“Philosophical Grounding”: Michael Ann Holly on Creating Visual Studies

In this episode of In the Foreground, Caro Fowler (Starr Director of the Research and Academic Program at the Clark Art Institute) speaks with Michael Ann Holly, the founding director of the Research and Academic Program. Michael describes what initially drew her art history, what interested her in historiography, and the importance of critical theory to her work. Caro and Michael discuss her contributions to the founding of RAP as well as the department of Visual and Cultural Studies at the University of Rochester, the first department of its kind in the United States. Additionally, Michael speaks to the influence and solace of the landscape of the Berkshires on her thinking and writing.