Arts and Humanities Commons^™

“In The Spirit Of A Millennial Inheritance:” The Nazi Ambition To Regenerate German Civilization Through The Visual Arts, Marco J. Lloyd

Student Publications

This paper intends to explain the complex and seemingly contradictory implementation of Nazi cultural policy regarding the visual arts by understanding Nazi cultural ideology. By examining the writing and speeches of Adolf Hitler and his ideological predecessors, it is apparent that the Nazis did not object to many modern art styles for purely aesthetic reasons. Instead, they associated the perceived degeneration of art with the degeneration of German society due to the influence of Jews and political opponents. Therefore, the Nazi hope to regenerate German civilization informed the policy of removing “degenerate art” from public display and purifying the art …

Lost Art And Lost Lives: Nazi Art Looting And Art Restitution, Sophia Gravenstein

Student Publications

During the Nazi Regime, Adolf Hitler and the Nazis seized an estimated one fifth of all art in Europe and more than 5 million cultural objects before 1945. The Nazis established control over the regime and furthered their racist ambitions through stealing art of any cultural or monetary value to them. They stole “degenerate” art in an attempt to annihilate “racially inferior” races, and “racially pure” art for the glorification of the “Aryan” race. Since the end of WWII, the return of Nazi-looted art to its original owners or their heirs has been an important avenue for remembrance of and …

Hidden Secrets And Private Moments In Vermeer’S Paintings Of Women And Letters, Lauren C. Mcveigh

Student Publications

This paper discusses the visual details and symbols in Johannes Vermeer's paintings of women and letters that allude to secret affairs going on behind the scenes.

Androgyny In The Ancient World: The Intersection Of Politics, Religion And Gender In The Art Of Hatshepsut, Megan N. Reimer

Student Publications

The Pharaoh Hatshepsut is one of the most well-known rulers of ancient Egypt and she has fascinated historians for decades. She ruled Egypt during the 15th century BCE, coming to power after the death of her husband, Thutmose II. Hatshepsut is particularly interesting to historians due to how she was portrayed in her art. Due to how far in the past she ruled, not many pieces of her art have survived; however, in the objects that we do have she is often shown very androgynously or even in came cases distinctly masculine. My research focuses on the many theories as …

Building For The Future: Functional, Energy-Efficient, And Beautiful Buildings By Snøhetta, Amanda J. Oross

Student Publications

The construction industry accounts for nearly 40% of all greenhouse gas emissions, which ultimately leads to climate change. Because of a lack of global consensus and accountability on a large scale about how to combat climate change, certain countries and cities are leading the charge on mitigation, since they tend to be more progressive and homogenous. Norway is one of those countries, and happens to be the headquarters for Snøhetta, a design company, that is designing buildings that are not only energy-efficient but also functional for the space in which it resides. Snøhetta very much values the interconnection between the …

Lucretia's Hand: The Influence Of Myth And Sexual Violence On Artemisia Gentileschi's Lucretia, Sarah Paul

Student Publications

Artemisia Gentileschi, a female Baroque Artist from the 17th century, was an exceptional artist who dealt with difficult themes and female subjects. While there has been a plethora of analysis of her Judith series, there has been less focus on her Lucretia. I look at Artemisia Gentileschi's "Lucretia" (c. 1621), through the various narratives of Lucretia and the history of sexual violence to analyze the strength and female agency that is emphasized. I argue that the strength and musculature in the hands of Lucretia emphasize her female agency and autonomy to make a choice following her sexual assault. I highlight …

David Alfaro Siqueiros And “Los Vehículos De La Pintura Dialéctico-Subversiva:” Four Principles To Create Revolutionary Artwork, Joy Zanghi

Student Publications

As one of the most distinguished Mexican muralists, David Alfaro Siqueiros played an important role in Mexican political and artistic history in the twentieth century. Despite the violence that took place in the first half of 1900s in Mexico, art flourished during this period. Inspired by the democratization that characterized the revolution, political art became common during the early twentieth century, and as Mexicans grappled with post-revolutionary identities, many artists, including Siqueiros, turned to communism as the way forward. In his speech “Los vehículos de la pintura dialéctico-subversiva,” delivered in 1932, Siqueiros delineated how to meld revolutionary ideology with the …

Illusions Of Grandeurs: Washingtonian Architecture As Seen By White And Black People Of The Early Nineteenth Century, Lillian D. Shea

Student Publications

In the early nineteenth century, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson built a classically inspired capital designed to legitimize American republican ideals. White interpretations of the architecture gradually aligned more with the founders’ intentions, especially following its reconstruction after the 1814 conflagration. Enslaved and free black observers recognized their exclusion from the message of freedom and equality. Rather than finding their identity through federal buildings, they established their communities within churches, houses, and businesses owned by black people. The varied reactions to Washington’s and Jefferson’s designs demonstrated how the aesthetic idealization of republicanism revealed incongruities in the new capital.

An Unlikely Pair: Impressionism And The Work-Life Interface, Emily N. Roush

Student Publications

When I get asked what I am studying in college, I often get puzzled or confused replies due to the fact that the fields are pretty unconventional as a pairing. The remarks, “What in the world are you going to do with that?” or “How interesting,” are common responses after sharing. Organization and management studies and art history are an unlikely duo that seem to be vastly different at first glance. After taking many courses within both disciplines to fulfill my double major, I argue that these disciplines are more similar than one may initially assume. Thus, I was inspired …

Drawing Survivance, Embodying Survivance: The Work Of Contemporary Ledger Artists Dwayne Wilcox And Monte Yellow Bird Sr., Keira B. Koch

Student Publications

This paper examines the work of two contemporary Indigenous Artists, Dwayne Wilcox and Monte Yellow Bird Sr. using Gerald Vizenor's theory of suriviance. I first discuss survivance, drawing on the ways both Vizenor and other scholars have used survivance in their academic works. I then move on to situating ledger art in its historical context, analyzing the ways ledger art has been historically examined and written about. The last two sections of this paper are dedicated to highlighting the ways in which two contemporary Indigenous artists, Dwayne Wilcox and Monte Yellow Bird Sr., have embodied Vizenor’s theory of survivance in …

Capstone 2019 Art And Art History Senior Projects, Art And Art History Department

Student Publications

This booklet profiles Art Senior Projects by Angelique J. Acevedo, Arin Brault, Bailey Harper, Sue Holz, Yirui Jia, Jianrui Li, Annora B. Mack, Emma C. Mugford, Inayah D. Sherry, Jacob H. Smalley, Laura Grace Waters and Laurel J. Wilson.

This booklet profiles Art History Senior Projects by Gabriella Bucci, Melissa Casale, Bailey Harper, Erin O'Brien and Laura Grace Waters.

Sub Lege To Sub Gratia: An Iconographic Study Of Van Eyck’S Annunciation, Christopher J. Condon

Student Publications

When the Archangel Gabriel descended from heaven to inform the Virgin Mary of her status as God’s chosen vehicle for the birth of Jesus Christ, she was immediately filled with a sense of apprehension. Gabriel’s words, “...invenisti enim gratiam apud Deum [you have found favor with God],” reassured the Virgin that she would face no harm, and the scene of the Annunciation (what this moment has come to be called) has forever been immortalized in Christian belief as a watershed moment in the New Testament. While many Byzantine icons of the Medieval period sought to depict this snapshot in time …

An Iconographical Analysis Of The Madonna And Child With Saints In The Enclosed Garden, Paige L. Deschapelles

Student Publications

The Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden, created approximately between the 1440s and 1460s, is a perfect representation of the highly iconographical images produced during the Renaissance. Although it continues to remain unknown as to who the specific artist responsible for this painting is, it has been attributed to either Robert Campin or one of his many followers. Nevertheless, the depiction of the Virgin Mary holding baby Christ on her lap is heightened as the scene takes place within an enclosed garden, otherwise known as hortus conclusus. Throughout the image itself, one is able to understand how …

A Monument To Culture And Achievement: The Samurai Suit Of Armor And Katana At Gettysburg College, Carolyn Hauk

Student Publications

Of the many artifacts found in Gettysburg College’s Musselman library, perhaps the most unusual and seemingly out of place may be the centuries-old replica of a samurai suit and katana standing guard over visitors and students from an oversized glass case on the first floor. Though hard to miss, their connection with Gettysburg College is not so obvious. A plaque located below the suit reads, “Samurai Armor and Warrior Katana; Late 19th Century; Gift of Major General Charles A. Willoughby; Class of 1914.” These artifacts represent hundreds of years of the ancient Samurai tradition in Japan, a crucial element of …

Fusing Both Arts To An Inseparable Unity: Frank O'Hara As A Visual Artist, Daniella M. Snyder

Student Publications

Frank O’Hara, a curator at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and a published poet in the 1950s and 60s, was an exemplary yet enigmatic figure in both the literary and art worlds. While he published poetry, wrote art criticism, and curated exhibitions—on Franz Kline, Robert Motherwell, and Jackson Pollock—he also collaborated on numerous projects with visual artists, including Larry Rivers, Michael Goldberg, Grace Hartigan, Joe Brainard, Jane Freilicher, and Norman Bluhm. Scholars who study O’Hara fail to recognize his work with the aforementioned visual artists, only considering him a “Painterly Poet” or a “Poet Among Painters,” but …

Captive Body, Free Mind: Euphrosinia Kersnovskaia, The Gulag, And Art Under Oppression, Laura G. Waters

Student Publications

This paper examines the art of Euphrosinia Kersnovskaia (1907-1994) as it relates to both the larger experience and narrative of the Soviet Gulag and to the survival of the artist. Larger trends of art made under oppression are used to find reason for such seemingly insignificant acts, and art therapy frameworks provide analytical bases for approach. By looking at such deeply subjective forms of memory and its transcription, individuality and humanity is returned to an inhuman penal system.

Artemis: Depictions Of Form And Femininity In Sculpture, Laura G. Waters

Student Publications

Grecian sculpture has been the subject of investigation for centuries. More recently, however, emphasis in the field of Art History on the politics of gender and sexuality portrayal have opened new avenues for investigation of those old statues. In depicting gender, Ancient Greek statuary can veer towards the non-binary, with the most striking examples being works depicting Hermaphroditos and ‘his’ bodily form. Yet even within the binary, there are complications. Depictions of the goddess Artemis are chief among these complications of the binary, with even more contradiction, subtext, and varied interpretation than representations of Amazons. The numerous ways Artemis has …

Paintings Of War, Museums Of Memory, Laura G. Waters

Student Publications

This paper examines the artists sent to the Western Front under Britain’s official war artists initiative. The government sought to utilize artwork for propagandistic purposes, and to foster emotional connection between civilian and soldier. However, the growth of the initiative to include some ninety artists complicated this. The experiences of the artists and the truths revealed to them by the conflict were vastly different, and examination of them as a whole does little to elucidate the character of the war itself. What this paper seeks to do, therefore, is examine three artists - Sir William Orpen, Lieutenant Paul Nash, and …

Visual Culture Project: Confederate War Etchings: Searching For Arms By Adalbert Johann Volck, Lynn B. Hatcher

Student Publications

Adalbert Johann Volck’s 1861 sketch of Union soldiers, “Searching for Arms,” represents a substantial contribution to the narrative about gender relations during the American Civil War. This simple, small sketch offers the observer a window into the past. It is a collision of symbols and meaning—from gender to war to the household—all wrapped up in one image. This is a portrait sketch of a woman being invaded in her domestic, private sphere, revealing so much about gender relations during the time. The mistress herself seemed to embody a vast range of sentiments such as anger, fear, frailty, and strength, proving …

Visual Culture Analysis Of "The Last Ditch Of The Chivalry, Or A President In Petticoats", Sarah A. Hansen

Student Publications

This lithograph is a Northern depiction of the capture of former Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Titled "The Last Ditch of the Chivalry, or a President in Petticoats", and picturing Davis in a woman’s dress and bonnet, the Northern press painted Davis as a coward. Rather than being a man and standing up to the Union troops, Davis disguised himself as a woman and attempted to cowardly escape. Although in actuality Davis was wearing a rain jacket and shawl rather than a full dress and bonnet, the Northern press mocked him. This piece demonstrates the prominence of male Southern honor, and …

Between Secular And Sacred: The Trade Windows' Depictions Of Food In Chartres Cathedral, Zachary A. Wesley

Student Publications

Medieval artists often blended sacred and secular imagery in their works, though especially stained glass windows. The stained glass windows of Chartres Cathedral, for example, use images of commoners at work and depictions of food to convey religious messages. This paper discusses three such examples and their significance to both the lay community of Chartres and the teachings of the Church.

The Art Of Exile: A Narrative For Social Justice In A Modern World, Dakota D. Homsey

Student Publications

In this paper I will illustrate what exile art is, how it is influenced on a global platform, and the change it engenders. My research reveals a central theme of globalization in the exchange, mix, and clash of cultures and political views that accompany it as well as the spread of art and ideas. In my research I illustrate how political circumstance, and sense of responsibility to share a political narrative, propelled exile art from a personal to a political narrative. My research illustrates how, as displaced people stripped of a homeland, exiled artists have surfaced as a voice of …

Capstone 2016 Art And Art History Senior Projects, Art And Art History Department

Student Publications

This booklet profiles Art Senior Projects by Maura B. Conley, Caroline G. Cress, Carolyn E. McBrady, Alesha R. Miller, Emma S. Shaw, Eleanor E. Soule, Katherine G. Warwick, and Rebecca T. Wiest.

This booklet profiles Art History Senior Projects by Deirdre E. D'Amico, Rebecca S. Duffy, Megan R. Haugh, Molly R. Lindberg, Kelly A.B. Maguire, and Lucy K. Riley.

Niki De Saint Phalle: The Female Figure And Her Ambiguous Place In Art History, Lucy Kay Riley

Student Publications

Niki de Saint Phalle had a fearless approach in her representation of women and her invitation of audience interaction. Born in 1930, she lived through the years of very male dominated areas of art: Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art, and Neo-Dada. Niki de Saint Phalle provided a unique treatment of the female figure through drawing, painting, writing, found object sculpture, large public sculpture, and installation. One of the pieces I will primarily focus on embodies her fascination with audience interaction and the portrayal of the female figure: her controversial and temporary installation of 1966, ‘SHE – a cathedral.' In comparison to …

Beyond Rodin: Revisiting The Legacy Of Camille Claudel, Shannon R. Callahan

Student Publications

French sculptress Camille Claudel has gained recognition in the past 30 years due to a focus on her tragic life rather than her artistic talent. Despite critical acclaim and respect amongst her peers during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, her affair with Auguste Rodin and her struggles with mental illness have cast a dark, dramatic shadow over modern interpretations of Claudel’s oeuvre. Considering how difficult it was for a woman to be working as an artist at this time, Claudel’s sculptures should not be outweighed by her personal life. In order to challenge the reader not to accept …

Visualizing Shakespeare: Iconography And Interpretation In The Works Of Salvador Dalí, Emily A. Zbehlik

Student Publications

Although William Shakespeare’s 16th century classical literature is rarely contextualized with the eccentricities of 20th century artist Salvador Dali, Shakespeare’s myriad of works have withstood the test of time and continue to be celebrated and reinterpreted by the likes of performers, scholars, and artists alike. Along with full-text illustrations of well-known plays, such as Macbeth (1946) and As You Like It (1953), Dali returned to the Shakespearean motif with his two series of dry-point engravings (Much Ado About Shakespeare and Shakespeare II) in 1968 and 1971. The series combine to formulate 31 depictions where Dali interprets Shakespeare’s text in a …

Gerhard Richter: Recovery And Memory In Postwar Germany, Devin N. Garnick

Student Publications

Gerhard Richter explored themes of memory and national identity in a society with a controversial past and a difficult recovery. He broke the silence that permeated the country and created a dialogue about remembering, memorializing, and politics.

After World War II, Germany had difficulty facing the atrocities of the war and ignored the flaws in the country’s recovery. Richter witnessed first hand the social and political struggles of the country as a citizen of Nazi Germany and the German Democratic Republic, societies that required strict conformity to their ideologies. Upon his escape to West Germany, where he was exposed to …

Did One Veil Give Women A Better Life?, Mary C. Westermann

Student Publications

Unfortunately, a young woman in Renaissance Florence did not have many options for her future. A woman's family usually decided whether she would be able to get married or would have to enter the convent, but sometimes she was able to make this choice. In this paper, I look at the lives of wives and nuns to analyze how their lives differed in responsibilities and freedoms, but also to see how all women had similar restrictions and expectations placed upon them.

Cosimo De’ Medici: Patron, Banker, And Pater Patriae, Jessie E. Martin

Student Publications

This paper investigates the connection between art, money, and power in the life of Cosimo de' Medici. It discusses several important art works commissioned by Cosimo, including the Medici Palace and Donatello's bronze David. It also examines Cosimo's life as a businessman and a political figure.

Dreamcatcher From Mao's Last Revolution: My Venture Into Creative Social Documentary Video, Christopher Shea Howard

Student Publications

Dreamcatcher From Mao’s Last Revolution is a filmmaking venture into creative social documentary production undertaken by this filmmaker as his own experimental departure from narrative feature film production and the fiction genre. This thesis report not only describes aspects of this film production that are specific to the methodology of documentary film production, but also describes the film’s cinematic expression of memory and the filmmaker’s telling of the story. Some cinematic and conceptual aspects of the story are related to the film’s influences, specifically to those theoretical concepts and techniques employed by documentary filmmaker, Werner Herzog.

The documentary story is …