussion, curators from across the state of Florida consider the successes, strategies, and challenges associated with the acquisition, care, and presentation of textiles in museum spaces.

Affiliations

  • Association of Academic Museums and Galleries (AAMG), Board Member

  • Surface Design Association, Board of Directors

  • McKnight Doctoral Fellowship Program

  • POLARIS: the Museum Mentor Network

  • American Alliance of Museums (AAM)

  • Museum Hue

Recent Publications

  • This is America: Re-viewing the Art of the United States (Oxford University Press). The discipline of art history teaches that art fundamentally shapes our understanding of the world around us. To date, however, few survey textbooks of American art have challenged the hierarchical narratives that marginalize diverse makers, scholarship, and media. This is America offers a response and a corrective, focusing on the nation’s cultural hybridity and encouraging a re-viewing of American art that will change the way you see the world.

Recent Honors & Awards

  • Outstanding Arts and Humanities Presentation for "This is America: Re-viewing the Art of the United States," Statewide Graduate Research Symposium, Florida Conference of Graduate Schools, 2022

  • Judges' Choice Award for "This is America: Re-viewing the Art of the United States," Student Scholar Symposium, University of Central Florida, 2022

  • McKnight Doctoral Fellowship, Florida Education Fund, 2021

  • Graduate Dean’s Fellowship, University of Central Florida, 2021

  • Graduate Summer Mentoring Fellowship, University of Central Florida, 2021

  • Silver Award, Southeastern Museums Conference (SEMC) “Excellence in Exhibitions” (for Designed to Mobilize: Propaganda Kimono 1920-1945), 2019

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