Dr. Sara Orel Leads Tour of Egyptian Exhibit in St. Louis

Art History professor Sara Orel, whose speciality is ancient Egypt (she has her Ph.D. in Egyptian Archaeology), led a June 10th tour of the Sunken Cities exhibition at the St. Louis Art Museum for members of Truman State University’s Alumni Association.  The show includes objects from underwater excavations of the lost cities of Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus, off the northern coast of Egypt in the Mediterranean sea.  In addition there are several pieces on loan from the Greco-Roman Museum in Alexandria, Egypt, and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.  Thirty former (and current) Truman students and their friends and family got to see the objects which included beautiful jewelry and statues, including three colossal statues of granite set up in the lobby of the museum.  Art History graduate Krista Garcia took several pictures and was willing to let us use them here.

Madison Pearson Makes Paper

Our congratulations go out to Madison Pearson, a studio major at Truman, who has received a grant to conduct research this summer.  Here is her description of her project:

Over the summer I will be making handmade paper from natural fibers. Traditionally mixed handmade paper for printmaking uses abaca, a species of banana which is used in the papermaking industry for its strong natural fibers. For many printmaking papers abaca is used as a strengthening agent in a paper blend. It is primarily grown in the Philippines, Ecuador and Costa Rica. For my research I want to replace the abaca fiber with a fiber that can be locally grown, Flax. Many handmade papers are often a medley of fibers. In my research I have chosen 3 plant-based fibers, alfalfa, kenaf, and hemp to mix with my flax base. My project will be funded by the Office of Student Research as part of their Grant in Aid of Scholarship and Research summer program.

Photo courtesy of Laura Bigger