In preparation for studying in India in the fall, Fernando Gomez ’11 took on two research projects. Fernando, a fine arts major and a McNair scholar, is spending his summer on campus working on his first project, titled “Cities of Dreams: Examining the Ideology of British Colonialism in Indian Architecture.”
“My work focuses on colonial Indian architecture and how it is perceived today,” he explains. “We tend to think that because we are in a post-colonial era, the effects of such ideologies are over. I want to illustrate how such modes of colonialism are still expressed and take my research to India where I can enhance my findings through personal interviews and on-site observations.”
His Tanner Fellowship, which will be completed by March 2010, allows him to design a project that gives him the freedom to be creative. “While my major concentration is art history, I want to explore the studio extension of my fine arts degree,” the Bronx, NY, native and 2007 DeWitt Clinton High School graduate says. “My project, which examines issues of Indian identity through colonial architecture, will be a series of photographs from my abroad experience that will be on display in the Brush Art Gallery. Completing extensive research on a particular topic is one thing, but I wanted to immerse myself in my work and come back to St. Lawrence with something to share, in a more creative sense.”
Fernando has already begun to see the long-term benefits of conducting research as an undergraduate. “My goal is to get my doctorate in art history and being a McNair Scholar has given me the summer to focus solely on my research, without classes and other activities taking up my time,” he says.
He is also thankful for his faculty mentor, Associate Professor of Fine Arts Chandreyi Basu. “She helped me formulate a topic and has helped guide me in the right directions, while giving me the freedom to take my research where I want to go with it,” he says. “My project is just as important to her as it is to me because it’s an interest we both share.”
