Linda Nolan
- B.A., Lake Forest College
- Semester Abroad, American University of Rome
- M.A., University of Southern California
- Ph.D, University of Southern California
Linda Nolan received her Ph.D. in Early Modern Italian Art and an M.A. in Classical Roman Art and Archaeology from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
Fascinated by both archaeology and artistic practice, Linda studied Fine Arts and Art History as an undergradaute, participated in art conservation internships in Chicago, IL, and Lugano, Switzerland, and excavated at Pompeii and in the Roman Forum. During her years in Los Angeles, Linda worked as a researcher and then educator at the J. Paul Getty Museum as well as a studio assistant to the Southern California artist Raymond Pettibon.
Her interest in archaeology, Renaissance sculpture, and the history of women in Rome inspired her PhD dissertation about the installation and physical forms of devotion shown towards objects in Roman churches, including the famous “Mouth of Truth,” at S. Maria in Cosmedin, Michelangelo’s Christ sculpture in S. Maria sopra Minerva, and the bronze S. Peter statue in S. Peter’s Basilica. Linda received fellowships to support her travels and research, including ones from the Dorot Foundation, the American Academy in Rome, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, and the American Association of University Women.
Her research interests include understanding access in sacred spaces in early modern Rome, the relationship between early archaeology and sacred buildings and art, old and new St. Peter’s Basilica, collecting of antiquities, historical sculpture techniques, and the reception of Michelangelo and Caravaggio.
