Duke's Department of Art, Art History & Visual Studies and the Department of Art at UNC-Chapel Hill have created an architectural history consortium to streamline the sharing of courses, programs, graduate training and research work of the two departments.
"We're putting together the strengths of Duke and the strengths of UNC," said Caroline Bruzelius, a Duke professor of art, art history and visual studies and member creator of the consortium.
Bruzelius is one of three Duke faculty members participating in the consortium, along with Sara Galletti and Annabel Wharton. They join UNC professors Glaire Anderson and Christoph Brachmann.
The strengths of the two universities are complementary, Bruzelius noted. The Duke faculty expertise lies largely in the architectural histories of Italy and France, as well as in modern and contemporary architecture. The UNC faculty members are strong in early and medieval Islamic art and early modern European art and architecture, particularly in Germany and Central Europe.
The consortium also plays to strength of Duke's digital mapping and modeling program -- Wired! -- which is particularly well-suited for the study of building and cities, Bruzelius said.
The consortium formalizes a relationship that has long existed between students and faculties of the two institutions. Students can use the resources of each institution's libraries, take courses on both campuses and utilize resources from each when conducting research and writing theses and dissertations, Bruzelius said.