‘The Message of the Museum: Studying Exhibitions in Washington, D.C.’

Holy Cross junior Karin Campbell has been selected by the College’s Center for Interdisciplinary and Special Studies as the 2005 spring semester’s Maurizio Vannicelli Washington Semester Away program award winner. She will present her thesis, "The Message of the Museum: Studying Exhibitions in Washington, D.C." on April 4 at 4 p.m. in Rehm Library.

While in Washington, D.C., Campbell interned in the External Affairs (Communications and Marketing) Department at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Smithsonian’s museum of modern and contemporary art.

Campbell’s talk will discuss how museums design fine arts exhibitions and whether the design effectively communicates what the artist had intended to express.

"While in D.C., I studied six exhibitions," Campbell says. "I will briefly talk about all six, but I will focus primarily on a show called Ana Mendieta: Earth Body, Sculpture and Performance 1972-1985. This exhibition, a survey of the work of Cuban-born earth body artist Ana Mendieta, opened at the Hirshhorn. My lecture will include an overview of Mendieta’s work and a discussion of the potential problems associated with displaying her art in a museum setting. I will then consider the exhibition design elements that the museum professionals at the Hirshhorn utilized to communicate to visitors. Additionally, I will be discussing a survey that I designed and administered to people viewing the Mendieta show."

Campbell is an art history and political science double major from Pittsburgh, Pa. At Holy Cross, she is a member of the women’s varsity rowing team and runs publicity efforts for the Jesuit Volunteer Corp and other post-grad volunteer opportunities through the Chaplains’ Office.

Campbell hopes to go into museum curatorship at a modern/contemporary art museum. She enjoys watching the Food Network and cooking in her spare time. She also loves going to museums - naturally.

The Vannicelli Prize is awarded each semester in honor of the late Holy Cross political science professor and Washington Program director, Maurizio Vannicelli, for the best research paper produced in the Washington Semester Away program. The recipient of the prize is accorded the opportunity to give a public lecture at the College on his or her thesis. In addition, the winner receives a bound copy of the thesis and is presented with a book award during Commencement exercises.