Department of Art and Archaeology, Princeton University

A&A’s Fall Welcome BBQ brought together students, faculty, and colleagues to celebrate the start of the new academic year! #

Photos/John Blazejewski

We’re back!!

Happy new academic year, Tigers!

The A&A staff fueled up for the start of the new academic year with a relaxing yet rejuvenating painting retreat at .us with . Turns out there’s a bit of Claude Monet in each of us!

This summer A&A graduate student Katy Knortz () returned for her 3rd season of excavation at the archaeological site at Tharros, Sardinia, under the directorship of Steven Ellis (University of Cincinnati).

The highlight of this season for her was the team finding an ancient Carthaginian bread stamp (last two photos)!

Professor Irene Small led a group of A&A modern and contemporary art history graduate students to the Venice Biennale Arte titled “Foreigners Everywhere” this summer. The trip complemented Small’s spring 2024 graduate seminar “The Global Contemporary,” while also setting the stage for her upcoming fall 2024 undergraduate seminar, “Contemporary Art: The World Picture,” which will travel to Venice over fall break.

A big thanks to Irene Small, Mo Chen and Sonya Merutka for the photos!

Practice of Art student Audrey Zhang ‘25 () is “investigating immortality” in Paris and Lyon for her senior thesis, with funding from A&A.

“Specifically, I’m making art that examines how we preserve information in different media, like paintings, sculptures, digital means…,” she said.

Thank you for this visual adventure, Audrey!

Professor Anna Arabindan-Kesson () and have collaborated with artist Sonya Clark () on a public history project that centers the narrative of Robert Hemmings, whom Jefferson enslaved at Monticello and brought to Philadelphia in 1776 to serve as his 14-year-old valet during the drafting of the Declaration of Independence.

The public art project “Declaration House” (June 24, 2024-September 8, 2024), a block away from the Liberty Bell and Independence Mall in Philadelphia, is exhibiting Clark’s “The Descendants of Monticello,” which displays a monumental montage featuring the blinking eyes of Robert Hemmings’ descendants and others who are related to the over 400 people enslaved at Monticello, including descendants biologically related to Jefferson.

“We went looking for Robert Hemmings and found America,” said Arabindan-Kesson.

Professor Tina Campt, a 2024-25 recipient of the prestigious Berlin Prize Fellowship, is featured on the Princeton University homepage. Her fellowship supports her book project, “Art in a Time of Sorrow,” which Campt said grew from her experience with grief during the pandemic.

She had lost several loved ones and came to realize how art — “writing about it, seeing it, thinking about it” — helped her cope. ”′Art in a Time of Sorrow’ is really about what is the role of art and artists in helping us to grieve both personal losses and cultural, social, political grievances and losses,” she said.

See link in bio to learn more.

John Wilmerding, professor of art and archaeology, emeritus, died June 6 in New York City. He was 86. A renowned scholar, curator, collector and philanthropist, prolific author and beloved mentor, Wilmerding was a monumental force in American art history.

“I can think of no one who has done so much for American art both historic and modern, and for American museums, with as much wit, wisdom, and quiet good grace,” said James Steward, Director of the Princeton University Art Museum

“He was an outsize figure in the field of American art, an inimitable teacher, and a lovely person,” said A&A outgoing department chair Rachael Z. DeLue.

In a 2018 interview for the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art, Wilmerding recounted the advice he received to relegate the study of American art to his “back pocket” in favor of European art or risk being discredited. “I was determined to do American art, period, and take that chance,” he said.

His foresight and passion would illuminate the study of American art history and help fundamentally define the field, establishing him as “a towering figure in the field and a transformative member of the department,” said incoming A&A chair and professor Nathan Arrington.

Link to the full tribute to John Wilmerding in bio

A&A and the Princeton community mourn the passing of John Wilmerding, Christopher Binyon Sarofim ’86 Professor in American Art, Emeritus, who died on June 6, 2024.

The University flag over East Pyne flew at half-staff in his memory June 7 – June 11, 2024.

Congratulations to 2024 Practice of Art graduate Magnolia Wilkinson!

Magnolia looks forward to teaching next year: “I’ll be teaching elementary school in Camden, NJ through Teach for America! And possibly teaching ceramics to kiddos.“

Meet Magnolia and her 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Certificate in Archaeology graduate Autumn Shelton!

“It is very easy to dehumanize those who lived in the past and I see archaeology as our greatest tool to understand and reify people’s humanity.” ~ Autumn Shelton

Meet Autumn and her 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Certificate in Archaeology graduate Audrey Royall!

“I was able to attend Archaeology Field School in Wales which was a wonderful experience and confirmed my interest in pursuing Archaeology professionally,” said Audrey.

Meet Audrey and her 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 History of Art graduate Drew Pugliese!

In the future, says Drew, “I want to keep writing and devote time to making art. I also want to get involved in gay/queer activism wherever I’m living.“

Meet Drew and his 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 History of Art graduate Gabriel Chalick!

“I’m especially grateful for being able to be a part of Professor Arrington’s dig at Molyvoti in Greece,” said Gabriel, who will pursue a Master’s in music.

Meet Gabriel and his 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Practice of Art graduate Lauren Olson!

Princeton has taught Lauren, above all, “Observe deeply–internally and externally.”

Meet Lauren and her 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Practice of Art graduate Kapili Naehu-Ramos!

Kapili traveled to Aotearoa (New Zealand) to research their senior project. “My senior solo exhibition, MO’O, would not have been what it became if I did not get to have these experiences in Aotearoa,” they said.

Meet Kapili and their 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Practice of Art graduate Cary Moore!

Cary’s greatest triumph while at Princeton was “listening to myself and going through with switching to PoA, and then putting on a show I’m proud of.”

Meet Cary and her 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Certificate in Archaeology student Noah Kreike-Martin!

In the future, says Noah, “I am interested in continuing to pursue my interest in archaeology with a focus on cultural heritage and property law.”

Meet Noah and his 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 Practice of Art graduate Emma Mohrmann!

“I learned that art takes time. It requires a balance of thinking, but also intuition, and to trust my gut and probably overthink less. Also, sometimes you just have to make things and the things you make will start to tell you what they want to be.” ~ Emma Mohrmann ‘24

Meet Emma and her 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 History of Art graduate Natali Kim!

Her A&A travel had a lasting impact. “Thanks to the Senior Thesis Fund, I also traveled to Cologne before the start of the spring semester, where I conducted archival research for my thesis,” she said. “This trip was my first time traveling alone internationally and I am so grateful that my studies brought me such a wonderful city.”

Meet Natali and her 2024 A&A cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 A&A History of Art graduate Lucia Heminway!

“Princeton has taught me the importance of leaning into challenges and welcoming new opportunities.” ~Lucia Heminway

Meet Lucia and her A&A cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 A&A Practice of Art graduate Evan Haley!

“I thrive best when I am sharing ideas and creating in parallel with my artist, musician, actor, and designer friends, and I want to continue fostering those kinds of working relationships to cement a place in my generation’s claim to the milieu of creative expression.“ ~Evan Haley

Meet Evan and his A&A 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 A&A Practice of Art graduate Daniel Drake!

In the future, says Drake, “I hope to have a job in the entertainment industry in NYC. In my free time I plan on doing stand-up, writing, and performing with friends.”

Meet Daniel and his A&A 2024 cohort on the A@A website (link in bio)

Congratulations to 2024 A&A Certificate in Archaeology graduate Alex Chauncey-Heine!

“I decided to pursue this certificate because of my grandfather, who is a retired archeologist. He has really inspired me and encouraged my interest in history and archeology. Hopefully, I’ll be able to incorporate this with the biology I hope to pursue in the future, especially since bioarcheology is an increasingly popular field.” ~ Alex Chauncey-Heine

Meet Alex and his A&A 2024 cohort on the A&A website (link in bio)

We’re proud of you, A&A Class of 2024! Huge congratulations!!

Thank you to Isabel Wilkinson ‘08 for inspiring graduates at Class Day. Drawing on her own path from journalism to starting her fashion brand, Attersee, she advised graduates that, as long as your choices feel authentic, “the key is just to start!”

“I hope if there’s one thing you’ve taken from this today, it’s that a degree in art & archaeology from Princeton can truly lead you anywhere,” said Wilkinson.

Congratulations to our 2024-25 Magic Grant recipients!

Bridget Alsdorf (Art & Archaeology) and Hans Halvorson (Philosophy) for “The Modern Breakthrough in Scandinavia: Philosophy, Science, Art”

Samuel Holzman (Art & Archaeology) and Branko Glǐsić (Civil and Environmental Engineering) for “Relaunching HUM 417 focused on Greek Architecture”

Irene Small (Art & Archaeology) for “Contemporary Art: The World Picture”

Details on A&A website

As the world begins reckoning more acutely with women’s rights, inequality, and misrepresentation, Postdoctoral Associate Alanna Radlo-Dzur offered the course ART 419 / GSS 468 / LAS 414 “Nahua Women” to reframe and elevate the scholarship of indigenous art, history, and culture and women’s place in it.

“The intersectional complexities of gender and sexuality in Nahua communities are simply understudied topics, particularly in the contrasts between images made by Nahua women and those produced by others,” said Radlo-Dzur. “Likewise, the history of Nahua art and culture is still taught and mostly studied with surprisingly rigid temporal boundaries between pre-Hispanic, colonial, modern, and contemporary periods that reinforce scholarly silos with quite different methodologies despite the field’s inherent interdisciplinarity. By bridging these various lines of demarcation in our discussions, we explored new and innovative approaches both to art history and indigenous studies,” said Radlo-Dzur.

The class learned from artists .art and .

In parallel with the “Nahua Women” course, Radlo-Dzur also co-taught with Nadia Cervantes Pérez of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese an Early Modern Nahuatl Workshop.

Congratulations A&A seniors who came to Green Hall with a thesis and left with a triumphant Tiger mug!

Professors Nathan Arrington () and Samuel Holzman (.o.thrace) utilize game-changing new digital technologies on their archaeological excavations - alongside long-established methods that simply don’t need improving.

LiDAR, ground penetrating radar, magnetometry, electrical resistivity, drones, laser rangefinders, virtual reality, pickaxes, trowels, L-squares, pencils…they’re all in the archaeologist’s toolbox.

Photos/Kirstin Ohrt ©Ephorate of Antiquities of Rhodope

Tap the to learn more about these new digital tools.