TAP Intern Projects

Traditional Arts interns have conducted research on a wide range of topics and reported
on their work in various formats. Below is a partial list of past interns and their projects.
Scroll down or click on a name from the list below.

Protection of Information
Many students who visit this website are interested in learning more about past projects of Traditional Arts interns, and wish to access the full text of their final reports. Intern projects are not made public through the internet. As part of their projects, many students conducted interviews with local artists who shared a great deal of personal and professional information; this information was later transcribed into the students' written reports. Ethically, we must respect the confidentiality of the informant(s) and thus cannot permit public access to this information without the express consent of the artist(s) interviewed.

Catherine Carnahan (Trinidad Steel Pan)

Sandy Cate (Chinese Textiles)

Su-Jae Chee (California Indian Basketry)

Emma Clamp (Bay Area Museum Survey)

Cathy Conway (Nigerian Drumming, Philippine paroles)

Rebecca Dobkins (California Indian Resources)

Kate Ertel (East Indian rangoli)

Beth Gerrard (Chicano Murals)

Kirsten Hawkins (Japanese Combs)

Lindsay Jones (Contemporary American Indian Art)

Ariana Kanwit (Chicana Murals)

Anna Konukhova (Museum Management)

Linda Lee (Museum Programming Logistics)

Emily Mariko (American Quilts)

Karen Miller (Palestinian Textiles)

Almudena Ortiz (Yupik Spirit Masks)

Ashley Phelps (Museum Programs)

Jay Pinka (Mexican Dia de los Muertos)

Robin Quarrier (Nigerian mbari)

Anton Revenaugh (Sports Fencing)

Karen Siercke (Ethnic Art Programs)

Patty Taber (Iu Mien Embroidery)

Cindy Thorn (Interpreting Culture)

Anton Revenaugh, right, with Maestro Arthur Lane
(Photo: Arie Kroops)

Intern: Anton Revenaugh (2005)
Project: An Ethnography of Bay Area Sports Fencers.
Anton's research and fieldwork focused on contemporary European-style fencing in an urban context and the various functions it serves for participants. He interviewed fencers in six Bay Area fencing clubs to determine the social, physical, and psychological reasons that motivate fencers to pursue this activity. In particular, he compared competitive and recreational sports fencers.
Institution: California State University at Hayward (Applied Anthropology)

Intern: Lindsay Jones (2005)
Project: Contacted and interviewed contemporary American Indian artists and curated an online exhibit of their work entitled Gifts Given by the Creator.
Institution: University of Colorado at Boulder (Museum and Field Studies Program)

Intern: Ariana Kanwit (2004)
Project: Interviewed mural painters and conducted fieldwork in the predominantly-Latino Mission District of San Francisco. Her project focused on the work produced by Chicana women (mujeres muralistas) and included the iconography chosen to visually convey their messages and the concept of murals as a tool for communicating ideas relevant to the Chicana experience in the United States. Produced a report: Walls That Speak: How Women Express their Culture through the Contemporary Mural Movement in the Mission District of San Francisco.
Institution: Bennington College, Vermont (Anthropology and Art History)

Intern: Kirsten Hawkins (2002)
Project: Conducted research and produced a written report on the cultural context and significance of a collection of Japanese combs acquired by the Academy; assisted with logistical and administractive aspects of the Traditional Arts Program; documented Saturday programs (Hurdy-Gurdy).
Institution: Bryn Mawr College, Pennsylvania (Anthropology)

Intern: Robin Quarrier (2002)
Project: Worked with Nigerian artist Geoffrey Nwogu for three months during his residency at the Academy in the spring of 2002. Her documentation is the result of observation and taking notes, as well as interviews to record the artist’s personal comments on his work and on Nigerian Igbo culture in general.
Institution: Dartmouth College, New Hampshire (Anthropology)

Robin Quarrier and Geoffrey Nwogu with mbari sculpture in progress. (2002)
(PHOTO: June Anderson)

Intern: Linda Lee (2002)
Project: Assisted with logistical and administractive aspects of the Traditional Arts Program; documented Saturday programs (Tales from the Caribbean; Mesoamerican Musical Instruments, Japanese Gift Wraps, Plains Indian Flutes, Dance Traditions of the Silk Road); conducted local fieldwork.
Institution: University of California at Berkeley

Intern: Karen Siercke (2001)
Project: Internship in Applied Anthropology, investigating the function of ethnic art programs in a museum.
Institution: University of Copenhagen, Denmark (Anthropology)

Intern: Su-Jae Chee (2000)
Project: Fieldwork with California Indian tribes. Produced a 100-page resource manual for educators on Native American Basketry.
Institution: National University of Singapore; Golden Gate University, San Francisco (Arts Administration)

A Mexican home altar constructed by Carmen Carillo for Dia de los Muertos
(PHOTO: June Anderson)

Intern: Jay Pinka (1999)
Project: Conducted fieldwork in San Francisco’s Mission District to document the Mexican “Day of the Dead” celebrations. Produced a monograph: Dia de los Muertos: A Personal Journey.

Intern: Anna Konukhova (1995)
Project: As Director of the Home for Russian Tradition folk art center in Moscow, Anna supervises a gallery and small museum. Her internship was sponsored by the Center for Citizen Initiatives-USA, with the goal of providing on-the-job training for managers of non-profit organizations in the former Soviet Union. Anna gained experience in and knowledge of the many functions of a typical American museum, with emphasis on interpreting traditional art and culture.

Intern: Emma Clamp (1992)
Project: Conducted a comparative survey of museums in the Bay Area and produced a 100-page report, Museums and Their Functions: A Study of 14 Bay Area Museums.
Institution: Bristol Polytechnic, England (Humanities)

Onye Onyemaechi carves a Nigerian drum (1992)
(PHOTO: June Anderson)

Intern: Cathy Conway (1992)
Project: Interviewed Nigerian drum-maker Onye Onyemaechi and Philippine lantern-maker Cota Yabut, and produced a report on their work.
Institution: University of California at Davis (Anthropology)

Intern: Kate Ertel (1992)
Project: Interviewed East Indian rangoli artist Rekha Joshi to learn about the ritual function of rangoli both in India and the Bay Area. Submitted field notes and a report of her findings.
Institution: San Francisco State University (Anthropology)

Rekha Joshi creates East Indian rangoli designs with colored rice powder (1992)
(PHOTO: Caroline Kopp)

Intern: Emily Mariko (1992)
Project: Documented the work of Gail Moore, American quilter. Twenty-five page report includes interviews with the artist and focuses on the importance of quilts to mark rites of passage, i.e., quilts made to celebrate births, graduations, weddings, and as memorials to a deceased family member.
Institution: San Francisco State University (Anthropology)

Gail Moore sews a cotton quilt (1992)
(PHOTO: Caroline Kopp)

Claude Clark carves a wooden stool (1992)
(PHOTO: June Anderson)

Intern: Karen Miller (1992)
Project 1: Interviewed African-American woodcarver Claude Clark and produced a report on the wooden stools he carves as memorials to his ancestors.
Project 2: Report on the work of Palestinian textile artist Suheir Khalaf, based on interviews with the artist about her embroidered wedding garments.
Institution: University of California at Berkeley (Folklore)

Palestinian embroiderer Suheir Khalaf (1992)
(PHOTO: Charlotte Fiorito)

Detail of Palestinian embroidery on a woman's dress (at left)
(PHOTO: June Anderson)

Intern: Almudena Ortiz (1992)
Project: Report on Yupik Eskimo masks and their significance during puberty rites, based on interviews with Yupik woodcarver Charlie Kairaiuak.
Institution: University of California at Berkeley (Folklore)

Charlie Kairaiuak carves Yupik Eskimo masks (1992)
(PHOTO: June Anderson)

Intern: Ashley Phelps (1992)
Project: Documented the museum’s Traditional Arts Program. Attended Saturday presentations of ethnic music, dance, crafts, etc., and taped/transcribed the programs for the museum’s archives.
Institution: UCLA (Anthropology)

Muey Sio Sae Fong embroiders traditional Mien clothing (1992)
(PHOTO: Charlotte Fiorito)

Intern: Patty Taber (1992)
Project: Interviewed Mien textile artist Muey Sio Sae Fong and produced notes/report on Mien embroidery traditions.
Institution: San Francisco State University (Anthropology)

Intern: Catherine Carnahan (1990)
Project 1: Fieldwork within the local Caribbean community to document steel pan music traditions. Produced a monograph Sounds of Trinidad which includes extensive research and interviews with pan-maker and pan musician Ansel Joseph.
Project 2: Conducted research on folklore associated with venomous creatures for the Academy’s exhibit Venoms.
Institution: San Diego State University (Art History)

Ansel Joseph tunes a steel pan (1990)
(PHOTO: Sally Gati)

Intern: Rebecca Dobkins (1990)
Project: Conducted fieldwork with California Indian tribes and produced a report on California Indian Resources in the Bay Area as an educational tool for educators, museums, and researchers.
Institution: University of California at Berkeley (Anthropology)

Intern: Sandy Cate (1989)
Project: Produced a resource list for the study of Chinese Costumes and Textiles, including a survey of major textile collections in the United States.
Institution: University of California at Berkeley (Folklore)

Intern: Cindy Thorn (1989)
Project: Ethnographic Field Methods. Student focused on the interpretation of cultures in a museum setting, examining educational programs, ethnic art presentations, and audience expectations. Final report: Audience Study. Cindy later graduated with a PhD in Folklore from Indiana University, Bloomington.
Institution: San Francisco State University (Museum Studies)

Intern: Beth Gerrard (1988)
Project: Conducted fieldwork in San Francisco’s Mission District to document the city’s Chicano murals. Report includes interviews with muralist Ray Patlan, a list of local resource people, and a portfolio of slide photographs.
Institution: Mt. Holyoke College, Massachusetts (Anthropology)

"Las Lechugueras" (The Female Lettuce Workers) (1985) by Juana Alicia
Location: York and 24th Streets, San Francisco
(PHOTO: B. Gerrard)

"Balance of Power" (1985) by Juana Alicia, Susan Cervantes, Raul Martinez, and Emmanuel Montoya
Location: Mission Playground and Pool, Linda St. at 19th St., San Francisco
(PHOTO: B. Gerrard)

"Honor a Todos los Indios de America" (Honor All the American Indians) (1984) by Zala Nevel
Location: Balmy Alley, San Francisco
(PHOTO: B. Gerrard)

"Homenaje a Arzobispo O. Romero" (Tribute to Archbishop Oscar Romero) (1984) by James Morgan and Karen Bennett
Location: Balmy Alley, San Francisco
(PHOTO: B. Gerrard)

"Unidos en la Lucha" (United in the Struggle) (1984) by Jose Mesa
Location: Balmy Alley, San Francisco
(PHOTO: B. Gerrard)

ONLINE ARCHIVE	RESEARCH & FIELDWORK	PUBLICATIONS	STUDENT INTERNSHIPS
STAFF PROFILES	TAP HOME	ANTHRO HOME	CAS HOME

top of page