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Delanie Linden (M.A. ’18) is this week’s featured alum in our new Alumni Spotlight series for the This Week at Meadows e-newsletter. Each week, a different Meadows alum will be highlighted for their accomplishments post-graduation.

When Delanie Linden first enrolled in the art history graduate program at Meadows, her research focus was broad; the one thing she was certain of was pursuing a Ph.D. in art history after obtaining her master’s degree. As she continued through her studies, the faculty and students at Meadows helped her to narrow her research interests.

With her focus eventually honed in on histories of colonization, cross-cultural contact, and trade in art history, Linden wrapped up her graduate studies at SMU and secured a position at MIT's History, Theory, & Criticism program (HTC) to pursue her doctorate. She later earned a Fulbright Open-Research Award Fellowship to conduct dissertation research in France.

“Meadows' speciality on post-colonial theory, global studies, and non-Euro-centric art history was integral to my dissertation's thinking about empire and the trade of art and colorants in the 18th century,” Linden explains of how her time at the school shaped her academic trajectory. “I still think about class trips to the Meadows Museum to discuss how Spanish so-called ‘Golden Age’ art of the early modern period was underpinned by global expansionism, exploration and exploitation of land and peoples.”

Linden, who also has a bachelor’s degree in art history and neuroscience as well as a minor in art and design, chose MIT specifically because their Ph.D. program integrated art and science – a combination of interests she is passionate about. The way these two subjects intertwine in the work of an art historian make it a perfect professional fit for her. Looking closely at objects is essential for an art historian, and bolstering this analysis with textual documentation helps scholars develop a comprehensive picture of the historical context in question.

The Fulbright award also allowed Linden to live in Paris for 12 months to look at documents in archives and visit museums related to her work. Though she had been preparing to work with old historical papers for years through her studies, her first time visiting the archives to sift through 18th-century documents was surprising.

“I did not realize the physical labor required to become a historian: spending all day looking at paperwork, touching old and fragile paper, squinting one's eyes to decipher illegible ink handwriting, arching one's neck to look closely at a written word,” says Linden. “It is difficult and daunting at first, but when one finally strings together several archival clues to form an argument, the work becomes very exciting.”

For this reason, Linden recommends art history students get in the archives early. By practicing using archival material for a research paper, they can start to hone this important skill required in many art history careers later on.

With her time as a doctoral student at MIT coming to a close, Linden is looking ahead to her upcoming academic chapter. Next year, she will become a postdoctoral fellow in visual culture at Caltech and the Huntington Library & Botanical Gardens, with a hope to become a tenure-track professor afterwards.