Rachel Kousser
Professor
Art
Location: 5115 Boylan Hall
Phone: 718.951.5181
Fax: 718.951.4728
Email:
Rachel Kousser is Professor at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York. In her writing and teaching, she focuses on the Greeks' creation, transformation, and destruction of monuments; the representation of gender, sexuality, and power in the classical era; and the place of Greek art within the globally interconnected ancient world. Professor Kousser is the author of The Afterlives of Greek Sculpture: Interaction, Transformation, Destruction; Hellenistic and Roman Ideal Sculpture: The Allure of the Classical (Cambridge University Press, 2017, 2008) and articles in Art Bulletin, RES: Anthropology and Aesthetics, and the American Journal of Archaeology. She has received fellowships from the National Endowment of the Humanities, the Getty Research Institute, and the Center for the Advanced Study of the Visual Arts. Her current project, Alexander at the End of the World, is forthcoming from HarperCollins.
Education:
Ph.D., New York University - 2001 (Art History)
B.A., Yale University - 1994 (Classics / Art History)
Areas of Expertise:
Greek and Roman art, ancient sculpture, classicism, ancient iconoclasm, Alexander the Great.
Books and Publications
"Mutilating goddesses: Aphrodite in Late Antique Aphrodisias.? In Julia Koch and
Christina Jacobs (eds.), Prähistorische und antike Göttinnen. Frauen-Forschung-Archäologie vol. 12.
(Books and Publications: Book Chapter) 2017
The afterlives of Greek sculpture: Interaction, transformation, and destruction (Cambridge University Press) (Books and Publications: Book (Authored)) 2017
"Monument and memory in ancient Greece and Rome: A comparative perspective." In
Memoria Romana, edited by Karl Galinsky (Gettty Publications).
(Books and Publications: Book (Edited)) 2015
"The mutilation of the herms: Violence toward sculptures in the late fifth century B.C.?
In Autopsy in Athens: Recent archaeological research on Athens and Attica, edited by Margaret M. Miles (Oxbow Books).
(Books and Publications: Book (Edited)) 2015
Adapting Greek art. In Blackwell companion to Roman art, edited by Barbara Borg (Blackwell, 2015). (Books and Publications: Book (Edited)) 2015
The Roman reception of Greek art and architecture. In The Oxford handbook of Greek and Roman art and architecture, edited by Clemente Marconi (Oxford University Press, 2014). (Books and Publications: Book (Edited)) 2014
"The Female Nude in Classical Art: Between Voyeurism and Power." Aphrodite and the Gods of Love. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts. (Books and Publications: Article (Other)) 2011
"A Sacred Landscape: The Creation, Maintenance, and Destruction of Religious Space in Roman Germany." Res: Anthropology and Aesthetics 27/28, Spring/Fall. (Books and Publications: Forthcoming Publications) 2010
"Augustan Aphrodites: The Allure of Greek Art in Roman Visual Culture." Brill's Companion to Aphrodite. Spring. (Books and Publications: Book Chapter) 2010
"Hellenistic and Roman Art, 221 BC-AD 337." Blackwell Companion to Ancient Macedonia. Blackwell. Fall. (Books and Publications: Forthcoming Publications) 2010
"Destruction and Memory on the Athenian Acropolis." Art Bulletin. (Books and Publications: Article (Peer-reviewed)) 2009
Review of The Language of the Muses: Hellenized Roman Sculpture, by Miranda Marvin. Journal of Roman Archaeology. (Books and Publications: Forthcoming Publications) 2009
Hellenistic and Roman Ideal Sculpture: The Allure of the Classical. Cambridge University Press. (Books and Publications: Book (Authored)) 2008
"Mythological Portraiture in Antonine Rome: The Performance of Myth." American Journal of Archaeology. (Books and Publications: Forthcoming Publications) 2007
"The Desirability of Roman Victory: Victoria on Imperial and Provincial Monuments." Representing War in Ancient Rome. Cambridge University Press. (Books and Publications: Book Chapter) 2006
"Creating the Past: The Vénus de Milo and the Hellenistic Reception of Classical Greece." American Journal of Archaeology, April. (Books and Publications: Article (Peer-reviewed)) 2005
"From Conquest to Civilization: The Rhetoric of Imperialism in the Early Principate." A Tall Order: Festschrift for William Harris. Saur Verlag, Beiträge zur Altertumskunde, Band 216. (Books and Publications: Book Chapter) 2005
"The World of Aphrodite in Late Fifth Century Vase Painting." Greek Painted Pottery: Images, Contexts and Controversies. Columbia Studies in the Classical Tradition. (Books and Publications: Book Chapter) 2004
Awards, Honors and Fellowships
National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar Award (Awards and Honors) 2021
Runciman Book Award Shortlist for "The Afterlives of Greek Sculpture: Interaction, Transformation, and Destruction." (Awards and Honors) 2018
Archaeological Institute of America Publication Subvention award (Grants and Fellowships) 2015
PSC-CUNY research award, CUNY Research Foundation (Grants and Fellowships) 2014
PSC-CUNY research award, CUNY Research Foundation (Grants and Fellowships) 2013
National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship, 2011-12. (Grants and Fellowships) 2012
Center for Hellenic Studies non-residential fellowship. (2010-2011) (Grants and Fellowships) 2011
Getty Research Institute senior fellowship. 2011 (Grants and Fellowships) 2011
Alisa Bruce Mellon Senior Fellowship, Center for the Advanced Study of the Visual Arts, National Gallery, Washington, D.C. (Awards and Honors) 2010
PSC-CUNY Research Foundation Grant. (Awards and Honors) 2009
New Faculty Fund Fellowship. (Awards and Honors) 2008
Postdoctoral fellowship, Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Berlin. (Grants and Fellowships) 2006
PSC-CUNY Research Award, CUNY Research Foundation. (Grants and Fellowships) 2006
PSC-CUNY Research Award, CUNY Research Foundation. (Grants and Fellowships) 2005
Tow Faculty Travel Fellowship, Brooklyn College. (Awards and Honors) 2005
Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums
"Alexander the Great, the Burning of Persepolis, and the Destruction of Cultural Heritage."
Archaeological Institute of America
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2018
"Of Elephants and Kings: The Materiality of Power in Hellenistic Macedonia." Bard Graduate Center
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2018
"Black is beautiful: The materiality of sculpture in Hellenistic Egypt."
Keynote speech, Graduate Student Symposium, SUNY Geneseo, 2017.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2017
"Sculptures and ritual in ancient Greece." Rehak Symposium, University of Kansas.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2017
"The Red and the Black: Materiality in Hellenistic Sculpture."
Greek and Roman Seminar, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2017
Iconoclasm and iconophilia in ancient Greece. Rewald Lecture, Ph.D. Program
Lectures: in Art History, The Graduate Center, CUNY, 2016.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2016
"Ek tou melanthos lithou: The materiality of dark stone sculptures in Ptolemaic Egypt."
University of Pennsylvania (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2016
Representing royal power: A dark stone queen from Ptolemaic Egypt.
Archaeological Institute of America.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2016
The afterlives of sculptures in ancient Greece. Julius Fund Lecture in Ancient
Art History, Case Western Reserve University, 2015.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2015
Damnatio memoriae in Hellenistic Athens. Institute of Fine Arts, symposium in honor of Evelyn Harrison (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2014
Hellenistic damnatio memoriae. Johns Hopkins University, 2014. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2014
The mutilation of the herms: Violence toward images in the late fifth century B.C.
Archaeological Institute of America, 2014.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2014
Hellenistic damnatio memoriae: Recarved ruler portraits from Ptolemaic Egypt.
Archaeological Institute of America.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2013
Respondent, Cultural memory in the Roman empire. Memoria Romana project, Getty Villa. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2013
The recycling and restoration of funerary monuments in Late Classical Athens.
College Art Association.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2013
"The Use and Abuse of Images in Ancient Greece." Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, University of California at Los Angeles. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2012
"Aphrodite and the Female Nude." Museum of Fine Arts. Boston. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2011
"Mutilated, bound, confined, concealed: "Voodoo dolls" in Classical and Hellenistic Greece." Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Spring 2011. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2011
"Mutilating goddesses: Aphrodite in Late Antique Aphrodisias." "Prahistorische und antike Gottinen," Heilbronn, Spring 2011. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2011
"The aesthetics and facture of "voodoo dolls" in Classical Athens".
Department of Art History, University of California at Berkley, Spring 2011. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2011
"The Living Image: Ancient and Modern Approaches to Iconoclasm." Center for the Advanced Study of the Visual Arts. Washington, D.C. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2010
"Memories of Greece, Souvenirs of Egypt: The Visual Culture of Expatriatism in Ptolemaic Alexandria." College Art Association Annual Meeting. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2009
"Monument and Memory in Ptolemaic Alexandria." CUNY Graduate Center. New York. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2009
"Augustan Aphrodites: The Allure of the Classical in the Early Empire." University of Reading. Reading, United Kingdom. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2008
"Colossal Power: Scale as Metaphor in Hellenistic Ruler Portraits." Heoretical Archaeology Group New York. Columbia University. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2008
"Destroying Sacred Space: Iconoclasm in Roman Germany." Archaeological Institute of America. Winter. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2007
"Lost on the Borderlands: Destroying Art in Roman Germany." College Art Association. Spring. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2007
"The Parthenon as Palimpsest: Destruction and Memory on the Athenian Acropolis." Department of Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University. New York.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2007
"Destroying the Power of Images in Late Roman Germany." Deutsches Archäologisches Institut. Berlin. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2006
"Representing Sensual Power: A Classical Statue of Aphrodite in Corinth." Archaeological Institute of America. Winter. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2006
"The Allure of the Classical: The Vénus de Milo and the Hellenistic Invention of Classical Art." Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. Fall.
(Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Invited Talk) 2005
