Katrina King (’14) is an Art History Major with a concentration in Business Leadership and Human Resource. For her research project she researched three paintings from the Italian Renaissance. All three paintings revolved around the Annunciation, a Biblical story where the angel Gabriel comes to visit the Virgin Mary to tell her she will bear God’s son.
“The paintings are on the same subject, but they have different details. I wanted to see if these different details were influenced more by the artist, the audience for which the painting was intended, or the person who paid to have the painting made (or the patron). I chose two paintings by one artist so that I could see the varying choices that he might make based on the influence of the audience or patron. Then I chose one painting by a different artist so that I could have a different interpretation of the story and try to determine who influenced his choices the most.”
Katrina’s favorite thing about the Summer Scholars program was the fact that she was able to bring her own ideas to the table.
“I wasn’t continuing anyone else’s research but was able to come up with my own ideas and then find information that backed those ideas up. I would get really excited when I found something that would help me to prove my point!”
Katrina King
Katrina’s faculty mentor for this project was Dr. Jane Long and Katrina felt that doing research with Dr. Long was a great experience. She explains that
“faculty are there to guide and encourage you. Working with Dr. Long was extremely helpful for me. She encouraged me to ask questions when I was unsure about something and helped me to stay on track. My advice to those who want to do research with a faculty member would have to be: Don’t be afraid to ask questions! The faculty are veterans of research and know exactly what they’re talking about. They’ll be able to guide you in the right direction.”
Katrina is in the process of applying to graduate schools where she plans to continue her education in art history in order to work in art museums.
“My research is going to be very helpful when I write my sample writing section of the applications and served as great experience for graduate school.”
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Mark your calendars for our next on-campus presentation opportunities:
Showcase on Thursday, November 21, 2013 from 6-8pm in Fintel Library focused on service-learning, internships, and study abroad. Apply to present by November 8.
Showcase on Friday, November 22, 2013 from 6-8pm in Fintel Library focused on research and artistic/creative work. Apply to present by November 8.
For updated information on student-faculty research:
- Website: roanoke.edu/research
- Twitter: @RCResearch
- Facebook: facebook.com/RCResearch
- Email: research@roanoke.edu