Emmy

What are my goals for the year?

I want to acquire technical skills, but I also want to change the way I think about digital projects. A huge benefit of the Praxis program is that we learn these “hard skills” of coding and design, but we also have space to really reflect on the applications of these skills. I want to gain a greater understanding of what is possible in my field. I also have so much to learn from everyone in the cohort, and I want to assess the different ways we all approach problems and find solutions. I want to be more accepting of my mistakes and work through hard things that I am not immediately good at! .

What do you spend time on?

I love looking at pictures. I spend a lot of time fantasizing about exhibitions I want to work on.

What is a major issue/challenge/bone of contention in your field?

In the digital humanities aspect of my field, there are a lot of new issues around “digital repatriation” and restructuring archives to serve source communities. Digital repatriation is the return of cultural heritage materials in digital forms, and that can take on many different forms. My current research involves how artists use digital repatriation in their artistic practice.

What don’t people understand about something you work on?

Generally, in the United States, people have very little knowledge of First Nations culture from Australia. I was a TA for the Modern Aboriginal Art History class last semester and it was always such a challenge to get the students to critically engage with the art. Most of the students were very interested in the art, but I think it was hard for a lot of them to treat the pieces like contemporary art and not ethnographic objects. While a binary definition of “art object” vs “ethnographic object” is not a helpful way to categorize Indigenous art (because many objects occupy many roles), it was difficult for the students to talk about the aesthetic qualities of the pieces. Over time, I hope I build up teaching methods that help people engage more with Indigenous artistic practice.

If I were a song, I would be…

”Right Now” by One Direction.