Sara K. Berkowitz 260x300

Sara K. Berkowitz, PhD

  • Assistant Professor of Art History
Media Expertise:
  • Arts & Culture
  • Gender & Sexuality
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Affiliated Programs

Education

  • PhD, Art History and Archaeology (2020)
    The University of Maryland at College Park (MD)
  • MA, Art History (2012)
    Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey (NJ)
  • BA, Art History and Anthropology (2006)
    The University of Mary Washington (VA)

About Me

I specialize in the history of pre-and early modern art, particularly in southern Italy, Spain, and the Spanish colonies. My research primarily focuses on the relationship between medical theories, social attitudes, and visual representations of the human body in media ranging from paintings to prints, and issues of gender and sexuality, more broadly.

In my dissertation I explored these themes through the concept of the gender-ambiguous body, focusing on subjects whose bodies have transformed either through medical or spiritual means resulting in a blurring of gender and sexual boundaries.
 

Noteworthy

  • Art History Professor to Attend CIC Summer Seminar

    Assistant Professor of Art History Sara Berkowitz has been selected to attend the Council of Independent Colleges’ upcoming seminar “Power and Absence: Connecting Renaissance Art to Diverse Audiences,” in Memphis, Tennessee. 

    The seminar will explore European art ca. 1400-1700 and discuss ways to open conversations about historical representations of different populations. Attendees will collaborate and have special access to works from the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, tour of the National Civil Rights Museum, and hear from experts in the art history field. The goal is for attending faculty to develop ways to approach potentially difficult conversations around representation in historical art pieces in their classrooms so that they are engaging and beneficial for students.

    Dr. Berkowitz hopes to strengthen her knowledge and continue to grow opportunities for students to have powerful conversations around art. 

    Share link: https://www.widener.edu/news/noteworthy/art-history-professor-attend-cic-summer-seminar