The visual and material culture of the Roman Empire provides an abundant record of encounters with or simply imaginings of foreign peoples. These images render visible complex formulations of ethnicity, social hierarchies, and power. This lecture surveys the ways in which imperial artists represented the peoples whom the Romans referred to as Aethiopians or Nubians (i.e., “Black” Africans) in a variety of visual media. The lecture also considers how and why these works have been (mis)interpreted or sometimes altogether ignored by ancient art historians, and proposes new ways of integrating them into future, critical histories of Roman art.

Professor Bell teaches courses on Greek, Etruscan, and Roman art, and architecture. He has excavated at sites in Italy and Tunisia and worked as a curatorial assistant at museums in Germany and Greece.

Co-Sponsored by UWM Classics Program, Department of Art History, and Department of Anthropology together with the Milwaukee Society of the Archaeological Institute of America.

Event flyer

Presentations this semester:

• September 12
• October 10
• November 14
• December 10

September 18, 2023 through February 8, 2024

Opening Reception: September 14, 2023, 5-7pm
UWM Gallery Night Thursday, September 21^st from 4-7pm

Art Works places the spotlight on curation and research practices at the UWM Art Collection and Emile H. Mathis Art Gallery. Drawing from recent donations and featuring objects of research attention, the exhibition emphasizes the gallery’s mission at work.

The UWM Art Collection and Emile H. Mathis Art Gallery are distinct in their accessibility to the public and their support of graduate and undergraduate training. Historically, art museums and collections have been shaped by relatively few people, and have quietly carried on collecting, researching, and displaying works with limited public input. Recently, art institutions and museum scholars have begun to lift the curtain. Art Works continues this new tradition of transparency.

The exhibit features pieces by well-known artists such as Dale Chihuly, Andy Warhol, and Alexander Calder. Lesser-known – but no less significant – artists including Max Arthur Cohn, Karen Fitzgerald, and Carlos Hermosilla Alvarez are also presented. Art Works highlights the key players that make the Mathis Art Gallery a rich resource for all.

Art Works: Recent Donations to the UWM Art Collection was curated by Academic Curator Leigh M.W. Mahlik and features research by former undergraduate and graduate student gallery interns, former gallery teaching assistants, faculty, and gallery staff.

Support for this exhibition is provided by the Friends of Art History, the Max Arthur Cohn Preservation Fund, the Emile H. Mathis Preservation Fund, the Department of Art History, and the College of Letters and Sciences.

Image:

Detail of Karen Fitzgerald, Lambent, 2005, oil on canvas, Gift of Karen Fitzgerald and Kohler Foundation, Inc., UWMAC 2021.006.03

The Emile H. Mathis Art Gallery
University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
Mitchell Hall 170
3203 N. Downer Ave
Milwaukee, WI 53211

Museum Hours

Mon – Thurs: 10 AM – 4 PM
Fri: CLOSED *

* Visits by appointment only

https://uwm.edu/arthistory/gallery/