My research focuses on how interpretations of the pre-colonial past shape the formation of Mexico as an imagined community. I am interested in how foreign and local scientific travelers and intellectuals re semanticized objects and created narratives based on the cultural materials they collected from indigenous societies in Mexico. I examine the ways these collections and interpretative narratives become institutionalized as the nation's cultural heritage. My epistemic approach uses museological theories to study the primary texts written by scientific travelers and applies an interdisciplinary lens, including literary theory, to analyze exhibitions of cultural materials in Mexican museums. My interdisciplinary approach draws from museum studies, literary theory, postcolonial theory, cultural studies, anthropology, object theory, ethno-archaeology, and spatial theory.
keywords
Cultural heritage collections, humanities, museum studies, women and gender in galleries, scientific travelers’ literature, galleries, libraries, archives, and museums (GLAM), and decoloniality
MUSM 5021 - Selected Museum Topics
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2021 / Summer 2022 / Fall 2022 / Summer 2023 / Summer 2024 / Summer 2025
Provides framework for student projects on varied museum topics (e.g., ethics of collecting, data management, the museum's role in the community). Student projects include case study analysis, interviewing, and original presentations. Topics vary each semester. Department consent required. May be repeated up to 8 total credit hours.
MUSM 5031 - Museums and the Public: Exhibit Development
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2021 / Spring 2022 / Spring 2023
Covers elements of exhibition development and design, up to production and evaluation of exhibit prototypes. The team approach is emphasized. Department enforced prerequisite: restricted to graduate students.
SPAN 1020 - Beginning Spanish 2
Primary Instructor
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Summer 2018
Continuation of SPAN 1010. Department enforced prerequisite: SPAN 1010 (min. grade C-). Degree credit not granted for this course and SPAN 1150.
