Stephanie L. Taylor
Assistant Professor
Modern & Contemporary Art History
PhD, Art History, Boston University, 2001
MA, Art History, University of Delaware, 1994
BFA, University of Colorado at Boulder, 1989
Curriculum Vitae in PDF format (Opens in new browser window.)
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The study of art and art history is too often relegated to the upper echelons of aesthetic consideration. Instead of focusing upon the rarified nature of art, I encourage a down and dirty approach to the study of visual culture. Popular culture, social history and critical theory all add new levels of understanding to the study of the visual arts beyond appreciation and connoiseurship, and all are used in my lecture and seminar classes. My research and teaching focus on the art of the 20th century, particularly American art. I am especially interested in sculpture, ceramics, gender and identity issues, and the art of such individuals as Joseph Cornell and Anne Ryan. I teach a series of "decades" courses that broaden the study of art to an examination of visual culture, from advertisements to movies to museum fare. I believe that an understanding of cultural production is key to understanding past histories, and also that history is a crucial element of understanding art.
