AAHVS

Summer Course Provides an Immersive Exploration of the Value of Art

Sarah Dwyer

Stephanie Manning, Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants

Stephanie Manning is pursuing a master’s degree in Digital Art History in preparation for a career as a specialized art consultant or investment analyst. A summer course at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London helped deepen her understanding of the art market industry, including the financial aspects involved in valuing and appraising art.

She was among 18 Duke University students who received Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants (GSTEG) in 2017-18 from the Office of the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies for training beyond their core disciplines. Her faculty mentor is Sheila Dillon. She shared an update:

I had an excellent experience at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London. My knowledge of the art market and the financial process of appraising art was greatly enhanced from this summer course. In addition to the lectures, I was able to participate in the Old Masterpiece auction, attend several gallery visits to speak with curators and artists, and view a private art auction.

My study of art history and art markets was greatly enhanced by spending my summer at Sotheby’s. I was able to broaden my art historical knowledge of the current art market as well as to learn the financial side of valuations. I met several new colleagues who work in the art industry, and I gained a valuable insight to the art world that I could bring back to Duke to enhance my studies.

I was most interested in learning the degree to which the financial value of art was connected to the cultural, intrinsic value. Appraising art is an art in itself; valuing art depends on both the viewers’ emotions and their knowledge of the value of similar art types. This experience has forever changed the way I view art. I have always considered the intrinsic value when viewing art, and now I push deeper into my thoughts on the financial value of the work to consider how much others would be willing to pay for it, and the value I place on the emotional response I gather from the work.

Through this experience, I was able to better understand the valuation and appraisal of art and the cultural heritage of Sotheby’s art auctions. Being able to personally interact with gallery curators and to visit some of the most prestigious and historic museums in London (such as the Victoria and Albert Museum) allowed me to experience how art professionals interact with the art they showcase and preserve, and how intertwined and complex the cultural and financial values are in the art of appraisal.

About GSTEG

This internal funding mechanism from the Office of the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies encourages doctoral and master’s students to step away from their core research and training to acquire skills, knowledge, or co-curricular experiences that will give them new perspectives on their research agendas. Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants are intended to deepen preparation for academic positions and other career trajectories.

Image: Stephanie Manning in London

Doctoral Student’s Project Unites Art and Community Engagement in South Korea

Sarah Dwyer

Jung E. Choi

Last year, Art History doctoral student Jung E. Choi received a grant to develop a local art festival, “Like Project 2016,” at the SlowSlowQuickQuick alternative space in Seoul, South Korea. Her aim was to nurture community self-help in deprived urban neighborhoods and to inform her dissertation on the intersection of art, technology and space.

She was among 19 Duke students who received Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants in 2016-17 for training beyond their core disciplines. Her faculty mentor was Mark Hansen.

Since then, Choi received her Ph.D. and completed the Graduate Certificate in Information Science + Studies. She is currently a research scholar in the Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies. She shared a brief overview of her grant experience:

The project intended to nurture community self-help in deprived urban neighborhoods by integrating art and community engagement in a flexible tool for achieving a welcoming atmosphere and changing the perception of place among inhabitants and visitors. I organized 12 different meet-ups among artists, community members and visitors and had opportunities to discuss various ways to enhance the understanding of the neighborhood and find better ways to engage with the environment involving art.

Through this project, as a curator/scholar, I was able to understand the practical issues of curation that involve ongoing conversations among community members as well as the integrated approach to art and life.

This internal funding mechanism from the Office of the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies encourages graduate students to step away from their core research and training to acquire skills, knowledge or co-curricular experiences that will give them new perspectives on their research agendas. Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants are intended to deepen preparation for academic positions and other career trajectories.

See who received these grants for 2017-18, and read about other 2016-17 recipients’ experiences:

Semester of Architecture Training Informs Study of Singapore’s Urbanization

Sarah Dwyer

Nathan Bullock, a Ph.D. student in Art, Art History and Visual Studies, spent last semester at the Yale School of Architecture. His aim was to gain practical and technical knowledge from a professional program, work with practicing architects in their studios and inform the application of architectural theory to his dissertation research on contemporary Singapore.

Bullock was among 19 graduate students from five schools at Duke who received Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants last spring to for training beyond their core disciplines. His faculty mentor was Annabel Wharton. Now back on Duke’s campus, he shared this update.

I had an excellent experience through my semester away at the Yale School of Architecture (YSOA). I was able to participate in the advanced design studio of Peter Eisenman and attend other classes while absorbing the culture of the YSOA.

My study of architecture—its history, theory, and criticism—was greatly enhanced by spending last semester at YSOA. Not only is the YSOA one of the best schools of architecture in the country for education and training of new architects, it also has a significant influence in the wider professional world of architecture.

Being in that environment allowed me to connect with many colleagues who guide the dominant discussions that are taking place in the field currently. Seeing how students learn about architecture in a professional program was eye-opening in comparison to the approach taken by humanists in an art history department.

I was most struck by how deep the divide really was between theory and practice. Being in studio allowed me to watch and listen to how architects think and talk about architecture and the ways in which they use history and theory. This experience will certainly change how I interact with and write about the architects I study in my dissertation research.

This internal funding mechanism from the Office of the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies encourages graduate students to step away from their core research and training to acquire additional skills, knowledge or co-curricular experiences that will give them new perspectives on their research agendas. Graduate Student Training Enhancement Grants are intended to deepen preparation for academic positions and other career trajectories. Learn more and apply by March 29.

 

Photo courtesy of Nathan Bullock (at the Yale Art Gallery)

Preparing for Job Market, Grad Students Create Online Lessons for Humanities Center

L. Danielle Baldwin

Humanities grad students Hannah Ontiveros and Kelly Tang participated in the NHC pilot program

Doctoral students in the humanities know they’ll be entering a tight job market. This summer, four Duke students gained an edge by building their pedagogical skills at the National Humanities Center in Durham.

Each student chose a text that addresses elements of a standard high school curriculum in American history or literature and created an online National Humanities Center lesson for high school teachers.

Johnnie Holland, a Ph.D. student in History, selected an anti-lynching pamphlet by Ida B. Wells. Ph.D. student in English Karen Little chose “Ballad of the Landlord,” a poem by Langston Hughes. History Ph.D. student Hannah Ontiveros worked with an anti-feminist speech by Phyllis Schlaffly. Kelly Tang, a Ph.D. student in Art, Art History and Visual Studies, took on Citizen 13660, a graphic novel about the internment of Japanese Americans.

The pilot internship program grew out of conversations between Richard Schramm, then the vice president for education programs at the National Humanities Center, and Ed Balleisen, vice provost for interdisciplinary studies at Duke. Four graduate students from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill joined the cohort.

“Our meetings were highly collaborative, providing ample opportunity to receive insightful feedback from peers and NHC staff—often from the perspective of what works practically in a classroom and what teachers’ needs are,” Tang said. ”We were encouraged to explore and experiment at every step and were given advice on how to conceptualize our plans, not what they should be.

“And I think we felt a greater awareness of a Triangle-area graduate student community that may individually work on different time periods, source materials and methods, but share an interest in bettering classrooms throughout the United States.”

To create their lessons, the students developed a framing question, orientation for teachers, background information for students, interactive exercises and a follow-up assignment. Over four sessions, they received coaching and critiques of their work in progress from their dissertation advisers.

In an evaluation, students reflected on their experiences, which many noted would enhance their career prospects. The National Humanities Center hopes to offer the program again next summer.

“The internship was a great experience,” said Ontiveros. “It had me thinking critically about not only my pedagogy and writing for a non-academic audience, but also about how to ask the really simple questions that cut to the core of a document—an invaluable skill for a historian. It was also inspiring to work with my fellow interns. Each person’s work raised important and very interesting questions.”

Originally published on Duke Today

Photo: Humanities grad students Kelly Tang and Hannah Ontiveros participated in the NHC pilot program.