Amy
- From: London, UK
- Studying: PhD in History of Art (full-time)
- Funding: AHRC Doctoral Scholarship
- Supervision: Dr Jo Applin
What are your research interests / what are you working on?
"Very broadly speaking I’m interested in modern and contemporary art and how artistic practices have increasingly intersected with social, cultural, industrial and ecological change over the last one hundred years. My PhD research though, focuses on the interrelationship of art and feminism in the 1970s and 1980s. I look at how women worked together, joined groups and created communities to incentivise or sustain their artistic practice, thinking about how these artistic practices intersected with the political aims and structures of the larger Women’s Liberation Movement in Britain and the United States. This allows me to question things like authorship, originality and institutional critique, key issues in histories of the avant-garde, in order to propose a history of feminist-influenced art that pays attention to a different, politically-active mode of working."
What has been the most fascinating part of your research so far, and why?
"It’s hard to pick something, but I think talking to the artists and participating in intergenerational conversations has been one of the most rich and rewarding. I’ve had the opportunity to meet and handle some artwork from the period, which is particularly exciting as so little of it exists in museum or gallery collections. But conversations with participants, who as feminists, have encouraged me to think seriously about my own feminism as well as sharing their memories and histories has also been a fantastic experience."
How do you find the research facilities at York?
"As a Medieval city York might not have been the first option for my research interests, but the facilities for arts and humanities post-graduates of any period are truly impressive. The Humanities Research Centre in the Berrick Saul Building provides a focus for diverse research interests, providing space (lecture theatre, seminar rooms and desks) to work but also to organise public events. I think having a good research environment is very important for any student and the BSB provides that."
What background do you come to your PhD from and what made you choose your research area?
"Well I started out at York as a combined honours English-History of Art student for my undergraduate degree but quickly moved to single honours when I realised how much I enjoyed the subject. After graduating in 2010, I went to the Courtauld Institute of Art to read for an MA in contemporary art, then I returned to York for my PhD in 2012. During my undergraduate degree I did lots of freelance jobs and internships in various roles in museums and galleries. In both work and academic environments I was really drawn to contemporary art and particularly the 1960s and 1970s when the focus moved from painting to sculpture, conceptual and performance art. I suppose I found these works harder to relate to, and was intrigued. I also owe a debt to Dr. Jo Applin, whose undergraduate classes were really important in feeding this interest. I became interested in women artists for a similar reason, that often they are the people we know least about and their work offer rich sites of process and experimentation often distinct from male artists work because they need to work through (particularly in the 1960s and 1970s) their exclusion from the artworld."
Why York rather than somewhere else?
"I was attracted back to York primarily because of the faculty. I wanted to continue working with Dr. Jo Applin but I also wanted to be part of the community of scholars in the History of Art department and the Centre for Modern Studies. The scholars at York are not only intellectually stimulating but also very welcoming and supportive."
Do you have an idea of how you’ll use your PhD/plans for the future?
"Well, happily I’ve already had occasion to share my research at some public events but I want to do more of that. I’d also like to think more about extending history of art and visual culture to younger people at GCSE and A Level and encourage the critical thinking the discipline demands there. I think the humanities are very important and I want to use my experience and knowledge to ensure they have a future. But, primarily I hope to continue researching and teaching at university level."
What would your dream job be?
"I’ll aim high, Professor in Modern and Contemporary Art and Culture in the UK or US, with a sideline in writing creatively about feminism and art for a broader audience."
