Precolumbian Art History at the University of California: Teaching, Mentorship, and Disciplinary Contention

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Bringing the Past to Life, Part 2: Papers in Honor of John M. D. Pohl" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

In this presentation, I will recount my trajectory influenced by John Pohl during the formative undergraduate years of my art history training at UCLA, taking into account his teaching, the connections between the University of California (UC) and the California Community Colleges (CCC), and the disciplinary tensions in the study of the ancient American past (such as between art history, anthropology, and archaeology). My goal is to sketch a picture of continuity and conjunction that Pohl’s mentorship and teaching have made possible. Moving from the CCC system to UCLA, I found that learning about Mesoamerican art history was a rarity, not a given, in a department that traditionally favored the study and scholarship around South America. Further, that an “anthropologist” taught in an art history department resonated with me both then and now, particularly after a recent issue in “21: Inquiries” takes as its central focus these very disciplinary divides. As I see it and have experienced, Pohl’s main charge is to broaden and extend the study of the ancient American past to a wider audience; today, when the study of the humanities writ large is being critiqued—if not outright questioned entirely—I view this broadening as essential, integral, and vital.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Bringing the Past to Life, Part 2: Papers in Honor of John M. D. Pohl   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 38211.0