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Liza Lesser ’03 (Miami Beach, Fla.) is enriching an independent study in architectural history through a second independent study that puts it in historical context.
Lesser, an art major, is delving into her favorite period of architecture, modern, which she has linked to a second independent study in European cultural history that focuses on the turn of the 20th century.
“To truly understand the styles in the arts, literature, and other cultural areas, I must first be knowledgeable of what was occurring in the world and similarly how culture played a role in these events,” comments Lesser.
In the art history study, she is advised by Robert S. Mattison, Marshall R. Metzgar Professor of Art. In history, Robert Weiner, Thomas Roy and Lura Forrest Jones Professor of History, is guiding Lesser.
The student describes the reading-intensive architectural course as a close look at architects and styles that contributed to the modernist movement. The compatible history project concentrates on how the culture of the time was affected by events in history.
“Lafayette has an amazing art department with extremely knowledgeable professors,” says Lesser. “As an art major focusing on art history, I have taken a range of classes, from ancient art to American art, all in an attempt to figure out which period and style I enjoy most.
“I have come to find that I have a really strong interest in the history of architecture, and while this is something that I plan to pursue in the future, I felt that I needed to have an in-depth knowledge on the topic.”
Lesser says it is interesting to examine how artworks reflect the philosophies and academic studies of their period. The projects themselves are exciting because they offer her the freedom to set her own course, she adds.
She calls Mattison an extremely knowledgeable person who “knows that I am serious about the topic and therefore will really challenge me to work my hardest.” Likewise, Weiner, who she says is “devoted to showing me how studies in history and art history truly mesh,” understands how she works and “will be open to taking the project to many different extremes.”
Weiner describes Lesser as “a wonderful student who is very hard-working and very motivated, with lots of talent, personality and character to match.”
“Art and architecture, like composers and artists, reflect and shape their particular cultural context,” says Weiner. “Liza is getting a tailor-made curriculum that allows her to work in different disciplines in a coordinated way.”
A graduate of Ransom Everglades High School, Lesser is president of Alpha Phi sorority. She is a tour guide for the admissions office and a peer tutor in art history.
Liza Lesser ’03 combined passions for modern architecture and European cultural history in an independent study with Robert S. Mattison, Metzgar Professor of Art (left) and Robert I. Weiner, Jones Professor of History.