鈥淭hese are manuscripts made in the 13th century that record songs celebrating miracles attributed to the Virgin Mary,鈥� Joyner said of the Cantigas de Santa Maria and the interdisciplinary spark that first brought her, Allan, and Ceballos together. 鈥淪everal of them also contain notated music for the songs and truly beautiful, and sometimes very weird, imagery depicting their stories. Because it鈥檚 13th-century Spain, the relationships among the cultures occupying the peninsula are tightly woven and cross-pollinating and, yes, sometimes at odds with each other. Nonetheless, the mix of Islamic, Jewish, and Christian traditions in Spain was unique in European history. 鈥� Once the three of us started working together, the hardest part became narrowing down which songs and stories to choose because there are so many fascinating, funny, and weird possibilities.鈥�

Teaching and learning

The three-unit course grew out of those initial conversations, with Allan, Ceballos, and Joyner jointly teaching the course, and all three learning along the way.

鈥淐ollaborating with Danielle and Madera was amazing,鈥� Ceballos said. 鈥淲e learned so much from one another, and very often that learning happened live in the classroom as we each took turns presenting materials and leading discussion. I imagine this was a pretty unique experience for some students to see their professors learning right along with them, asking questions, getting things wrong, and gaining new perspectives.鈥�

None of them wanted the class to end.

鈥淭he class was so much fun,鈥� Joyner said. 鈥淭he students liked it, we liked it. We got to the end and thought, we have to do this again.鈥�

So they did.

Learn more about Lawrence Alumni trips

Allan has been on the Spanish faculty at Lawrence since 2008. Her scholarship is focused on community formation in late medieval and early modern Spain and the colonial era of Latin America.

Ceballos has taught musicology at Lawrence since 2008. Her scholarly work focuses on 18th century keyboard music. She has a fascination with early music and often performs on harpsichord, keyboards, and ukulele.

Joyner joined the art history faculty in 2018. Her scholarly work has most recently focused on intersections between the natural environment and the arts, publishing on topics such as sixth-century bird-shaped brooches, the ephemerality of gardens, animals in Anglo-Saxon arts, and representations of terra across the Middle Ages.

The three continue to find meaningful connections via 13th-century Spain in their respective fields. That power of shared knowledge and intersecting interests has driven this project in all three of its phases.

鈥淭hey bring wisdom and intellectual enthusiasm to everything they do,鈥� Allan said of Joyner and Ceballos. 鈥淚 have learned so much from both of them. They are also models of patience and generosity鈥攕o I鈥檓 not the only one who has learned from them. The students in both iterations of the class have produced amazingly nuanced analyses incorporating architectural, musical, and literary elements.鈥�

Taking the course to Spain

The D-Term trip took the experience to a new level. Joyner, who led the planning efforts, reached out to connections she had at Fundaci贸n Ortega-Mara帽on (FOM) in Toledo. With help from Yukiko Okazaki, the organization鈥檚 director of International Programs, they put together a travel course built around the Cantigas de Santa Maria.

鈥淎 number of the Cantigas refer to Toledo, and there are medieval mosques, synagogues, and churches that still stand in that extraordinary little city,鈥� Joyner said.

The itinerary led the group from Madrid to Toledo to C贸rdoba and back to Madrid.

鈥淲e stayed at the FOM campus in Toledo and had a bus that took us on our various outings,鈥� Joyner said.

A highlight was a private musical performance by the scholar Antoni Rossell. Ceballos had discovered his award-winning album, Galicia e as Cantigas de Santa Maria, during research for the earlier course.

鈥淗is album is unique in that he and his collaborators worked to make medieval Galicia and its sound worlds come alive on record, and they also endeavored to situate the Cantigas in that world,鈥� Ceballos said. 鈥淚n the opening track, you hear the creaking of a boat and the sounds of a powerful storm, and then the a cappella voices of singers praising the Virgin Mary and imploring, 鈥楬oly Mary, morning star, show us the way to God and guide us.鈥� Antoni鈥檚 performance blew me away and he was so engaging and generous.鈥�

Hannah Frank, a senior history major from New Canaan, Connecticut, called the D-Term trip a 鈥渦nique and special opportunity鈥� for the students.

鈥淏esides having classes with the professors throughout the term and learning historical context from them, we also got guided tours throughout Spain that were really important for me actually understanding the significance of the places we were in,鈥� Frank said.

The D-Term course was aided by two Lawrence alumni, Robert 鈥�79 and Janet Stevens 鈥�82, who joined the trip. The presence of the Stevens enriched the D-Term course, and it sparked talk of a wider alumni trip.

鈥淲e could have conversations with them that followed different paths than those we had with the students,鈥� Joyner said. 鈥淏ecause of their own lives and experiences, they posed questions that likely would never come out of a 20-year-old鈥檚 mouth, and those questions made us think in different ways about what we were doing. It was fantastic, and it made me want to try it on a bigger scale.鈥�

With 14 alumni and family joining them on the spring break trip, it was the next step in an academic adventure that Allan, Ceballos, and Joyner continue to embrace.

鈥淚 do always want to share the medieval love with anyone who wants to listen, and sometimes even with people who don鈥檛,鈥� Joyner said. 鈥淲e knew that we had an exciting and unique way of thinking about Spain, and we wanted to share it with another Lawrence audience. I think I can speak for Madera and Sara when I say that we firmly believe in the importance of the humanities and fine arts and that an important component of a liberal arts education is that it instills in those who are receptive a joy in life-long learning.鈥�

For all these positive aspects, however, Matthews said these women鈥檚 perspectives are almost impossible to find. There are no known official lists of workers, the project is obscure in scholarship, and scholars who cover it continue neglecting the workers鈥� perspectives.

鈥淚t was pretty common to refer to them in the masses,鈥� Matthews said. 鈥淏ecause of that, there鈥檚 this hierarchy that鈥檚 been created in the archive right now where the only people who receive credit for the project are usually the director of the program or the head designers.鈥�

Matthews also said while she agrees with other scholars praising the project鈥檚 desegregation, there鈥檚 no way of knowing how effective it truly was, and if women of color felt accepted and safe at work.

Matthews has been a Wriston Art Galleries intern for a couple of years. This gave her good connections with Beth Zinsli, assistant professor of art history and Wriston Art Galleries curator.

鈥淪arah鈥檚 meticulous research on the Milwaukee Handicraft Project textiles, centered on the women workers who produced them, offers a deeper and more thorough understanding of the WPA鈥檚 employment initiatives,鈥� Zinsli said.

Sparking an interest

Matthews鈥� interest in the project began two summers ago as a Wriston Art Galleries intern. Tasked with creating a mini-exhibition on an item in the gallery鈥檚 collection, Matthews was drawn to the obscure textiles.

鈥淭he design of these textiles is actually fairly modern, which I think sometimes surprises people,鈥� Matthews said.

Matthews used this topic for her art history capstone paper, but she decided she wanted to know more.

鈥淚 came back to this idea for the project but dug a little deeper in terms of, 鈥榃hat does the archive look like right now for this project?鈥� and 鈥榃hy aren鈥檛 these women鈥檚 perspectives being showcased?鈥� and 鈥榃hy aren鈥檛 these items being displayed more often?鈥欌��

Matthews knew she had to do some digging. She consulted Seeley G. Mudd research librarian Antoinette Powell, who helped her search old censuses.

鈥淲ith Antoinette鈥檚 help and assistance, I was able to find 30 potential names of these women, which is a very small number compared to 5,000, but not having any individual identification on these women at the start of this project, that was a big deal for me.鈥�

Matthews admitted she has no way of confirming if these 30 women were workers, but this further emphasizes her point.

鈥淚 would like people to know that there鈥檚 still very much that remains unknown about this project,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his serves as an example of how skewed archives can be, and how there are so many hierarchies in archiving.鈥�

Passion on display

鈥淚 was a little surprised that I became an art history major鈥ut after taking my first art history class, I was like, 鈥楾his is what I want to do,鈥欌�� Matthews said.

Matthews said the change from capstone paper to exhibition was all about making it more accessible.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want anyone to get overwhelmed thinking, 鈥業 don鈥檛 know anything about art history, I can鈥檛 look at this exhibition,鈥� because that鈥檚 not what an exhibition is for,鈥� Matthews said.

Zinsli recognized Matthews鈥� interests in curation and hands-on experiences and was able to provide support.

鈥淗er curatorial choices allow visitors to learn about the historical significance of the textiles and delight in the beauty of their patterns and motifs; it is a wonderful visual presentation of her capstone research,鈥� Zinsli said.

Matthews said developing the exhibition was a rigorous process involving research鈥攂oth old and new鈥攄esigning the exhibit layout, and creating mattes, labels, and displays.

鈥淚 think that transition from writing, researching, and reading about these objects to actually displaying them was super intriguing and powerful for me to go through,鈥� she said.

Matthews believes the most important thing about being a curator is taking care of what matters and diversifying archives and museums.

鈥淎 lot of times, fiber arts and textiles aren鈥檛 displayed in museums as often as other artworks that are considered 鈥榝ine art,鈥� like oil paintings or even drawings,鈥� Matthews said. 鈥淭here is this 鈥榗rafts versus fine art鈥� debate in the museum world that I鈥檓 super interested in.鈥�

Matthews said she hopes to work in the museum field following graduation. She鈥檚 also considering a graduate degree in art history or museum studies in the next few years.

鈥淚鈥檓 really passionate about art, but I think I鈥檓 even more passionate about taking care of art,鈥� Matthews said.

Read more about Lost Identities and Loose Threads and other Wriston exhibitions here.

Researching the history behind these artifacts required Han to correspond with institutions as far away as Los Angeles as she tracked down the paper trails.

鈥淲e have to do all these communications with someone far away from here, and also, it鈥檚 during the pandemic; the communication is very slow. The waiting time was much longer than I thought,鈥� Han said.

Despite the difficulties of research and waiting, Han said she enjoyed the search, and that she and Vance could spend hours looking at a single artifact.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not about art styles; it鈥檚 about the history behind them,鈥� Han said.

Han hopes that by figuring out the complex but fascinating stories behind the artifacts, these objects can take on new meaning to other students as well.

Despite a delay due to paper shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic, Han and Vance鈥檚 chapter, 鈥淭he Liberal Arts Collection: East Asian Artifacts at 糖心vlog,鈥� is due to be released in the fall of 2022 in an edited volume titled Centring the Periphery: New Perspectives on Collecting East Asia from Brill.

鈥淚t was moving to witness Jin’s excitement about the artifacts and to watch as she grew in confidence in research, writing, and collaborating,鈥� Vance said.

Originally from China, Han attended high school in Rochester, New York. When applying to colleges, she preferred smaller, liberal-arts schools, and chose Lawrence for its academic offerings, available scholarships, and surroundings.

As a singer, another draw for Han was the Conservatory of Music.

鈥淚 feel like the community is stronger here,鈥� she said.

For other members of the Lawrence community interested in research projects like this, Han said, 鈥淭hey need to be really passionate about these artifacts. Otherwise, you probably won鈥檛 be spending such a long time to work with these objects and these tedious documents.鈥�

Han also said that Vance greatly helped make the work less stressful.

鈥淧rofessor Vance is very welcoming and she鈥檚 a warm person; really nice,鈥� Han said. 鈥淪he didn鈥檛 put a lot of pressure on me; she鈥檚 like, 鈥榯ake as much time as you need鈥� to do the work well.鈥�

Han is strongly considering continuing down this path as a career; she plans to apply to graduate programs in both clinical psychology and museum studies.

The Rabbit Gallery is part of an entrepreneurship practicum led by Gary Vaughan, coordinator of Lawrence鈥檚聽聽and lecturer of economics. It gives students an opportunity to plan, coordinate, and execute a gallery on their own.

The gallery features photography, poetry, paintings, and sculpture.

Sophomore Izzy Allison, curator for the gallery and a member of the marketing team, said students in the entrepreneurship program divided into teams early in Spring Term to begin preparations for the pop-up gallery.

鈥淚n the first few weeks of Spring Term, we meet, discuss finding a location, figure out the teams: who is doing marketing, who is on financial, who is finding the space, who is doing curation,鈥� she said. 鈥淥nce we get a space, we get everything set up and send out a call for art.鈥�

Allison, an art history major from Denver, played a lead role in choosing the art and hanging it.

鈥淭his has definitely been great for me as I want to end up going into museums,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his has been a great way to learn about curatorship and how to run a gallery basically without any help. The students involved are doing everything.鈥�

The art on display is for sale.

The gallery includes a fund-raising component for KidsGive, a nonprofit program run by Lawrence students and alumni as part of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Program. Its mission is to support education in Sierra Leone and promote education in the United States about African and Sierra Leonean life and culture.

Maddy Tevonian, a sophomore double majoring in religious studies and art history, decided to attend Lawrence for numerous reasons. She liked that Lawrence was the perfect distance from her home without feeling too far away and her financial aid and scholarship offers were generous. However, the deciding factor in her decision came after an overnight shadowing trip with a student host. Tevonian was shown the campus with her host, touring the residence halls, classes, and getting a glimpse into life on campus.

鈥淗er and her friends treated me as if I was one of them,鈥� Tevonian said of the student guide. 鈥淢y host took me around on the evening I was staying with her and texted friends that she had made in each of the residence halls so that I could come see a room in each hall.鈥�

Since coming to Lawrence, Tevonian has loved her classes. She has always been passionate about studying mythology and religion and was pleasantly surprised when she found that she could pursue a degree in her areas of interests. Then after taking an intro course in art history, she found that it fit perfectly with her interests in religious studies.

Although still early in her college career, Tevonian knows that she wants to attend grad school and then eventually work in a museum as a researcher or possibly a curator. She has expressed a desire to address issues of ethical curation of art and artifacts.

鈥淚鈥檇 enjoy working to be part of the solution, such as returning items like totem poles to the Indigenous peoples they belong to and making models or 3-D scans so visitors can still learn about them.鈥�

Emma Goodman, a junior pursuing a double major in studio art and art history, first heard about Lawrence through a friend, but was ultimately drawn in due to the supportive interpersonal relationships between students and professors.

Goodman knew that she would be majoring in studio art when she came to Lawrence. She has always been passionate about using art to experiment and express herself and wanted to continue that exploration in college. Then, during her first term at Lawrence, she took Intro to Art History and was immediately hooked.

鈥淚 love taking art history classes because they allow me to trace the patterns and changes in a society across time into the present by examining art from different cultures, which also informs the way I think about my own art,鈥� Goodman said.

Goodman is grateful for the academic opportunities that she has experienced so far; for example, working as a head writing tutor and designing a Wriston Art Gallery exhibition.

She is optimistic and excited about her future.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 have very concrete plans for life after Lawrence, but I think I would enjoy working at an art museum or gallery, always continuing to make my own art,鈥� Goodman said.