History Commons^™

“The Product Of That Finer Mould”: The Role Of Chinese Porcelain In The Making Of Early American Images Of China, Emily Meryn Hospodor

Honors Theses

This thesis asserts that Chinese material culture, specifically porcelain, was instrumental in the development of American perceptions of China in the colonial period through the late 19th century. The first chapter examines how the quality, durability, and uniqueness of Chinese export porcelain led Europeans, and by extension American colonists, to view China as an advanced and abundant civilization populated with ingenious craftsmen. The second chapter addresses the emergence of negative views of China among American traders and scholars after the establishment of direct contact with China during the Old China Trade (1784-1844). In contrast, the third chapter demonstrates that Americans …

Contemporary Environmental Art: The Multidimensional Relationship Between Black Communities And The American Landscape, Sophia Perkins

Honors Theses

Contemporary environmental art can be inspired by personal experience and reflections between the artist and their surroundings. Black women have a unique interaction with and relation to their environment. I would like to unpack the relationships between Black women and the environment by exploring a few different artists’ work, and by dissecting the effects race and gender have on one’s view of the natural world. I have studied the work of four artists: Torkwase Dyson, Allison Jane Hamilton, LaToya Ruby Frazier, and Calida Garcia Rawles. Environmentally, I have a specific interest in bodies of water / Black waterways because of …

Preservation And Public History In Mound Bayou, Mississippi, Walker Bray

Honors Theses

This paper is an exploration of the history of Mound Bayou, Mississippi, an all Black community in the Mississippi Delta formed by freedmen in the wake of Reconstruction. This paper also discusses the ways in which Mound Bayou citizens are working to preserve their history and make it known to a wider audience. In particular, this work discusses the recently opened Mound Bayou Museum of African American Culture and History and related efforts to restore and preserve historic structures in Mound Bayou. In addition, this work also seeks to explore ways in which the University of Mississippi can effectively supplement …

The Woman Behind The Whitney, Breanna Epp

Honors Theses

Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was the founder of the Whitney Museum of American Art, as well as a prominent sculptor and patron to artists in the early 1900s. Her art collection was the largest of American art at the time, and she led the nation into an appreciation of its own native art. Native in this context specifically means any art that was made in America, not strictly art made by the indigenous people of the Americas. Tackling her entire life, from growing up in the Vanderbilt family to her death, I provide an overview of her interactions with the art …

Germania: The Nazi Party And The Third Reich Through The Lens Of Classical Architecture, Maggie L. Smith

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the influence of classical architectural styles and principles on architectural projects in Germany during the Third Reich. My research focuses on major projects completed by the state and does not delve into private buildings or other structures. All of the data was gathered from scholarly publications of repute and photographs to determine how Adolf Hitler’s regime utilized Greek and Roman stylistic elements in an attempt to revive the power and culture of Germany during a time of strife, as well as how Nazi architecture reflected Hitler’s personal ambition as dictator. Additionally, the thesis doubles as an expansion …

Artistic Syncretism In Latin America: From Olmec To Spanish Colonialism, Nicole Timm

Honors Theses

The purpose of this paper is to provide a historic and systematic review of colonial Latin American art. The first half will focus on the ancient arts created by the ancient civilizations that sculpted culture in Latin America centuries before the Spanish were aware another continent existed. The latter portion of the paper will look to the post-colonial period. It will begin by delving into the influence of European artistic styles blending with Latin American culture and style of painting and vice versa. The final goal of this paper is to uncover the syncretism that took place across Latin America …

Defining Authentic: The Relationship Between Native Art And Federal Indian Policy, 1879-1961, Aurora Kenworthy

Honors Theses

Between 1879 and 1961, non-Native perceptions of what constituted authentic Native art shifted. These changing perceptions were influenced by, and then in turn influenced, federal policy and legislation. While non-Native individuals and groups worked to improve conditions for Native communities and to protect “authentic” Native art forms, Native reformers also attempted to enact change to help Native communities and Native artists exercised control over their own art and identity.

What The Walls Say: Finding Meaning And Value In Tel Aviv’S Street Art, Rachel R. Bird

Honors Theses

This thesis explores street art in Tel Aviv, Israel through anthropological concepts of value. By defining street art as an interstitial practice—one that exists between permeable, socially defined boundaries and is characterized differently by different power structures—I attempt to define some of the different regimes of value that apply to street art. Using the emerging market of “street art tours” as a fieldwork site, I look at how street art is presented and re-presented to both tourists and locals. By situating my research in a historical and geographic context, I hope to understand the ways different value schema, from economic …

Listening To An/Other Voice: Gender, Creativity, And The Divine In The Works Of Female Christian Mystics And Women Surrealists, Stephanie Garboski

Honors Theses

This thesis will compare two groups, Christian women mystics and women surrealists, by analyzing select works by Hildegard of Bingen, Mechthild of Magdeburg, Leonora Carrington, and Dorothea Tanning. This analysis will involve a comparative, theoretical approach that draws connections between the way in which both groups utilize varying literary and artistic forms, symbols, and polyglottery. I will utilize Bourdieu’s terms of cultural production as a framework in which to better understand how women of both fields are used for their creativity and supposed connection to an/other, which is the source of inspiration native to each field, God and the unconscious. …

United States War Memorials: The Transformation Of Design And Significance Influenced By The Vietnam Veteran’S Memorial, Victoria Quinlan

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the change United States war memorials underwent after the Vietnam War ended in 1975 and when the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial was created in 1982. The first memorials analyzed are the Marine Corps Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Gettysburg National Military Park, which were all built prior to the Vietnam memorial. The stark differences of the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial are then examined. The Korean War Veteran’s Memorial, the National WWII Memorial, and the 9/11 Memorial in New York City conclude the study of memorials built after the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial. These separate sets of memorials represent most …

Behind The Plexi-Glass Partitions: An Intern's View Of American Museums, Brittany L. Miller

Honors Theses

Describes the author's experiences as an intern in museums. She notes the lack of cohesion between the roles of museums as organizations and as interpreters of history.

Archaeological Pioneer Or Pot Hunter: The Life And Work Of Clarence Bloomfield Moore, Sarah Washam

Honors Theses

The early twentieth century bred a generation of amateur archaeologists with time on their hands and money in their pockets. Although amateurs, they made great advances in the science of archaeology. Among these archaeologists were men such as Heinrich Schliemann, who discovered the city of Troy; Howard Carter, the discoverer of the riches of King Tut's tomb; Mathew Stirling, the man who discovered the Olmec culture; Sir Arthur Evans, who discovered the Mycenae; and Hiram Bingham, who found the lost city of Machu Picchu. Most of these men were middle to upper class and thus had the money and free …

Protecting The Art Of Leningrad: The Survival Of The Hermitage Museum During The Great Patriotic War, Lane Bailey

Honors Theses

The Hermitage Museum rises from the banks of the Neva River in the center of St. Petersburg, the former capital of Russia. The complex, existing of five buildings constructed over a period of about two hundred years, houses one of the greatest art collections in the world. Although the Hermitage is best known for its collection of great paintings, including works by Leonardo, Raphael, Rembrandt, and Picasso, the museum also holds great archeological exhibits. Scholars from throughout the world conduct research in the extensive Numismatics Department, the Gothic Library, and the Department of Far Eastern Culture.

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Throughout its history, …

Historical Archaeology Possibilities For Arkansas, Julia Gray

Honors Theses

Despite early examples of historical archaeology in North America, the field did not gain formal status until the mid-1960s. Since that time there has been continual debate as to what historical archaeology actually is, what it does or what it should do. To understand this debate, it is first necessary to examine some early orientations of the discipline.

A Study Of The Economic Factors Of The Tennessee Valley Authority, Judy Branch

Honors Theses

The story of the Tennessee Valley Authority is a story about a great American river basin; it is a story about water and soils and forests on mountain slopes; it is a story about people who grow cotton and corn, milk dairy cows, cut timber, and work as clerks in country stories; it is a story of local government, community institutions, and a thousand facets of private economic enterprise all working together in developing and using the natural resources of a region; it is a story about the application of large-scale planning and coordination in the solution of problems; it …