On April 28th, I presented at the Agnes Scott Spring Annual Conference (SpARC) with my senior capstone research on Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens and his affect on art historical language. Over my time at Agnes Scott as an art history student, most of my research is centered around fat, contemporary portraiture (including Jenny Saville and Laura Aguilar), and I couldn’t help but notice Peter Paul Rubens’s influence on the way fat women are talked about. His signature style was given the name “Rubenesque” which refers to the “fuller figure” women that appear in his work. However, this term quickly became a placeholder for the term fat. I wanted to bring attention to how social biases shapes language and results in erasure and exclusion.
I was beyond excited for the opportunity to share my research with a broader audience because this type of patter affects much more than just art history. It was also such a rewarding moment to share what I have been working on with friends and colleagues that have only heard snippets of what I do. This was an extremely cathartic way to end my time at Agnes by discussing topics important to me while surrounded with a room full of people I care about.
You can watch my presentation here and read my capstone paper here!
