Dr. Melissa Berry

 

Research interests 

European Visual Culture of the long 19thC (including painting, sculpture, design, ceramics), Art Market Past and Present, translocal/cross-cultural artistic movement, the status artists, and the display and social perception of works of art. 

 

Brief biography 

Teaching at the University of Victoria over the past 10 years had provided me, and hopefully my students, with an opportunity to continually engage with the ever-evolving world of art. While my primary areas of research are rooted in Western European nineteenth- century art, my enthusiasm for the history of art and visual culture constantly expands. No matter what one's area of study is, a close examination of any visual culture reaffirms both essential human truths and how much more there is to learn. 

A common thread to be communicated in all my courses is the importance of context in cultivating a clearer understanding of visual culture that might be removed from us in time and/or place. In order to achieve this, my approach in both teaching and research is one of practicality. We look closely at artworks while considering the artist's environment and intentions. No one has, or will, ever created work in a void. Creators, consumers, and distributors are needed to facilitate a thriving artistic sector. Each playsed a role in these interconnected, often translocal webs. 

These contextual relationships are fascinating! Surely, we do not have to like all that is labelled art (I know I don't!) but there is always something to appreciate. No matter which coursewhat I am teaching, I never fail to find elements that excite me, and my goal is always to pass this along! 

 

EDUCATION 

  • University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada 
    Ph.D. Art History and Visual Studies, 2008-2015 
    Dissertation: “The Société des trois: Constructing Artistic Identities in Paris and London 1850-1870”  
  • Courtauld Institute of Art, London, UK 
    M.A. with Distinction Art History, 2005-2006 
    Dissertation: “Le Japon à Paris: Japanese Influences in Paris 1865-1870"  
  • University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada 
    BFA with Honours Art History and Museum Studies, 1999-2002 
    Minor: French Language 

 

PUBLICATIONS 

  • Forthcoming:  “Objective Non-Empathy in Late Nineteenth-Century France,” Empathetic Engagements, Palgrave Publishing, 2024. 
  • “Across the Channel and Off the Wall: Artists, Dealers, and Translocal Networks in London and Paris,” Migration artistique et identité: Paris, 1870-1940, Peter Lang Publishing, 2020. 
  • “From Sèvres to Stoke: Solon and the Legacy of British Ceramics,” Decorative Arts Society Journal, 2019, vol. 43. 
  • The Société des troisin the Nineteenth Century: The Translocal Artistic Union of Whistler, Fantin-Latour, and Legros, New York: Routledge, 2018. 
  • “A French Englishman: Alphonse Legros and Masculine Identity Construction in Victorian London” 
  • Visual Culture in Britain, July 2015, 16:2, 186-199. 
  • “Fantin-Latour: A Newly Discovered Album,” The Burlington Magazine, April 2014, 1333:0, 228-230. 
  • “Translocal Artistry: James McNeill Whistler’s Wapping,” Victorian Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Victorian Studies, fall 2013, 38:2, 31-34.  

 

TEACHING EXPERIENCE 

University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada 

  • Adjunct Assistant Professor – AHVS 343C Special Topics in the Lives of Artists: Gustave Courbet and Self Promotion, 2023            
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor – AHVS 346C Visual Culture in the Time of Jane Austen, 2020-2022 
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor – AHVS 241 The Image of the Artist, 2022  
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor - AHVS 300A Masterpieces of Western Art and Architecture, 2016-2022 
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor - AHVS 397 Impressionism: A Social History, 2013-2021 
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor - AHVS 260 Art Icons: Modern and Contemporary, 2014-2021 
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor – AHVS 346C Visual Culture in the Time of Jane Austen, 2020 
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor - AHVS 397A Post-Impressionism: A Social History, 2018-2020 
  • Adjunct Assistant Professor – AHVS 120 Exploring World Art, 2019                
  • Sessional Instructor - AHVS 450/560 Seminar: The Early Modern Art Market, 2017 
  • Sessional Instructor - AHVS 260 European Art Production 1780-1945, 2009-2011 

 

RELATED EXPERIENCE 

  • Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Victoria BC 
    • ‘On the Trail of Impressionist: Paris, Normandy, Provence,’ 2023 
    • Organised, facilitated, led a 17-day tour through France focused on the museums and sites relevant to the artistic careers of the Impressionists in the late 19thC.  
    • University of Victoria, Victoria, BC 
      Speakers’ Bureau, 2017– 2018 
      Delivered public lectures on the Art Market as well as on Impressionism to interested groups throughout the community. 
    • University of Victoria, Victoria, BC 
      Teaching Assistant, 2009– 2010 
      Graded written work for courses taught by Dr. Allan Antliff focusing on Modern European and American art. 
    • The Glenbow Museum, Calgary, AB, Canada 
      Museum Interpreter, 2007– 2008 
      Created and delivered educational programs in the museum to school groups of all age levels. 
    • The New Gallery, Calgary, AB, Canada 
      Gallery Director, 2007 
      Developed exhibition schedule, maintained daily operations, worked with artists and Board of Directors to ensure the continued success of this artist-run centre. 
    • Tate Britain, London, UK 
      Schools and Teachers Intern, 2007 
      Researched and prepared programs for class groups and study days for teachers in order to make the collections accessible to the wider community. 
    • Somerset House, London, UK 
      Joint Education Department, 2005– 2006 
      Delivered public talks on art and objects at three onsite galleries. 

     

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  • CONFERENCES 

    • The Exposition Universelle and English Ingenuity in the French Art Market    Paper Presented at the Nineteenth-Century French Society’s 47th Annual Conference: Transatlantics/Transatlantiques, New York City, NY, 2022 
    • Impressionists and Japonisme: Early International Influences Public Talk as part of the Sunday Art Lecture Series at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Victoria, BC, 2022 
    • Grace Pailthorpe and the Seeds of Surrealism in Western Canada Paper Presented at the University Arts Association of Canada Annual Conference, Online, 2020 
    • Claude Monet’s Garden at Giverny.  Public Talk as part of the Sunday Art Lecture Series at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Victoria, BC, 2020 
    • The Great Wave in Britain: The Artistic Influence of Japan in the 19th Century 
      Paper to be presented at forthcoming symposium focus on Elizabeth Duer, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, 2019 
    • Performing Posture: Spatial Disruption in the Arts 
      Co-Chair of Conference Panel at the University Arts Association of Canada Annual Conference, York University, Ontario, Canada, 2018 
    • Toulouse-Lautrec’s Armour  
      Paper presented at the University Arts Association of Canada Annual Conference, York University, Ontario, Canada, 2018 
    • From Sèvres to Stoke: Solon and the Legacy of British Ceramics 
      Paper presented at “Crossing the Channel: French Refugee Artists in London 1870-1904,” Tate Britain and Paul Mellon Centre, London, UK, 2018 
    • Reflecting Uncertainty with Edouard Manet 
      Paper presented at the University Art Association of Canada Annual Conference, Banff Centre for the Arts, Banff, AB, Canada, 2017 
    • Crossing the Channel: The Intentional Identities of Alphonse Legros 
      Paper presented at the Colloque International Alphonse Legros 
      Université de Bourgogne and the Musée des Beaux-Arts Dijon, 2017 
    • Imagination, Memory, and the World of Alphonse Legros 
      Paper presented at the University Art Association of Canada Annual Conference, 
      Banff Centre for the Arts, Banff, AB, Canada, 2013 
    • A French Englishman: Alphonse Legros and Masculine Identity Construction in Victorian London 
      Paper presented at the Association of Art Historians Annual Conference, University of Reading, Reading, UK, 2013 
    • Album Exhibitions: Artistic Interactions through Private Media 
      Paper presented at the Victorian Studies Association of Western Canada Annual Conference, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, 2012 
    • Caillebotte and Façades of Modernity on a Parisian Street 
      Paper presented at the Nineteenth-Century French Studies Colloquium, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA, 2010  

     

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  • AWARDS, SCHOLARSHIPS, FELLOWSHIPS 

    • Fellowship, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, 2010 
    • Jan and Christina Hulsker Scholarship, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, 2009 
    • Graduate Award, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, 2008