Fellowship Programs

Meet the 2025 Undergraduate Fellows

Matthew Lyga
Degree Pursuing: Textiles & Fashion Design Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor:  Marianne Fairbanks, Audrey Rothermel Bascom Professor 

Skipped Generations: A Knitted Timeline

Matthew Lyga will continue his study of machine knitting as a medium for art and fashion. His research will include study of knit garments and accessories held by the Helen Louise Allen Textile collection. Through sampling, yarn dyeing, and knitting, he aims to create modern pieces inspired by the historic knits of Norway.

Claire Wendland
Degree Pursuing: Interior Architecture Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Erin Hamilton, Assistant Professor of Design Studies

Environmental Consciousness Through Signs That Teach People About Sustainable Aspects of a Building

Through my research I will discover how signs that teach people about sustainable aspects of a building affects their behaviors towards the environment. Surveys, interviews, and observation will help me understand if the Whittingham Discovery Center sustainable teaching signs made people more environmentally conscious. From this research people will better understand if these signs work or not and if not, how they can be improved.

Edward Xiong
Degree Pursuing: Textiles & Fashion Design Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor:  Mengni Zhang, Assistant Professor of Design Studies

Knowledge within Cloth: Exploration of HMoob Paj Ntaub

Often, there is a lack of literature along with community-specific knowledge on HMoob paj ntaub—HMoob textiles. Xiong is investigating paj ntaub—with a focus on the HMoob diaspora that is from Laos—through HMoob epistemologies to document this knowledge and compare how it’s contextualized in academia to uncover the realities of these textiles. Specifically, he will be conducting interviews and working with Hmoob community members, examining the literature on paj ntaub, using primary resources from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection and his collection to remake paj ntaub samples, and documenting this through an autoethnographic journal.

Jules Xiong
Degree Pursuing: Textiles & Fashion Design Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor:  Jennifer Angus, Professor of Design Studies

Contemporary Commodification of Traditional Hmong Textiles in America

For my 2025 Chipstone-CDMC Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship, I will research the commodification of Hmong textiles in Northern Vietnam and how creating products for sale amongst Western audiences has shaped the making and material culture of Hmong textiles. During my research, I will explore how the Hmong people export their textiles to markets locally and globally. There is a demand for Hmong clothing within the Hmong American market, and I aim to understand the process of how artisans in Vietnam supply these products. I will explore how revenue from tourism aids Hmong people in Vietnam in providing for themselves and the effects on their community.

Meet the 2024 Undergraduate Fellows

Sarah Ambrosius

Degree Pursuing: BS in Textiles and Fashion Design
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Marianne Fairbanks, Audrey Rothermel Bascom Professor, Associate Professor of Design Studie, Kohl’s Center Innovation Faculty Fellow & Dr. Sophie Pitman, Pleasant Rowland Textile Specialist and Research Director, Center for Design and Material Culture

 Ambrosius is researching the interlacement of textiles and architecture through written sources and a series of handwoven projects. Using the double weave structure, she will investigate the potential of this structure and incorporate the use of other materials, such as concrete, wire, and metal as it relates to architectural design.

Gracie Harshaw

Degree Pursuing: BS in Textiles and Fashion Design
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Dr. Marina Moskowitz, Lynn and Gary Mecklenburg Chair in Textiles, Material Culture & Design, Professor of Design Studies

Harshaw, and her research partner Eden Meidl, is investigating the successes and limitations of body-shaping garments from a structural perspective. They will be using primary sources from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection for close inspection and will realize their work through practice-based research by creating thee complete garment ensembles.

Anastasiya Kurova

Degree Pursuing: BS in Interior Architecture
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Dr. Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor of Design Studies, Executive Director of the Center for Design and Material Culture

Kurova’s research aims to explain the potential risks associated with dupe, fake, replica, and counterfeit items. In addition to distinguishing between these types of products, her research will focus on the psychological, legal, consumer, and health implications of these items.

Alexandria McCourt

Degree Pursuing: BS in Textiles and Fashion Design
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Mitch Frank, Teaching Faculty, Design Studies

McCourt’s research planting, growing, and spinning three different species of milkweed plant is an examination of the potential of milkweed as a sustainable textile alternative. Her research focuses on the cultivation and creation of different milkweed species as a viable alternative to cotton, hemp, and linen textiles, as it is more water conscious and requires less machinery for harvesting.

Eden Meidl

Degree Pursuing: BS in Textiles and Fashion Design
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Dr. Marina Moskowitz, Lynn and Gary Mecklenburg Chair in Textiles, Material Culture & Design, Professor of Design Studies

 Meidl, and her research partner Gracie Harshaw, is investigating the successes and limitations of body-shaping garments from a structural perspective. They will be using primary sources from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection for close inspection and will realize their work through practice-based research by creating thee complete garment ensembles.

Macey Bearson

Degree Pursuing: Interior Architecture Major, Design Strategy Certificate
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Lesley Sager, Teaching Faculty in Design Studies Department

This summer, I will be solving the issue that is avian fatality due to flying into windows in Nancy Nicholas Hall. Knowing birds can see color and are deterred by movement, the design solution is to create colored panels/disks that obtain the ability to move while also maintaining the character of SoHE. The disks will also be strung by wire, anchored to the ground, and close in proximity to the windows which will additionally deter the birds.

Miah Ferracuti

Degree Pursuing: Interior Architecture Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Lesley Sager, Teaching Faculty in Design Studies Department

Description is forthcoming.

Dylan Hart

Degree Pursuing: Finance and Real Estate Major
School: School of Business
Advisor: Trudy Watt, Academic Director, Master of Science in Design and Innovation

Hart will be conducting research on project Endless. Endless is a cross-disciplinary publication of original art and digital media, highlighting the ever-evolving landscape of AI in the creative industries. Initially, Endless will adapt the creations of historical artists in a retrospective publication to narrate the stories behind their influential creations. Eventually, the publication will pivot towards profiling contemporary artists, adapting their work to communicate current narratives and future plans.

Falcon Jaacks

Degree Pursuing: Textiles and Fashion Design Major, Certificates in Computer Science and Entrepreneurship 
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisors: Sophie Pitman, Pleasant Rowland Textile Specialist and Research Director, Marianne Fairbanks, Associate Professor in Design Studies

This summer I will be exploring historical woven fabrics including damask or other jacquard patterns. I will select a few of the mid-century European woven fragments from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection, research their history, and draft my own contemporary version of the pattern. This research will explore the history of weaving from this past era and extend that into the modern uses of digital woven technology, both informing my current practice and connecting it to the origins of this technology.

Catherina O.

Degree Pursuing: Art History Major
School: College of Letters and Sciences
Advisor: Yuhang Li, Associate Professor of Chinese Art, Department of Art History

Southeast Asian art and material culture is a highly unsaturated topic of study, which makes the research I will be working on so important. The roles of the Vietnamese Ao Dai are an important cultural aspect of Vietnamese heritage that spans centuries. Through my research I am interested in analyzing and studying its significance in Vietnamese American identity, culture, and experiences. My research will focus heavily on modern and contemporary Áo Dài from the recent decades; I intend to work with community members of Vietnamese descent, immigrants and their descendants, to hear their stories and experiences in relation to their personal Áo Dài.

Alayna VanRite

Degree Pursuing: Interior Architecture Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Lesley Sager, Teaching Faculty in Design Studies Department

By leveraging a unique handicraft tradition in the community, Merry-Go-Strong has facilitated a new revenue source for women in Tharaka Nithi, Kenya, through the sale of the colorful crochet baskets. Made by women to support women and girls, this project has increased self-confidence, autonomy, and created a sense of pride in accomplishment. This research aims to focus on developing a fair and efficient system for ranking the quality to price the unique, one-of-a-kind baskets. This project is a simple yet powerful tool for women to become economically empowered in their home and community and to experience less domestic violence, thus serving as role models for their children.

Lucy Weber

Degree Pursuing: Textiles and Fashion Design Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisors: Sophie Pitman, Pleasant Rowland Textile Specialist and Research Director, Marianne Fairbanks, Associate Professor in Design Studies

I intend to research the work of Anni Albers, specifically how she uses color interaction in Red and Blue Layers, Black White Red, and a drawing for a rug design. I find myself continually drawn to Albers’ weavings and her use of color, but I would like to understand how she uses different weave structures to create and manipulate color interactions. In an attempt to understand her structures, I will use weaving as my primary form of research.

Fiona Widodo

Degree Pursuing: Interior Architecture Major
School: School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Lesley Sager, Teaching Faculty in Design Studies Department

Aniceta Kiriga, the founder of The Tharaka Women’s Welfare Program in Kenya, initiated the first Alternative Rites of Passage (ARP) program in 1996 to combat Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and improve the lives of women and girls in her community. The program has been highly successful, with nearly 10,000 girls participating in ARP and experiencing a significant increase in knowledge about the negative health effects of FGM, leading to the long-term abandonment of the practice. This research project aims to identify the design thinking techniques implemented by Kiriga and showcase her courageous efforts through interviews and a video, with the goal of inspiring and informing other grassroots initiatives.

Sam Eklund

Degree Pursuing: Industrial and Systems Engineering Major
Department: College of Engineering
Advisor: Jennifer Angus, Audrey Rothermel Bascom Professor in Human Ecology & Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor in Design Studies

This summer, Sam will conduct research in Patan, Nepal (Kathmandu’s Old City) working with a high-end retail organization that partners with local artisans to design and create home decor and accessories. By involving local artisans in the process, this retail organization ensures that the rich, traditional craft culture of Nepal is respected and incorporated into beautiful modern designs. Sam’s research will focus specifically on the development and construction of a handmade lamp, complete with working hinges – the main design challenge he will be facing. Sam will work with the artisans in Nepal and use the Design Thinking process to understand production capabilities and find a solution for this product.

Maia Rauh

Degree Pursuing: Textile and Fashion Design Major, Certificate in Studio Art with a 3D Concentration
Department: Design Studies, School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Marianne Fairbanks, Associate Professor in Design Studies & Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor in Design Studies

Maia’s research this summer is centered on the values and lessons of the WPA Handicraft Project through a series of hand-woven projects based on the work of Elsa Ulbricht, a Milwaukee-based art professor and founding member of the Milwaukee Handicraft Project. Ulbricht designed an inexpensive floor loom to be made by the WPA and was known for her creative use of found materials to weave, like surplus burlap bags. This offered accessible ways for women to learn to weave and create draperies, upholstery fabrics, table runners, rigs, and more. Maia will manipulate this floor loom design to push further the use of unconventional materials as weft, such as rope, foam, wire, and wood, and challenge what a functional textile can be through unconventional weaving techniques that speak to the ingenuity of the loom’s creation for the WPA.

Abby Sharp

Degree Pursuing: BA in Textile Design (certificates in Material Culture and Gender and Women’s Studies)
Department: Design Studies Department, School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor in the Design Studies Department

Abby is traveling to Nepal this summer to intern with the Association for Craft Producers.

Through their internship and with the opportunities available to them while in Nepal, Abby will be critically engaging with and examining the relationship with Nepali artisans and Western consumers. Their focus is on gathering information on the Nepali artisans’ experience and the power dynamics involved with transnational craft commerce. Research will be centered on the craftsperson’s experience and how they engage with all parts of textile production. Through this research they will attend to reframe the textile trade dynamic and present a perspective often lost or distorted for their design studies colleagues when they return from their research.

Panagioti Tsiamis

Degree Pursuing: Art History Major (Certificates in Material Culture Studies and Textiles and Fashion Design)
Department: Department of Art History, College of Letters and Sciences
Advisors: Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor in Design Studies

Panagioti’s research brings him to the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum to study absence and loss with the context of museums and Greek History. He is analyzing the display methods of the Acropolis Museum and how they show Greek material culture that is present and what is missing due to looting and displacement in other countries around the world. This research examines the way in which this information is shared implicitly and explicitly and looks at the ways in which scholars and museums approach the presence of absence.

Joanna Wilson

Degree Pursuing: Art History PhD
Department: Department of Art History, College of Letters and Sciences
Advisors: Ann Smart Martin, Stanley and Polly Stone (Chipstone) Professor Emeritus of American Decorative Arts and Material Culture & Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor in Design Studies

The William Ramsay Project is a multi-year engagement with historical evidence of global trade, mercantile practice, and retail sales to re-imagine the material culture and business of colonial America. The core narrative of this project and Joanna’s research is that everyday purchases at a local retail store tell about American society and its place in global trade three centuries ago. It does so by reconstructing consumer actions of men and women— wealthy and poor, free and enslaved, in various ages and occupations—and detailing that behavior in terms accessible and inviting to scholars and the public. Joanna’s research is to find definitions, descriptions, analysis summaries, and images for objects from William Ramsay’s ledger and contribute to the project’s lengthy research on commerce in pre-revolutionary Alexandria, Virginia.

Eden Foster

Degree Pursuing: BA in Political Science, Philosophy, and International Studies (certificates in French, Global Health, and African Studies)
Department: Political, Philosophy, and International Studies Departments, College of Letters and Science
Advisor: Lesley Sager, Faculty Associate in the Design Studies Department

“This research project highlights how design thinking has been used to create the Annual Rite of Passage (ARP) event to combat Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). It also seeks to utilize design thinking skills to further the event’s impact by means of creating holistic health education “playbooks” for participants. With the partnership of Aniceta Kiriga and the Tharaka Women’s Welfare Program, we analyze how design thinking can be used to improve health and social outcomes while maintaining a culture-sensitive lens.”

Sarah Olk

Degree Pursuing: BA History and Art History
Department: History and Art History Departments, College of Letters & Science
Advisor: Jill Casid, Professor in the Art History Department

“My research and fellowship with the Center of Design and Material Culture explores the material culture and graphic design of the music industry from the 1980s to the 1990s with the recordworks of the British synthpop duo Pet Shop Boys as my primary focus. I concentrate on Pet Shop Boys’ 1993 album Very alongside examples of their albums and singles leading up to and following its release. The major themes of interest I explore are how Pet Shop Boys both align with, counter, and innovate the design contexts and phases of the music industry in the 80s-90s; the significance of Very’s design and existence as a dual visual and auditory object; the progression of queer subtext into text in their work; and how the duo blurred the line between art and pop music in a commercial setting.”

Abby Sharp

Degree Pursuing: BA in Textile Design (certificates in Material Culture and Gender and Women’s Studies)
Department: Design Studies Department, School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Sarah Anne Carter, Associate Professor in the Design Studies Department

“My research involves holistically examining quilts from the collection to gain a better perspective on textile archive practices. My work involves studying both the physical structure as well as the online database listings for several quilts, alongside reading quilt literature. Many of the collection’s quilts lack robust documentation, research, and exhibition; my research allows me to better understand the root of this problem and its possible solutions. I also found that looking closely at textiles without a predetermined goal is an effective research practice, and one that inherently works to solve the problems of archival under-documentation.”

Sienna Simmons

Degree Pursuing: BS Interior Architecture (certificate in Design Strategy)
Department: Design Studies Department, School of Human Ecology
Advisors: Jung-hye Shin, Associate Professor in the Design Studies Department; Marina Moskowitz, Professor in the Design Studies Department

“My fellowship with the Center for Design and Material Culture focuses on further developing a new Bachelor of Design program that will potentially be offered in the School of Human Ecology. To do this, I conducted market research through the development of surveys and analysis of similar programs offered at other universities. My focus is developing a program structure that meets the needs of students, faculty, and future employers. More importantly, the new program would strongly emphasize the importance of design as a cross-functional skill that is becoming increasingly utilized across society.”

Zhaojie Zhong

Degree Pursuing: BA Art History and English
Department: Department of Art History, Department of English, College of Letters & Science
Advisor: Yuhang Li, Associate Professor in the Department of Art History

“The research for my fellowship focuses on the development and study of less explored items within the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection. Building off of research conducted by graduate students, I concentrate on Premodern Chinese embroidered materials, including quotidian, theatrical, and ceremonial textiles used to adorn furniture and architectural spaces, and popular apparel and accessories. By the completion of the CDMC Textile Fellowship, not only will these items obtain a richer background and be fleshed out in terms of their motifs and techniques, but they will also be made even more accessible to all.”

Noah Mapes

Degree Pursuing: BA Art History, Certificate in Material Culture
Department: Department of Art History, College of Letters & Science
Advisor: Ann Smart Martin, Professor in the Department of Art History

“A Colonial Merchant: The Ledger of William Ramsay asks the question: “what can a 250-year-old merchant’s ledger tell us about consumers, their purchases, and their communities?” During my fellowship with the Center for Design and Material Culture, I will join Dr. Ann Smart Martin and her team of student researchers to continue the work completed by Dr. Martin for the exhibition American Enterprise, which opened in 2015 at the Smithsonian Museum of History. This research will explore the social, commercial, and economic influence of the Ramsay-Dixon store on colonial Alexandria, Virginia during the mid-18th century. Ramsay’s ledger, housed at the Smithsonian archives, reflects a global consumer market made tangible in the Ramsay-Dixon store. As this project enters a new phase, I will provide important research and instructions for producing customer profiles; thus, leading a human-centered approach to the study of this ledger and the objects described.”

Nadia Tahir

Degree Pursuing: BS Interior Architecture
Department: Design Studies Department, School of Human Ecology
Advisor: Michelle Kwasny, Director of Masters of Science in Design + Innovation

“My fellowship with the Center for Design and Material Culture will focus on designing an online training module for UW-Madison students to learn the basics of design thinking in a convenient, condensed, and friendly way. This will begin by reviewing the previously published online training used in other programs across the country. While other training is a good starting point for learning design thinking, some of it is highly focused on getting innovation and engineering activities started on campus, a problem UW-Madison does not face (our campus is plentiful in innovation and engineering resources). The module resulting from my project will seek to combine the best of the available design thinking resources and experiences to create a training program that is better tailored to the specific needs of our campus student community.”