Elizabeth Capel

Art History
Raleigh, NC
Mentor: Kirstin Ringelberg
Project title: Exploring gender's effects on collecting narratives and behavior

Spring 2013

This semester was so rewarding for me as a culmination of my Lumen project. Dr. Ringelberg and I accomplished everything we set out to do at the beginning of the spring, and I feel that we were successful in the project as I look back on the last two years. With the paper written last semester, this semester’s goals were to prepare for and present at conferences and create a publication-ready version of the paper. We began with the task of cutting the 42-page paper down to three different lengths: a 6-page paper for SURF, a 7-8-page paper for NCUR, and a 10-page paper for the Undergraduate Art History Conference at Baker University. I also created powerpoints as my visual accompaniments for each presentation. I practiced the presentation with Dr. Ringelberg several times before each conference, and because of that preparation I felt that I was successful at all three. The other portion of the semester was devoted to cutting down and reformatting the paper for submission to a scholarly journal. At the start of the semester we selected the International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities as the most viable option for my research, and I used their 3500-word length and formatting requirements as my guidelines in preparing the paper. I selected the sections for the paper based on what was successful in my shortened versions for the three conferences, as the bulk of the work on the publication-ready version took place after speaking at those conferences. After feedback from my mentor, the paper is ready to be submitted to the International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (IJURCA).

I felt that my activities this semester were highly tied to my Lumen project and I am proud of what I have accomplished both this semester and overall during the past two years. By speaking at conferences in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, Baldwin City, Kansas, and here at Elon I have been able to share my research with many others beyond the small circle of Dr. Ringelberg, students in my department, and the Lumen program. It has also been wonderful to reach out to those I worked with at Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum to share with them the results of my research. The Lumen Prize poster session in the spring was a great way to share research processes and results with my fellow 2010 cohort and to meet the new group and see how far we have come.

The Lumen Prize was undoubtedly an impressive part of my applications to law schools, and my experiences in completing a major undergraduate research project were the focus on my personal statement. The work that Lumen Scholars produce goes beyond that of most undergraduates and verges on mirroring the kind of work encountered in graduate school. With that in mind, the Lumen Prize gave me the confidence that I could be successful in graduate school in addition to serving as the jewel of my CV. I will be attending UC Berkeley School of Law in the fall and am excited to pursue an education in art and cultural property law. Far from leaving my art history and collecting studies background behind, I hope to incorporate knowledge and interest in those subjects into a career working for museums, foundations, and artists in their legal matters.