Test: Project 1, Project 2, Project 3

My book project examines a tenuous corpus of silk textiles that are, or once were, associated with Muslim weavers and embroiderers in medieval Sicily. Combining material and technical analysis with the long historiography of their attribution, the project asks how these objects shape, and are shaped by, changing understandings of the medieval Mediterranean, especially regarding the presence of Islam and Muslim communities in Europe.

Fellowships: 
Conference Papers and Invited Lectures:

This project traces the extraordinary afterlife of Cefalù Cathedral in the 1920s Italian colony of Somalia. Newly discovered archival materials reveal how Italian authorities transformed medieval Sicilian architecture into a monument of colonial “peaceful conquest,” recasting the medieval Mediterranean for an imperial project.

See the Publications page for my articles in JSAH and Speculum, and related Media Coverage.

Conference Papers and Invited Lectures: Grambling State University · I Tatti–Harvard University · International Society for the Study of Medievalism · Society of Architectural Historians

Early twentieth-century designers such as Mariano Fortuny and Maria Monaci Gallenga drew on medieval and Renaissance textiles to construct new visions of Italian artistic identity and modernity. Through their printed and woven designs, this project asks how historical textiles were transformed into modern fashion, and through this process, represented ideas about the Mediterranean past.

Fellowships:

Medieval history and imagery are selectively mobilized in contemporary extremist narratives, where distorted accounts of the past can contribute to narratives of hate and radicalization, particularly anti-Muslim racism. Developed through the Medievalist Toolkit and the inaugural fellowship of the International Interfaith Research Lab, this research also considers how scholars and educators can respond by pairing historical correction with approaches that build connection and resilience to hate.

Fellowships & Grants: International Interfaith Research Lab · Medieval Academy of America · RaceB4Race · Columbia University Society of Fellows/Heyman Center · Lehman Center Public History Project

See the Publications page for my article in the International Journal of Educational Development and the Public Scholarship page for more information.

My work on contemporary Islamic art examines connections across traditions separated by time, faith, or histories of conflict. My research on Khaled Sabsabi explores how Islamic visual and spiritual traditions are carried into contemporary artistic practice, while a separate essay considers the longstanding connections between Islam and hip-hop.

Publications:

Presentations and Invited Lectures: Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series · The Gathering with Khaled Sabsabi, Venice