Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2020, Art/Art History

The CoBrA art movement (1948-1951) stands prominently among the few European avant-garde groups formed in the aftermath of World War II. Emphasizing international collaboration, rejecting the past, and embracing spontaneity and intuition, CoBrA artists created artworks expressing fundamental human creativity. Although the group was dominated by men, a small number of women were associated with CoBrA, two of whom continue to be the subject of debate within CoBrA scholarship to this day: the Danish painter Else Alfelt (1910-1974) and the Dutch sculptor Lotti van der Gaag (1923-1999), known as "Lotti." In contributing to this debate, I address the work and CoBrA membership status of Alfelt and Lotti by comparing their artworks to CoBrA's two main manifestoes, texts that together provide the clearest definition of the group's overall ideas and theories. Alfelt, while recognized as a full CoBrA member, created structured, geometric paintings, influenced by German Expressionism and traditional Japanese art; I thus argue that her work does not fit the group's formal aesthetic or philosophy. Conversely Lotti, who was never asked to join CoBrA, and was rejected from exhibiting with the group, produced sculptures with rough, intuitive, and childlike forms that clearly do fit CoBrA's ideas as presented in its two manifestoes. Examining Alfelt's and Lotti's individual roles within CoBrA through the feminist art theories of Linda Nochlin and Laura Mulvey, writings by scholars and art historians, and exhibitions and collections, I focus on individual and institutional influences, and patriarchal contexts that shaped these two artists' status in relation to CoBrA membership. In doing so, I also pose questions about who belongs in any art movement, and who gets to decide who belongs, and how all of this is defined complexly over time.

Committee: Katerina Ruedi Ray Dr. (Advisor); Mille Guldbeck MFA (Committee Member); Andrew Hershberger Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Art Criticism; Art History; European History; Gender Studies; Museums; Womens Studies

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2018, Art/Art History

Successful collecting societies transform museums through the expansion and strengthening of an institution's permanent collection. The Georgia Welles Apollo Society at the Toledo Museum of Art is an example of a successful society whose collective efforts have brought major works of art to the Museum through the active engagement of the membership. Since 1986, the Society has collectively voted to fund the acquisition of over fifty-seven major works ranging from ancient to contemporary art. Contributions include works by notable artists including Chuck Close, Dale Chihuly, Alfred Stieglitz, Yinka Shonibare, Mary Sibande, Maya Lin, Robert Arneson, Vilhelm Hammershøi, Andrea Palladio, and Jasper Frances Cropsey. As a whole, these gifts have impacted the museum in their totality, breadth, and significance. Through archival study and oral history, this research brings together the history of the Society for the first time. In the following history of the Society, critical moments of the Society's development are examined in order to analyze and explore best practices, as well as to discover the realistic challenges that possibly all societies encounter. Georgia Welles, the founder of the Society, still leads the Society today. Her story is portrayed to highlight the dedication of a key individual, a person who is necessary for a collecting group's development and overall success. Additionally, through a detailed examination of the 2012/2013 year in the area of global contemporary art, the annual program of events and meetings are analyzed. Currently, no other histories of art museum collecting societies have been published. This research sets an example for more institutions to publish the history and impact of their existing societies.

Committee: Andrew Hershberger Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Sean Leatherbury Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Art History; Fine Arts; History; Museum Studies; Museums

MA, University of Cincinnati, 2008, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning : Art History

Cora Elma Pratt (1888-1977) educator, collector, artist, and philanthropist spent much of her life building her innovative International School of Art (ISA) in Europe, Mexico, South America, and the United States. Pratt first established her ISA in 1928 in Zakopane, Poland and later organized locations throughout Europe and Mexico. From her travels with the ISA, she acquired a notable 2,500-piece collection of international folk art, which she gave to the Miami University Art Museum in Oxford, Ohio in 1970. This study includes a mini-biography, recounting incidents and experiences that molded Pratt into a devoted art educator and promoter of international folk art in the United States and abroad. As a promoter of folk art, she aligned herself with the Brooklyn Museum, a premier institution that was setting the pace for folk art and children's art exhibitions, acquiring artwork to sell in their gift shop and organizing folk art exhibitions from the 1930s through the 1960s. During Pratt's years of involvement with the Brooklyn Museums, she and the ISA organized the first exhibition of Polish folk art in the United States, Polish Exhibition, 1933-34. This study analyzes Pratt's ISA and looks at a couple of the most prominent artists who taught with her and the workshops they conducted. This thesis also examines some of the popular pedagogical theories promoted by Franz Cizek (1865-1947) and John Dewey (1859-1952) that heavily influenced Pratt's ISA, her educational mission, and eventually, how she believed the collection needed to be interpreted in a traditional art museum environment. While today Pratt's collection remains in storage at the Miami University Art Museum, the implication of this study could allow for Pratt's collection to be interpreted as material culture instead of folk art.

Committee: Theresa Leininger-Miller PhD (Committee Chair); Mikiko Hirayama PhD (Committee Member); Anne Timpano MA (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; Art Education; Art History; Fine Arts; Womens Studies

Master of Arts, University of Akron, 2010, Theatre Arts-Arts Administration

This thesis seeks to assess the corporate art collections and art programs at two insurance companies: the Progressive Corporation, of Cleveland, Ohio, and Safeco Insurance Company of America, of Seattle, Washington. These two corporations' art collections were chosen for analysis because their collections are similar: both corporations are in the same business sector, the collections were started at about the same time, and both have developed corporate art programs designed to encourage art appreciation among their target audiences. In addition, there were some potentially important differences between the two collections, e.g., their relative sizes, the collections' target audiences, and how the collections and programs have developed. The case study method was used to describe and evaluate each art collection and program. The collections were assessed on seven criteria. As a result of applying these criteria to each collection, three areas of benefits were identified – benefits to the corporation, to its employees, and to the “outside” community at large. The degree to which the collection reflects these benefits, the collection achieves its purpose, and is effective and worthwhile for its target audience. Results showed that Progressive's art collection and art program is primarily for the benefit of Progressive employees. Since the collection was originally started for the purpose of serving the corporation's employees, and has developed with the needs and interests of the employees in mind, Progressive's collection and art programs were assessed as effective as well as beneficial for both the corporation and tits employees. Safeco's art collection and program had a different origin, however. The Safeco collection was originally started as a marketing tool, in order to create positive impressions on the community for Safeco. Until recently, the collection and art program at Safeco were being developed along these lines, and they were successful. However, rec (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Durand Pope (Advisor) Subjects: Art Education; Art History; Fine Arts; Marketing; Museums