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Home>Research>Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts>Research Initiatives

# Research Initiatives

The Center supports long-term and short-term research projects designed to contribute to the wider scholarly community. Deans’ Research Projects are long-term projects directed by a dean. Short-term projects are events or initiatives that promote collaboration and innovation. Descriptions are also available for past research projects.

Deans’ Research Projects

Index of American Design

Charlotte Winter, Arlene Perkins, *Applique Bedspread*, c. 1941, watercolor and gouache over graphite on paperboard, Index of American Design, 1943.8.2589

Steven Nelson, DeanGloria de Liberali, Postdoctoral Research AssociateMatthew J. Westerby, Digital Research Officer

In collaboration with the National Gallery’s departments of digital experience, modern prints and drawings, and archives, as well as other colleagues, this project catalyzes research on the Index of American Design. From 1935 to 1942, as part of the Works Progress Administration, the US government commissioned over 18,000 watercolor paintings documenting works of folk, decorative, and industrial arts created in the United States. Today, the public’s engagement with this collection enriches the National Gallery’s understanding of the Index and art historical research as a whole. Mainly composed of light-sensitive works on paper, the collection cannot be physically exhibited in its entirety nor in perpetuity. The Center’s digital project will provide methods for scholars and the general public to connect with the Index, its histories, and the various artists who brought it to life. 

The History of the Accademia di San Luca, c. 1590–1635

Pierfrancesco Alberti, *An Academy of Painters* (detail), c. 1625, etching, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949, 49.95.12

Peter M. Lukehart, Associate DeanMatthew J. Westerby, Digital Research OfficerFulvia Zaninelli, Postdoctoral Research Associate

*The History of the Accademia di San Luca, c. 1590–1635: Documents from the Archivio di Stato di Roma* publishes and examines archival documents and other research materials concerning one of the first artists’ academies in Europe. These resources document the breadth of the Accademia di San Luca’s activities, drawing from the proceedings of meetings, financial and legal transactions, property rentals, and other records. Recent additions to the site present annotated, historical maps and guidebooks that situate the academy’s various edifices within the ever-changing urban fabric of Rome.

History of Early American Landscape Design

Thomas Chambers, *Mount Auburn Cemetery*, mid 19th century, oil on canvas, Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch, 1958.5.1

Therese O’Malley, former Associate DeanMatthew J. Westerby, Digital Research Officer

With thousands of texts and citations and around 1,700 images, the History of Early American Landscape Design (HEALD) project is an inquiry into the language of early American landscape aesthetics and garden design. Encouraging a contextualized approach to data analysis, the HEALD website allows you to search, read, sort, and parse. The project is built on the open-source platform MediaWiki, with custom code freely available for reuse.

Short-Term Research Initiatives

Mapping Our Museum

Agnes Denes, *Map Projections: The Snail I*, 1976, four-color lithograph on Rives BFK paper, Gift of Charles J. Tanenbaum and Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund, 2003.65.5

Matthew J. Westerby, Digital Research Officer

Mapping Our Museum features teams of staff, fellows, and interns from across the National Gallery collaborating on research questions to generate maps or visualizations. Workshops offer introductions to data curation and digital tools. Occasional webinars and presentations organized in conjunction with Mapping Our Museum showcase critical approaches and conceptual frameworks to mapping and visualization in digital humanities and digital art history, focusing on museums, archives, and libraries.

Descriptions are also available for past research projects.

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