Alexander Hamilton’s life story, for all its drama, was always an unlikely source for a smash hit on Broadway. Hamilton favored rule by the elite in an already elitist society. He was adulterous, impulsive and privileged. But Lin-Manuel Miranda, like many musical theatre composers before him, saw in this unlikely source the chance to reform […]Read Post ›
Lin-Manuel Miranda was first introduced to the Schuyler sisters while on vacation.
“We are living in the age of Hamilton,” admitted Annette Gordon-Reed at a recent book talk. Reed’s comment is surprising: she’s a leading scholar on Thomas Jefferson, Hamilton’s rival. But her praise is not; nowadays, everyone loves Hamilton.
When I walked in to start my first day in a STEM graduate program last Fall, I did not know what to expect. Because I knew since high school that I wanted to pursue a career in the sciences, my parents were perplexed as to why I cared to know the difference between my Rococo […]Read Post ›
This past week, on a vacation to the Midwest, I found myself at the Art Institute of Chicago, one of Chicago, Illinois’ most iconic art museums. After clumsily navigating the El and getting lost on State Street – which is almost impossible to get lost on – I happened upon the grand facade of the museum, […]Read Post ›
Did you know that Michelangelo had a female pupil? Did you know that she gave painting lessons to the Spanish queen? This week’s Female Artist Spotlight is dedicated to Sofonisba Anguissola. Sofonisba Anguissola (c. 1532-1625) has always stood out to me as an interesting figure in art history, not in the least because of […]Read Post ›
Last weekend, I viewed the “Visiting Masterpieces: Pairing Picasso” exhibit, which is available until June 26, 2016, in the Lee Gallery at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts. The exhibit features five paired works that artist Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) created at the height of his career between the 1900s and the 1960s. Upon […]Read Post ›
In all my travels, I’ve seen her at least three times.Each time, we end up being in an odd spot where I feel bad for her, but also impressed by her beauty. I stare at her face, the smooth marble finished so perfectly and her expression so intense. I could spend few true minutes uninterrupted […]Read Post ›
(This was originally written as a justification of a purchase for an object collected by the Davis Museum. The full text may be found by viewing the object file. This is part of a Monthly Series of focusing on Female Artists by Claire Milldrum.) In the 18th century, women faced particularly difficult challenges to build […]Read Post ›
(This is an edited version of a justification of an acquisition at the Davis Museum. The original can be found in the object file for 2014.127.1-.7. The works were on display at the Davis from Sept 16 to Dec 13 2015 and are part of a book edited by Dr. Claire Whitner.) Käthe Kollwitz (born 1867 in […]Read Post ›
The Female Gaze 