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Course Websites

Areas of research

• Early Modern England
• Textile History
• Collecting Practices
• Pop Culture

Brief biography

My approach is that of a social historian who looks at the world through the lens of visual culture. I work in a wide variety of periods and geographical regions. One of my special interests is looking at the transmission of ideas, styles and objects across space and time (trade, collecting, historiography, traditions). I’m deeply interested in textile arts and pop culture art forms.

My PhD was completed in 2004 with the dissertation “Henrietta Louisa Jeffreys, Oxford University and the Pomfret Benefaction of 1755: Vertu Made Visible”. In it I focus on the history of part of the Arundel collection of antique statues (classical, egyptianizing and ersatz) and analyze its social importance, both public and private, in 17th and 18th century England. This research solidified my conviction that the things people make are critically important. Art matters!

I’ve been teaching for the AHVS department for 20+ years and you’ll find me leading courses from first-year introductory to specialized third-year seminars. I’d like all my students to leave UVic mindful and appreciative of the role of visual culture in their daily lives.