Alumni Testimonials

Lourdes Figueroa, '13

Art History and Russian Studies Major

I stumbled upon the Department of Modern Literatures and Cultures my first year at college when I took a history course on Russian painting of the 19th and early 20th centuries with Professor Troncale. I was fascinated by the material and the images I was introduced to in the class. I became so intrigued by Russian visual culture and history that I enrolled in the language course the following year and eventually declared a double major in Art History and Russian Studies. I had the chance to study abroad for a semester at the European University in Saint Petersburg, where I put my language skills to use, explored an eccentric city, and studied Russian art en lieu. Later on, I also had the opportunity to participate in the curatorial process of the exhibition on the Russian-Soviet artist Felix Lembersky at the University Museums. My participation in department gave me new outlook into art history and allowed me to combine my interest in Russian visual culture with my art history studies.