Past Events
Ghosts in the Machines: A History of Spirit Communication Devices
Brandon Hodge
October 29, 2024, Bradford Auditorium
Author, historian, and collector Brandon Hodge discusses spirit communication through the development of the myriad apparatus used by the spiritualist movement and in popular culture through the decades. This presentation explores the cultural history of spirit trumpets, Tuttle Psychographs, automatic writing planchettes, and Ouija boards. Physical artifacts from Hodges’s collection will allow attendants to get up close and personal with the means our ancestors used to commune with the dead.
Curatorial Student Internship Symposium
October 22, 2024, Taylor Science Center Room 3024
Student interns and research fellows share their experiences working at museums and archives in the summer of 2024.
A Sudden Bounty: The American Masterworks Initiative at Fenimore Art Museum
Paul D’Ambrosio, Ph. D., President & CEO of the Fenimore Art Museum
September 19, 2024, Kennedy Auditorium
This lecture described one of the most unexpected and astonishing opportunities that a museum director can encounter: the sudden donation of nearly $34 million to assemble a premier art collection. Dr. D’Ambrosio discussed in detail how this sudden bounty came about, and how he and his patron proceeded to reshape the fine art holdings of a highly respected regional institution. Artists also discussed included Georgia O’Keeffe, Mary Cassatt, John Singer Sargent, Frederic Church, Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Eakins, and more.
Contact
Office / Department Name
Curatorial Studies
Contact Name
Ariel Jarman
Temporary Assistant, Curatorial Studies
The Curatorial Studies initiative has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of the NEH.
