RESEARCH INSTERESTS

My research focuses on the arts of the ancient Near East, which I approach from a combined perspective of formal / stylistic analyses and social / historical contextualizations. I am particularly interested in considering how art participated in intercultural interactions between the Near East, Egypt, and the Aegean. I see the arts as external mediators of social relations and study them as embedded within larger cultural environments. I am also fascinated by the effects that formal art historical properties of the art works might have had on ancient (and modern) audiences.

To date, my studies include explorations of hybrid art styles in the Near East and eastern Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age, the appearance of Aegean-type frescoes in Levantine structures during the Middle Bronze Age, and aspects of the development of Assyrian art in relation to international affairs. Currently, I am working on a project to examine the role of Phoenician and North Syrian luxury arts in the creation of traditions during the early Iron Age.

website: http://nes.berkeley.edu/index.html