Association of Historians of American Art

Dear Panorama readers,

We are delighted to share that the spring issue of Panorama, the journal of the Association of Historians of American Art, has been released today!

Link in bio

Jenni Sorkin Mary Lee Corlett Alexandra Nicome Matthew Villar Miranda Keidra Daniels Navaroli Danielle O'Steen Juan Carlos Guerrero-Hernández Jessica Skwire Routhier

For today’s we are showcasing an upcoming book by AHAA member Will Coleman from Rizzoli Publications!

Per Rizzoli, “Celebrating the extraordinary legacy of Andrew Wyeth (1917–2009), this comprehensive volume brings together one hundred masterworks created over more than seven decades. From early childhood drawings and radiant watercolors to his masterful temperas for which he is best known, Wyeth’s paintings are deeply rooted in the landscapes of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and mid-coast Maine. In ordinary barns, fields, interiors, and figures, he found stark and unexpected compositions that defined an art that was simultaneously modern and timeless.”

This will be published September 22, 2026 👏

For today’s , we are want to promote Frederic Church: Global Artist, an exhibition and accompanying catalogue co-curated and co-published by AHAA member Elizabeth Kornhauser (.kornhauser). The exhibition is currently on view at Olana State Historic Site.

“The life and work of Frederic Church (1826–1900) was indelibly shaped by global travel. Early trips took him to South America, across the northeastern United States, to Jamaica, and to the icy waters of the North Atlantic. Later he visited Europe and the Near Middle East, and in his final decades he made 15 winter sojourns in Mexico. The designed landscape, global collections, and striking architecture of the home he and his wife Isabel named “Olana” reflect the many worlds through which he traveled.

Frederic Church: Global Artist examines the artist in his own time and demonstrates his continuing relevance for today’s audiences. Co-curated by Elizabeth Kornhauser, Tim Barringer, and Jennifer Raab, Frederic Church: Global Artist unites drawings and oil sketches from Church’s travels with examples of his large, extravagantly detailed paintings produced for public exhibition.

This lavishly illustrated volume features original essays by scholars from across the humanities that reveal Church as an artist whose works engage with questions of industrialization and environmental destruction, the rise and fall of empires, the construction of national identity, and the cataclysmic effects of slavery and civil war.”

Frederic Church: Global Artist is curated by Elizabeth Kornhauser, Curator Emerita, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Senior Curator and Chair, The Frederic Church Bicentennial Committee, The Olana Partnership; Tim Barringer, Paul Mellon Professor in the History of Art, Yale University; and Jennifer Raab, Professor in the History of Art, Yale University.

Grant opportunity - AHAA 2026 - Maine Symposium

AHAA is offering four $500 grants to AHAA members on the 2026 Symposium program who are contingent, unaffiliated, or graduate students. Please fill out the form (link in bio) by June 19, 2026 to be considered for a grant.

Awardees will be selected by lottery.

For questions, please contact the symposium liaison at [email protected]

Aaaand… we’re back with our series!

Today we’re spotlighting AHAA Member Charlene G. Garfinkle‘s new article “The Riches of California—The Opulent Summer Mural for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition: Florence Lundborg’s Visual Ode to California’s Bounty” in The Argonaut: Journal of the San Francisco Historical Society (Spring 2026).

Based on original research and accompanied by several previously unpublished images of the mural in color and in situ, this is the first in-depth study of this work.

“Sometimes the times were dark and the outlook was lonesome, but where there is a will, there is a way. . . . That is what I tell my people whenever I meet them, that they must not be discouraged, but work ahead until the world is bound to respect them for what they have accomplished.” —Edmonia Lewis, 1878

As we conclude our takeover, these words by Lewis feel more resonant than ever. Her journey wasn’t just about creating art; it was also about the sheer will of becoming an artist against all imaginable odds.

The conversation doesn’t end here. You can continue to explore her world through our exhibition at PEM () through June 7.

The show then travels to the from August 8, 2026 to Jan 3, 2027, and the from April 3 to June 11, 2027. And don’t forget the beautifully designed publication available through (link in bio).

Thanks for following along!

“I have a strong sympathy for all women who have struggled and suffered. For this reason the Virgin Mary is very dear to me.” —Edmonia Lewis, 1871

In 𝘏𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘳, Edmonia Lewis transformed an enslaved Egyptian woman from the Old Testament into a symbol of faith and strength, an agent in her own liberation.

The lines Lewis etched into the figure’s forehead signal Hagar’s distress yet also her fervent resolve. Like Moses, who liberated his people from bo***ge in Egypt, the figure of Hagar resonated with Black Christians as an emblem of faith, perseverance, and divine deliverance.

Drawing on stories from mythology, ancient history, and the Bible, Lewis made many sculptures about liberation and redemption. They often portray women of great strength: Hagar, Mary, Cleopatra. These works demonstrate her concern for the marginalized and her activism, at the end of her career, on behalf of women and orphans.

The activist spirit that suffuses Lewis’s sculptures and her religious convictions nurtured and reinforced each other.

📷:
Edmonia Lewis, 𝘏𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘳, 1875. Marble, 52 5⁄8 × 15¼ × 17 1⁄8 in. , Gift of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., 1983.95.178.
Installation views, 𝘌𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘢 𝘓𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘴: 𝘚𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦. Photography by Kathy Tarantola and Kim Indresano.

When Frederick Douglass visited Edmonia Lewis’s studio in Rome in 1887, he was already the most photographed and recognizable man of his era. Lewis had first met him as a student at Oberlin years earlier; seeing him in her own studio must have felt like a “full circle” moment. Looking at the plaster figure of Douglass by the later sculptor John Rhoden, we can sense the gravity of the fiery orator when he graced Lewis’s studio in Italy.

But Lewis didn’t just wait for visitors to her studio; she was a brilliant architect of her own fame. She likely even authored pamphlets, “How Edmonia Lewis Became an Artist,” to control her own narrative. She also orchestrated ‘viral’ social media moments in her era by using cartes de visite with her image that were photographed by Henry Rocher and Augustus Marshall. Her image reappeared as engravings in media outlets such as 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘓𝘦𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘦’𝘴 𝘐𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘸𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘳 and 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘤, bringing her face and her art into homes across the country.

Her self-promotion was bolstered by influencers of her time such as AME Bishop Benjamin Tucker Tanner, whose own image was immortalized in a bust by his son and artist Henry O. Tanner. As the editor of the 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘙𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳, Bishop Tanner was not only an admirer of Lewis’s work; he also used his platform to ensure his readers knew that a Black woman in Italy was conquering the art world.

📷: 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘓𝘦𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘦’𝘴 𝘐𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘸𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘳 (New York), Aug. 1, 1868. , AP2 .L52
John Rhoden, 𝘔𝘢𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘯 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺 (𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘋𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴), 1979. Plaster. Gift of The John Walter Rhoden and Richanda Phillips Rhoden Collection at . 2024.65.3. . Photo: Ani Geragosian/PEM.
Henry Ossawa Tanner, 𝘉𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯 𝘛𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘛𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳, 1894. Patinated plaster, 15 × 12½ × 9½ in. , 2004, 28.33
Installation view, 𝘌𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘢 𝘓𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘴: 𝘚𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦. Photography by Kim Indresano.

Because written records in Lewis’s own words are scarce, our exhibition looks to her sculptures to find what she said in stone.

Part of that research included a first-of-its-kind technical study of Lewis’s six 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳 sculptures and her eight versions of 𝘏𝘪𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘢’𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘨𝘦, led by objects conservator Amy Jones Abbe ().

Abbe found that Lewis used a single clay model to create all six copies of the 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳. Photographs of each version, taken in dramatic raking light, reveal the remarkable variety of their surfaces: the subtlety of finishes in the figures’ fur garments, the diverse patterning in Minnehaha’s moccasins, and the remnants of tooth and chisel marks across the stone.

Thanks to the results of this project on Lewis, and in collaboration with , we brought Lewis’s “glorious old” studio to life in the galleries, offering unique insights into Lewis’s sculptural process.

“I determined to go to Rome, and I went. I hired [Antonio] Canova’s old studio, a glorious old room, and there I have worked ever since…. I have gained some reputation since, and I mean to gain more before I die.” —Edmonia Lewis, 1873

📷:
Details of Edmonia Lewis, 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳, modeled 1868, carved ca. 1872. Marble, 20 x 14 x 14 in. , 2008.15. Photos by Amy Jones Abbe.
Process photos of Lewis’s 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳 at Skylight Studios, Woburn, MA. Courtesy of
Installation view, 𝘌𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘢 𝘓𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘴: 𝘚𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦. Photography by Kim Indresano.

“You know we must sell our work if we want to live.” — Edmonia Lewis, 1873.

How did an artist in the 1800s survive the competitive art market in Rome? For Edmonia Lewis, it was about being a savvy entrepreneur.

Lewis understood collectors and the market for her work. Rome was a hub for tourists looking for “souvenirs,” and she made sure her work was accessible. She created small-scale “cabinet-sized” marbles so that even travelers with “slender purses” could collect while abroad.

But it is obvious that some works had more than one meaning for Lewis. When a journalist from 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘗𝘰𝘴𝘵 visited her studio in 1867, Lewis pointed to clay models—likely the 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳 seen here—and proudly declared, “My uncle, Sunrise.” Lewis was able to incorporate popular myths surrounding Indigenous peoples and bring them to life, weaving them into her own personal history.

In the galleries you’ll see the 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳 () installed alongside 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘩𝘢 (). Together, they tell a story of an artist who never lost sight of her heritage as she created and sold her art.

📷:
Edmonia Lewis, 𝘈𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳, ca. 1868. Marble, 11 ½ x 8 ½ x 6 ½ in. Colby College Museum of Art, Gift of Jane, Richard, and David Moss in honor of Doris Rose Hopengarten ’40, Fred Hopengarten ’67, Annie Hopengarten Mooreville ’06, Phyllis Rose Baskin ’39, and Michael Baskin ’70, 2023.014
Installation views, 𝘌𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘢 𝘓𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘴: 𝘚𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦. Photography by Kim Indresano.