The Lovett Travel Fellowship, through the generous support of Mr. H. Malcolm Lovett, provides students with the unique opportunity to enhance their educational experience at Rice by traveling to significant sites to conduct field research in art history and architectural history.
Double majoring in Art History and Ancient Mediterranean Civilizations, Kenzie Pickett explains how this fellowship will support her research in Italy in examining the relationship and intersections between archaeology and art history:
"The archaeological methodology is crucial for interpretation, yet through interpreting there is a conceptual shift. Excavated artifacts become artworks, now objects with aesthetic appeal, and enter the realm of art history. I intend to study this relationship between archaeology and art history by attending a field school in Orbetello, Italy, at the site of Cosa, an Etruscan-Roman complex. Located near the site is the National Archaeological Museum of Cosa, which I believe could be used as a microcosm of this dynamic that plays out in larger institutions. Further, as part of the program, I will be visiting Rome, Tarquinia, and Siena; through these excursions, I can expand my research as a comparison between institutions and different points in Italian history. By researching how archaeology and art history interact, the narrative framework of Italian history and identity can be critically investigated. I intend to focus on how ethnicity and cultural heritage is perceived, and how this perception shifts between local and international museums."