UCL History of Art Alumni Newsletter Summer 2024
Newsletter Contents
Welcome
Department News
- Interview with Amanda (Xiao) Ju, Incoming Lecturer in Contemporary Art
- Reflections on My First Year in the MSc Conservation of Contemporary Art and Media, Emily Spargo
- My PhD Experience, Baylee Woodley
- A Year to Remember: Reflections from the President of the History of Art Society, Yige Wang
- Queer Bloomsbury Tour
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Student Journalists 2024
Alumni Spotlights
Stay in Touch
A Summer Message from the Head of Department
Bob Mills
Professor of Medieval Studies
Head of History of Art Department, 2019-24
Dear friends and former students,
I’m delighted to share this summer edition of our newsletter with you. As this will be my final message as Head of the History of Art Department, I reflect on our incredible journey together. I’ll soon be passing the baton to my esteemed colleague Richard Taws. Just a few weeks ago, Richard delivered his inaugural lecture as Professor of History of Art and Visual Culture, allowing us to celebrate his impressive achievements. I have no doubt that Richard will be an outstanding Head of Department, and I look forward to watching UCL History of Art continue to thrive under his leadership.
As I prepare for a year’s sabbatical leave, during which I hope to complete a book on wild forms in medieval art, I’ve been reminiscing about the past five years. I still remember writing my message for the 2020 summer edition of this newsletter, a year into my term as Head, where I shared my initial experiences. Those early days were filled with challenges and surprises (hello, Covid!) but also with incredible rewards, such as making excellent new appointments and enjoying memorable teaching moments, including a pre-pandemic field trip to Barcelona.
The subsequent years brought their own mix of rewards and challenges. Leading UCL History of Art has been a great privilege of my life. I’ve learned so much from this experience, from my amazing colleagues, and, of course, from our outstanding students.
One of the highlights of being Head of Department has been the opportunity to connect with you, our vibrant alumni community. Hearing from former students over the years has been a joy. Your updates and successes continue to inspire us. Please keep the news coming!
I send you my warmest wishes on behalf of all of us at Gordon Square. I also want to extend a special invitation to our upcoming alumni event this autumn - mark your calendars for September 26, 2024. It promises to be a fantastic occasion to reconnect and celebrate our shared passion for art history.
Yours,
Bob Mills
Head of Department (2019–2024), UCL History of Art
A Journey Through Art and Academia: An Interview with Amanda (Xiao) Ju, Incoming Lecturer in Contemporary Art
Interviewer: Izzie Harvey, Communications and Events Manager
Izzie: Hello, Amanda! Thank you for meeting with me. Our outgoing Head of Department, Bob Mills, suggested interviewing you to introduce you to our staff, students and alumni. This interview will be featured in our summer 2024 alumni newsletter. Please start by introducing yourself and telling us a bit about your background.
Amanda: Hi, Izzie. Nice to meet you, too! My name is Amanda (Xiao) Ju. I’m originally from China. I moved to the US when I was 18 for college. I stayed there for about 13 years and then moved to Berlin in the winter of 2023.
Izzie: That’s quite a journey! Where did you attend university?
Amanda: I went to Barnard College in New York for my BA in Art History. After that, I pursued my PhD at the University of Rochester, New York, specialising in Visual and Cultural Studies. I’m moving to the UK to take up my position as Lecturer in Contemporary Art at UCL History of Art. The position focuses on global contemporary art, but my work explicitly emphasises contemporary art from East Asia and its diaspora.
Izzie: Your research sounds fascinating. It definitely fills an essential space in our curriculum. What projects are you currently working on?
Amanda: I’m part of a research group studying the history of Chinese art academies, particularly their international exchanges with the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and parts of Central Asia. I’m also revising my dissertation into a book tentatively titled Our Common Selves. It’s about representations of Chinese selfhood from immediately after the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests to the early 2000s.
Izzie: That sounds intriguing. What inspired you to focus on that topic for your dissertation?
Amanda: Initially, I intended to write about the artist Louise Lawler and her conceptual work on American wars in the Middle East. However, about two years into graduate school, I realised there was extensive scholarship on conceptual photography and post-war American art but much less on contemporary Chinese art. So, I shifted my focus to contemporary Chinese art, particularly its gender dynamics and the legacy of socialist China.
Izzie: Our students are eager to learn more about East Asian and Chinese art. What has your career journey been like since graduating from the University of Rochester?
Amanda: A year before finishing, I spent time at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, researching Asian American art and completing my dissertation. After defending my dissertation, I moved to Berlin to join a research group as a postdoc.
Izzie: And do you have any special interests to bring to your work here?
Amanda: I’m very interested in addressing the disparities in students’ preparedness due to their high school backgrounds. I aim to create scaffolded assignments that build the necessary skills gradually, making art history more accessible and less daunting.
Izzie: Your skills and ideas will make a valuable addition to our current equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives. What about this job or university appealed to you the most?
Amanda: I’ve always dreamed of teaching global contemporary art from a transcultural perspective, and this role perfectly aligns with that. London is a fantastic place for teaching East Asian contemporary art, thanks to its rich resources like Tate Modern and art organisations like Asymmetry. Additionally, I’ve admired the work of many professors in the Department and am excited to join them as a colleague. Just to name a few, Tamar Garb’s work was foundational during my undergraduate years, and Mignon Nixon’s work significantly influenced me. I wanted to study with her while applying to graduate universities.
Izzie: We’re all excited to welcome and work with you! What professional or academic accomplishment are you most proud of?
Amanda: Despite the challenges, I’m most proud that I stuck with my goal of becoming an art historian since my sophomore year of college. The journey was neither easy nor transparent, but perseverance paid off.
Izzie: That tells me a little about your approach to work. Can you give us some tips about handling productivity and stress in academia?
Amanda: Honestly, I’m not the most productive person, but writing consistently, even if just a paragraph a day, helps keep my skills sharp. When stressed, I run or do yoga to clear my mind. I also thrive on collaboration; it’s intellectually stimulating and rewarding.
Izzie: Speaking of collaboration then, who would be your ideal mentor, and why?
Amanda: I’ve been fortunate to have many great mentors who offered timely intellectual interventions, encouragement, and friendship. A line by poet Donna Ward resonates with me: “The many gendered mothers of my heart.” That perfectly describes my mentors.
Izzie: That’s beautiful. What are you looking forward to about living in London?
Amanda: The food! Every visit to London has been a culinary delight. After my last interview, I had amazing Malaysian food at Med Salleh Kopitiam, and I’m excited to explore more.
Izzie: We have many foodies in the Department who would love to explore some of the restaurants with you. Do you have any other interesting facts about yourself you’d like to share?
Amanda: After my dissertation defence, I went on a mini-vacation to Mexico City. The architecture, especially the vibrant private residences, and the budding contemporary art scene there are incredible. I was particularly inspired by the work of Mexican architect Luis Barragán and the independent art space, the Vernacular Institute, by Taiwanese curator Jo Ying Peng. It’s a place to which I dream of returning.
Izzie: I have yet to visit Mexico, but it’s certainly on my bucket list. Lastly, do you have any advice for our staff, students, and alumni?
Amanda: If you don’t succeed at something the first time, don’t give up. I applied for this job twice and got it the second time. Persistence is key.
Izzie: Thank you, Amanda. It was wonderful talking to you. We’ll see you in September!
Amanda: Thank you, Izzie. Looking forward to it!
A Letter to Myself: Reflections on My First Year in the MSc Conservation of Contemporary Art and Media
Emily Spargo
Part-time MSc, 2023-26
It might be hard to imagine, but you have completed your first year in the MSc Conservation of Contemporary Art and Media at UCL. After toiling over applications and waiting anxiously, you are firmly on your way to becoming a graduate in conservation, and this course feels particularly special.
On the first day, you were greeted by the lovely Pip, Rosie, Brian, Fergus, Valentina, and Libby - the programme’s core faculty - and met your fellow classmates. Nerves were quickly replaced with excitement as you saw so many thrilled faces representing the programme’s first year. From the outset, you were blown away by the enthusiasm, passion, and generous support.
It’s been a transformative journey. The quality of teaching, collaboration, group visits, and numerous guest lecturers have all been enriching. Who knew you would be interviewing David Blandy and Larry Achiampong, visiting Tate’s conservation studios, and learning about Neon art, all in your first term?
My advice: learn as much as possible, use the assignments to follow what feels important and interesting to you, memorise those formulas for making solutions (you will need them!), utilise the incredible facilities around you, and, more importantly, enjoy your time.
You have terrific classmates, all with different backgrounds and experiences. Everyone supports one another, and it’s heartwarming to know that after graduating, they’ll be your colleagues.
London is tough, but it’s vibrant and wonderful. Don’t feel bad you missed that exhibition. Get your feet on the ground, look after yourself, and work hard - it will pay off.
I can’t wait for you to experience it for yourself.
All the best,
Future You x
My PhD Experience
Baylee Woodley
PhD Student
I began my PhD at UCL in September 2021. My doctoral research explores queer femininities in the visual culture of late medieval England and France. I am interested in what emerges from taking femininity as a category in intersectional analyses detached from womanhood or femaleness. I draw on femme theory to guide this approach. My project also puts the medieval and modern into conversation to consider what they might offer each other.
Pursuing this research at UCL and attending conferences around the UK has been an incredible opportunity. Living among the medieval as it is embedded in the London cityscape with easy access to the case studies driving my research is energizing. The chances to connect with a wide, entangled network of medievalists, art historians, and queer studies researchers have also given me a new sense of what is possible for interdisciplinary (and, in my case, queer) researchers and research. It is a community that I did not previously know was available to me and one which I hope will last throughout my career.
Alongside the research (and my love for medieval and modern femmes), teaching has always played a large part in my life as a postgraduate researcher. I taught undergraduate tutorials throughout my MA at the University of Victoria (unceded lək̓ʷəŋən territory in so-called British Columbia, Canada) and have been a PGTA on undergraduate modules at UCL throughout my PhD. Designing and teaching an Art in London module last year was a fascinating opportunity to teach medieval art history at sites across London.
Using teaching to make History of Art accessible is even more important for me. I worked with an accessible adult education program at the University of Victoria for seven years. At UCL I have had the privilege of working with the Widening Participation program run by the History of Art department for two consecutive years facilitating a Queer Art History module. This program is designed for UK students in grades 12 and 13 who come from underrepresented backgrounds and is meant to encourage them to see themselves at a top university in humanities or social sciences programs. Last year, it received a Widening Access award from UCL. I have absolutely loved being a part of it—the chance to share with students how visual culture is relevant to their own lives and encourage them to feel empowered to intervene in its impact is what I find most exciting about being an art historian.
As I near completion of the PhD and look ahead, I look to find positions that allow me to carry on both my research and teaching alongside other knowledge translation projects. To be a lecturer who is in a position to run or support other programs like the Widening Participation program at UCL and to work with a wide range of students and communities within and outside of the institution I am associated with would be the most worthwhile career that I can imagine for myself.
A Year to Remember: Reflections from the President of the History of Art Society
Hello everyone,
As the President of the History of Art Society this academic year, I have had an incredible journey. From our very first event during Induction Week in late September to our final Summer Social, every moment has been filled with excitement, learning, and community.
We kicked off the year with a delightful picnic at Gordon Square Gardens, just opposite the History of Art Department. It was terrific meeting so many new faces while enjoying the beautiful weather and sharing our love for art. One highlight was our charity book sale for Mind, where we raised funds for mental health awareness—a cause close to my heart.
In November, we had the privilege of visiting the Frans Hals exhibition at the National Gallery. Dr Allison Stielau led us through an insightful tour, discussing Frans Hals’s works and the broader tradition of Early Modern painting. Her expertise and passion made the experience truly memorable.
After the winter break, our annual Winter Social was a delightful reunion. Dr. Isabella Rosner’s talk, ‘Embroidery is art history, too,’ was a standout, shedding light on the intricate history of embroidery and textiles. Seeing how these often-overlooked art forms contribute to our understanding of art history was fascinating.
March brought a meaningful collaboration with the Art Business Society as we visited the ‘Women in Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK, 1970-1990’ exhibition at Tate Britain to celebrate International Women’s Day. Dr Ivy Chan’s talk on Chinese ceramics sparked a lively discussion about East Asian art, an area that deserves more recognition in the art-historical canon.
Our academic year culminated in a joyous Summer Social on May 8th, where students and staff from various years shared their experiences and forged new friendships. It was the perfect way to end a fantastic year.
Serving as your President has been a privilege and a pleasure. I’ve learned so much about art and its history through inspiring discussions and conversations with our wonderful members and guest lecturers. Organising events and working with our dedicated committee has honed my communication and leadership skills. One of my fondest memories is from the Welcome Fair during Freshers’ Week, where I introduced our plans to many enthusiastic new students—over 30 of whom joined us within the next few weeks!
Looking ahead, I’m excited to continue my journey at UCL, pursuing an MA in Philosophy. I carry with me the lessons, memories, and friendships from this incredible year with the History of Art Society.
Thank you all for making this year so special.
Warm regards,
Yige Wang
President, History of Art Society, 2023-24
If you want to read more about my experience as President, please see my interview with Communications Manager, Izzie Harvey.
Queer Bloomsbury Tour
In June 2024, B.Queer, the UCL Bartlett’s network for LGBTQ+ students, staff and allies, launched a new self-guided, queer-themed walking tour of Bloomsbury. The Queer Bloomsbury tour is based on Professor Bob Mills’s award-winning Hide & Seek: A Queer Tour of Bloomsbury, which he devised in 2018 during his time as Director of the qUCL research network.
As was always Bob’s original intention, the Hide & Seek tour has been adapted to an accessible web-based format, including a map, notes and audio segments for each stop. Bob was especially keen to retain the emphasis in the original iterations of Hide & Seek on multiple voices, reflecting the mosaic of identities and perspectives that come under the LGBTQ+ umbrella. This format has been respected in the newly launched, self-guided version, which takes a wander through Bloomsbury’s queer past and present.
The tour materials are open-access, available freely, and can be adapted for your own purposes. Even if you’re not in London and unable to take the tour physically, you can follow along by listening to the audio or reading the transcripts.
Access the Queer Bloomsbury Tour.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Student Journalists 2024
Spotlight on Sean Rainbird
BA History of Art and German, 1979-83
I was fortunate to become a curator of modern art at The Tate Gallery during a period of dynamic growth of the London gallery scene and we acquired works by many contemporary artists, including Tracey Emin, Tacita Dean, Cornelia Parker and Thomas Struth. Many came through the Patrons of New Art, a support group of collectors which I coordinated. I was fortunate to make many exhibitions - my first two were with Richard Long and Gerhard Richter - and concluded my time at the Tate with a series of shows at St Ives (Tacita Dean, Naum Gabo), Tate Liverpool (Tyler Graphics Gift) and Tate Modern (Max Beckmann, Joseph Beuys, Wasslly Kandinsky).
In 2006, I became the first non-native speaker to lead a major German museum. James Stirling’s Staatsgalerie was justly praised as a landmark building of the mid-1980s. There was plenty of work to be done - multiple building projects, including a suite of new galleries, new hangs of the permanent collection and more. It takes a while to transition from curatorial work to becoming a director. But I felt ready when approached about the post of Director of the National Gallery of Ireland, which began in 2012.
Following the financial crisis, we managed the minor miracle of refurbishing the historic wings of the institution and reopened in June 2017 with our show of ‘Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting’, the most significant exhibition in the Gallery’s history. Towards the end of my time in Dublin we began to collect the art of living artists, which enabled us to address pressing issues, such as the gender imbalance any collection representing 800 years of art will have. We also expanded our holdings to include photography. Among my favourites were Irish images of humanity and humour by the late Elliott Erwitt. Having given more prominence to such innovations as abstract art to a collection which had neglected many developments in the twentieth century, my final acquisition was a small oil painting by Cézanne which addressed a major gap in the late nineteenth. The decade I was in Dublin (2012-22) was the most satisfying of my career.
I have always wanted to work for the public benefit, making art widely accessible and acquiring great works for public view. I enjoyed taking the responsibility of directing two great museums and recall my association with fine institutions in England, Germany and Ireland with pride. It has been a privilege to fully exploit what I learnt on both my courses of study at UCL throughout the years that followed. In the early 1980s I would never have anticipated this would happen in the way it has.
Spotlight on Lisa Moravec
MA History of Art, 2015-2016
My time at UCL’s vibrant and welcoming History of Art Department strongly shaped my critical approach to art. Back then, I had no idea of the significance my MA thesis (supervised by Briony Fer) on Rose English’s horse-like dance performance would have later. My close engagement with her work laid the foundation for my PhD thesis, which I completed in the Drama, Theatre, and Dance Department at Royal Holloway, University of London. The book forthcoming from this work closely analyses several performances by Rose English and other overlooked ones by American, British, and European artists from the 1960s that work with bodily forms of (human and animal) animality. Dressaged Animality: Human and Animal Actors in Contemporary Performance is published with Routledge (August 2024), alongside my ed. vol. Posthumanist Approaches to a Critique of Political Economy: Dissident Practices with Bloomsbury Press (spring 2025).
Since leaving UCL, I have worked as a lecturer at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, University of Vienna, Technical University Vienna, Kingston School of Art, and Royal Holloway, led fellowships and scholarships, conceptualised and conducted discursive programmes for art galleries, curated several projects related to my research, and have consistently written about art and performance in English and German for academic journals, art magazines, and exhibition catalogues.I am currently working towards the opening of the first large solo exhibition of Rose English’s work in the German-speaking countries. The show opens at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg on 4 July 2024 and will run until February 2025. It is accompanied with a newly commissioned international performance programme and an exhibition catalogue. It would be wonderful to see some of you in Begin Suddenly in Splendour - do get in touch if you want a personal tour!
Spotlight on Tommy Bower
BA History of Art, 2013-2016
I left UCL back in 2016 after three years of studying History of Art. It was an interesting time leaving university, as after trialling some experience within the art world I quickly realised it wasn’t for me.
I explored a variety of possibilities after graduating, trying to get a job in the music industry, managing a successful brunch cafe in Brighton and eventually spending three brilliant years at a literacy charity that I had volunteered with during my years at UCL. I truly loved my team at Literacy Pirates, and got a flavour for what it would be like to become a teacher.
I finally committed to training to be a teacher three years ago which is hands down the most difficult time of my life. I love many aspects of the profession now but the first couple of years were immensely challenging. I’m now a history teacher at an academy in East London (where I grew up) and have loved being able to apply a lot of my years of art analysis in the way I break down sources with my students. I am at a point where I’m hoping in the next couple of years I can lead my own History department.
It’s a really brilliant profession, try not to be too put off by the news headlines!
Spotlight on Zlata Mechetina
BA History of Art, 2018-2021
Hi, my name is Zlata Mechetina! Currently I am a music curator and producer — mostly I work in music, events and creative production. After BA at UCL, I did my masters at Central Saint Martins in Performance Practice and Design (2021-2023), where I could materialise all the theoretical endeavours in moving image and theatre.
Shortly after completing my postgraduate degree in 2023, I started working as an assistant at Pushkin House, which focuses on the contested legacies, tumultuous present and possible futures of Russian, Eastern European, and post-Soviet geocultural spaces, and then became their Events and Social Media manager.
However, a massive part of my freelance practice consists of a project started with the department support, @fetchish_net. My ex-coursemates and I stuck with it as it became a way for us to pursue our curatorial ambitions and continue creative research. We are focusing on interdisciplinary mediums, post-internet, performance and focus on new pop/experimental music. Also, last summer we got featured by DAZED!
Right now we are moving towards the creative studio and if you want to collaborate or pitch any projects, drop me a dm on instagram (@zlata.mechetina) or send an enquiry by email.
Spotlight on Mathilde Mioche
BA History of Art, 2019-2022
It is with great fondness that I look back on my three years at UCL. I remember the excitement of meeting students from all over the world; discovering London’s museums, theatres, parks and pubs together; and complementing History of Art modules with classes at the Institute of Archaeology and the Centre for Languages & International Education. Although those three years coincided with the alienating experience of Covid restrictions and lockdowns, the History of Art Department showed patience, flexibility and kindness throughout. I feel immensely grateful to have studied in such an environment and remain in touch with both tutors and fellow students.
Since graduating from UCL in 2022, I have completed a Master of Studies in History of Art and Visual Culture at the University of Oxford. There, I specialised in the medieval and early modern periods and pursued my interest in illuminated manuscripts, which was kindled by one of my third-year modules at UCL. I also co-founded the Oxford Medieval Manuscripts Group with friends I had met at the Medieval Visual Culture seminars and in Latin Palaeography classes.
I returned home to Paris this year to apply for a PhD, learn German at the Goethe-Institut, join courses on medieval and early modern art, and lay the groundwork of my future research. In September 2024, I will start a PhD at The Courtauld Institute on the formal and medial mutations of the Dance of Death since its emergence in the fifteenth century. I am excited at the prospect of living in London again, being a student again, and conducting extensive fieldwork for the first time. This is not only a step into a new academic setting, but also a step closer to my dream, one day, of working as a museum curator.
Save the Date - 26 September 2024
UCL History of Art is delighted to invite you to our Alumni Evening with UCL Art Museum on 26 September, 18:30-20:30. Together, we will catch up, enjoy some drinks and nibbles and tour the exhibition at our UCL Art Museum. Stay updated with details and book to attend.
Get Involved
We always want to hear about your exciting journeys as UCL History of Art alumni. If you would like to become more involved with the Department, including news features or events, please contact Izzie Harvey, Communications and Events Manager.