VCUarts Art History

VCUarts Art History VCUarts Department of Art History The VCUarts Department of Art History is engaged in establishing a global approach to the visual arts.

Its faculty and students recognize the need to study the permeability of geographic, temporal and theoretical boundaries, which in the past separated and defined the world.

This past semester, former graduate student, now alumna Indya Davis (M.A. ‘26) completed a research trip to Harlem and P...
06/08/2026

This past semester, former graduate student, now alumna Indya Davis (M.A. ‘26) completed a research trip to Harlem and Philadelphia, supported by funds from the Department of Art History and a VCUarts Graduate Research Grant!

Studying works by Wangechi Mutu, Indya used this experience for her capstone qualifying paper, highlighting her research and investigations into water as memory in contemporary art. She viewed works such as “Chocolate Nguva” and “If we live through it, She’ll carry us back”, on view at the Studio Museum and in storage at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts respectively.

Indya describes that viewing these works in person helped expand her formal analysis and understanding of the pieces.



This past semester, Professor Lisa Freiman’s class participated in a VCUarts field trip to Washington, DC! 📸🐏On March 21...
06/05/2026

This past semester, Professor Lisa Freiman’s class participated in a VCUarts field trip to Washington, DC! 📸🐏

On March 21st, her students spent the day touring various museums throughout the city, learning about different artists while visiting multiple exhibitions and permanent collections. Beginning with the Hirshorn Museum, they traveled to the National Gallery of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Renwick, and the National Museum of Women in the Arts!

Here is a closer look at Professor Freiman’s class exploring the city over the course of the day! ☀️



Meet undergraduate student Nico DeBoeser, who will be presenting their study, “Weaving Horsehair: Examining an American ...
04/24/2026

Meet undergraduate student Nico DeBoeser, who will be presenting their study, “Weaving Horsehair: Examining an American Handcraft from Behind Bars,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

Nico DeBoeser is an Art History major and Religious Studies minor at VCUarts, currently participating in the Accelerated Master’s program. They enjoy researching and writing about the visual culture of the Western United States, exploring how the image of the cowboy and representations of the landscape play together as American giants. Nico has previously participated in the SUNY New Paltz Undergraduate Art History Symposium and has been involved in the departmental community by serving as President of the Art History Club at VCU. Outside of work, Nico loves to spend time with friends, play video games, and watch Columbo (1968).

The New Voices in Art History symposium takes place today, Friday, April 24th, at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!



Meet undergraduate student Alexander Lucas, who will be presenting his study, “The Ethics of Artistic Photojournalism: A...
04/23/2026

Meet undergraduate student Alexander Lucas, who will be presenting his study, “The Ethics of Artistic Photojournalism: A Viewer’s Guide to Media Consumption,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

Alexander Lucas is a first-year Art History major in VCU’s Honors College. He spent most of his high school years working on his own photography and curating portfolios within different fields within the arts, including three years of courses in digital photography, film photography and alternative printing processes. During this time, he completed a program at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), specializing in alternative printing processes, accompanied by a final gallery showing. His presentation is on the ethics of artistic photojournalism, including its history and current relevance.

The New Voices in Art History symposium will take place this Friday, April 24th, at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!



Meet undergraduate student Arlo Neidich, who will be presenting his study, “Selective Permanence: Image, Absence and the...
04/23/2026

Meet undergraduate student Arlo Neidich, who will be presenting his study, “Selective Permanence: Image, Absence and the Memory of Entartete Kunst,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

Arlo Neidich is a fourth-year undergraduate student in the Art History department at VCUarts. His research interests include German Expressionism, postwar abstraction and reception theory. Beyond his academic studies, Arlo currently serves as the Social Media Team Manager for the Art History Club at VCU. After graduation, he plans to pursue a Master’s in Art History as well as a career in art museum education.

The New Voices in Art History symposium will take place this Friday, April 24th, at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!



Meet second-year MA Candidate John Walker, who will be presenting his study, “Issues in Design Thinking and the User Exp...
04/21/2026

Meet second-year MA Candidate John Walker, who will be presenting his study, “Issues in Design Thinking and the User Experience of Art,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

John Walker is an artist, designer and curator whose work examines technocapitalist systems and interactions. He holds a B.F.A. in Art and Technology from the University of Florida, where he received the Jerry Uelsmann Scholarship, and was recently awarded the Margaret N. Gottwald Scholarship at VCUarts. He has curated exhibitions at the University of Florida’s 4Most Gallery and VCUarts’ the Anderson, and previously served as Technical Director of Moisturizer Gallery. His research-based artwork has been exhibited internationally, including at the Czong Institute for Contemporary Art, Taman Ismail Marzuki and Satellite Art Show at Art Basel Miami.

The New Voices in Art History symposium will take place on Friday, April 24th at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!



Meet second-year MA Candidate Evelyn Vandrey, who will be presenting her study, “Lipstick and Labor: The Rearticulation ...
04/20/2026

Meet second-year MA Candidate Evelyn Vandrey, who will be presenting her study, “Lipstick and Labor: The Rearticulation of Gender Expectations in WWII and Post-War America,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

While pursuing her undergraduate studies, Evelyn Vandrey decided to continue her passion for museums through VCUarts’ 4+1 Accelerated Program in Art History. Her research centers on advertising, paper crafts and the relationship between art and print culture. She is currently studying how cosmetic advertising shapes consumer perception, focusing on the visual and linguistic strategies that construct personal and national identities. After interning at the Valentine, the Poe Museum and the VMFA, Evelyn aims to pursue a career in collections management.

The New Voices in Art History symposium will take place on Friday, April 24th at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!



Meet second-year MA Candidate Hayley Secrist, who will be presenting her study, “Story Quilting and Ethics of Care: A Pe...
04/17/2026

Meet second-year MA Candidate Hayley Secrist, who will be presenting her study, “Story Quilting and Ethics of Care: A People-Centered Archive,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

Hayley Secrist’s research interests focus on fiber arts and their development and categorization as both craft and art. She works to challenge these distinctions and their intersections as they relate to race, gender, sexuality and class. She is interested in fiber arts as a tool for political activism, and their ability to break down hierarchies in both art and society. Her current Master’s work focuses on the canonization of Harriet Powers and her quilts, in contrast to the way she has been engaged within a Black Feminist context. These ideas are rooted in a practice of an ethics of care.

The New Voices in Art History symposium will take place on Friday, April 24th at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!



Meet second-year MA Candidate Charlotte Hanson, who will be presenting her study, “For effect as Pictures: The Visual Or...
04/16/2026

Meet second-year MA Candidate Charlotte Hanson, who will be presenting her study, “For effect as Pictures: The Visual Origins of F. Catherwood’s Views of Ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan,” at the New Voices in Art History Symposium!

Charlotte’s research interests lie in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica with a focus on U.S. collection histories of West Mexican ceramics. Her Master’s research looks at early representations of Maya material culture in Europe and the United States during the nineteenth century, especially the works of Frederick Catherwood. Charlotte had a four-year internship with the education department at the Clark Art Institute while at Williams College and is now a Collections Management intern for the Raysor Center for Works on Paper at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. She aims to carry her experiences in these positions to a future in museum curation.

The New Voices in Art History Symposium will take place on Friday, April 24th at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!

VCUarts The Valentine

Meet second-year MA Candidate Grace Figueroa, who will be presenting their study, “Smoke and Mirrors: On the Cigarette a...
04/15/2026

Meet second-year MA Candidate Grace Figueroa, who will be presenting their study, “Smoke and Mirrors: On the Cigarette as Signifier of the Third S*x in Modern German Visual Culture,” at the New Voices in Art History symposium!

Grace Figueroa is a Virginia native and a second-year graduate student, pursuing their Master of Arts in Art History. Their research interests lie in 20th-century visual culture, with a focus on print culture, propaganda and censorship and the visual construction of marginalized identities. They have been a recipient of the Schapiro Undergraduate Research Fellowship, the culmination of which was presented at SECAC 2022, and their work can be found in New Classicists through the School of Advanced Study at the University of London. Currently, Grace is a Provenance Research intern at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

The New Voices in Art History symposium will take place on Friday, April 24th at 9:45 AM at The Valentine (1015 E Clay St.). To learn more about this upcoming event and our speakers, follow the link in our bio!

VCUarts The Valentine

Address

922 W Franklin Street, PO Box 843046
Richmond, VA
23284

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Friday 8:30am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+18048282784

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when VCUarts Art History posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The University

Send a message to VCUarts Art History:

Shortcuts

Share