Sarah Lewis
Associate Professor of Art History
Deputy Chairperson
Music and Art
EMAIL: smadole@bmcc.cuny.edu
Office: F-1130M
Office Hours:
Phone: +1 (212) 346-8665
Associate Professor of Art History Sarah Madole Lewis received her Ph.D. from the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. She specializes the art of the ancient world, especially material pertaining to death and commemorative practices in the Roman period, eastern provinces, and later Empire. At BMCC Prof. Madole Lewis teaches art history courses, including those assigned to the Honors program.
Prof. Madole Lewis is completing a book project on stone sarcophagi in the Roman East. Since 2020 her research has been supported by various institutions including the Getty Research Foundation, German Archaeological Institute Central Branch (Berlin), CUNY Research Foundation, and the Institute of the Study of the Ancient World (NYU).
Professor Madole Lewis has worked at several archaeological excavations including those at Aphrodisias and Caesarea Maritima. Her research has taken her from Spain to Syria, and many places in between, most consistently to Italy, Greece, and Turkey. She currently sits on the Board of Directors of the International Catacomb Society, which had previously awarded her a Shohet grant for research in the catacombs of Rome. Forthcoming essays focus on the sarcophagus market in third-century Syria and on modes of iconographic representation in rock-cut tombs and sarcophagi in Cilicia and Syria.
Expertise
Degrees
- Ph.D. New York University, History of Art and Archaeology
- M.A. New York University, History of Art
- B.A. Skidmore College, Religion
Additional professional qualifications include:
- Latin Epigraphy Program, American Academy at Rome with John Bodel
- American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Student Associate Member (2009-2011)
- Aestiva Latinitatis Romae with Reginald Foster, Rome
- Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Classical Languages, University of California, Los Angeles
Courses Taught
- This introduction to art history includes the study of painting, sculpture, architecture and other media by surveying the Paleolithic period through the Late Gothic period using a global approach. This exploration of art and architecture in terms of history, social context, meaning and style will promote a general understanding of the development of art and style in different cultures and the effects of cultural exchange on the arts. Discussions of techniques, media, composition, and figure representation will provide an understanding of key concepts in the arts.
- Using a global approach, this introduction to art history includes the study of painting, sculpture, architecture and other media by surveying the Renaissance through the start of the twentieth century. The exploration of techniques, media, composition, and figure representation will provide an understanding of key concepts in the arts with additional focus on the historical and social context, which developed the meaning and changing styles in different cultures as well as the effects of cultural exchange through the arts.
- This course is designed as a survey of Medieval Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire through the Gothic Period. A study of the artistic and architectural traditions borrowed from antiquity and the new developments generated during the Carolingian, Romanesque, and Gothic periods will be explored as they lead to the birth of Modern Europe. Museum visit is required.
Prerequisite: ENG 101 and (ART 102 or ART 104) - This course is designed as a survey of the Greco-Roman traditions in the art and architecture of ancient Greece and Rome. Major works, themes, techniques and artists will be presented to better understand the influences on the arts from previous periods and diverse cultures, as well as the continuing influences of antiquity through the ages. The course will also focus on the historical and cultural issues that provide context for the works of art including philosophical, social, religious, political and economic influences. Prerequisite: ENG 101 and (ART 102 or ART 104)
- This capstone course for Art History Majors covers a range of topics relating to the pursuit of careers in the arts. Students will develop a topic and complete a comprehensive research paper for presentation. During the semester, students will take part in museum visits, gallery tours, and attend talks by professionals in the field of art history to develop an understanding of the opportunities for art historians. Prerequisite: Departmental permission
Research and Projects
Conferences and conference sessions co-organized in 2022:
- Making Women Visible in the Art History Classroom: Theory and Practices, virtual colloquium, BMCC Women’s HERstory Month, March 25, 2022
- “Making Women Visible in the Non-Western and Pre-Modern Art History Classroom,” College Art Association Annual Meeting, virtual session, March 4, 2022
- “Boundaries and Liminality in Roman Material Culture,” Archaeological Institute of America Annual Meeting, virtual session, January 6, 2022
Publications
Articles & Chapters
- “Female Experience at the Tomb: Ritual Commemoration and Roman Sarcophagus Imagery,” in Material Culture and Women’s Religious Experience in Antiquity: An Interdisciplinary Symposium, eds. M. D. Ellison, C. G. Taylor, and C. Osiek (Lanham: Lexington Books, 2021), 125-146
- “Roman Sarcophagi in Context from the Catacomb of Praetextatus,” in Grounding Roman Sculpture. Selected Papers in Ancient Art and Architecture 6, eds. A. Hrychuk Kontokosta and P. De Staebler (Boston, Mass.: Archaeological Institute of America, 2020), 199-218
- “A Case Study in Attribution: Two East Greek Sarcophagi in Italy,” Roemische Mitteilungen 124 (2018), 269-299
- “A Mythological Frieze Sarcophagus from Aphrodisias Depicting the Birth of Dionysos,” American Journal of Archaeology 122.1 (2018), 145-168
Recent Reviews
- 2024, Review of Palmyrene Sarcophagi, O. Babou and R. Raja, Studies in Palmyrene Archaeology and History, 10 (Brepols, 2023), American Journal of Archaeology 128.4
- 2021, Review of The Phantom Image: Seeing the Dead in Ancient Rome, P. Crowley (The University of Chicago, 2019), American Journal of Archaeology 125.4
- 2019, Review of Aphrodisian Columnar Sarcophagi, E. Öğüş (Reichert Verlag, 2018), Journal of Roman Archaeology 32, 883–891
Honors, Awards and Affiliations
Including:
- PSC-CUNY Research Award Cycles 49 51, 54, 55
- Franklin Research Grant, American Philosophical Society, 2018-2019
- BMCC Faculty Development Grant for research in Lebanon, 2017-2018
- Shohet Scholarship, International Catacomb Society, 2016-2017
- Research Fellowship, American Research Center in Sofia, Bulgaria, 2010
- Travel Fellowship, American Research Institute in Turkey, 2009-2010
Additional Information
- “Excavations: A Conversation on Fragments: Part One,” with Rachel Frank, Field Projects, New York, April 2016
- “Excavations: A Conversation on Fragments: Part Two,” with Ellie Krakow, Field Projects, New York, April 2016
