Carmen C. Bambach (born April 27, 1959) is an American
art historian
Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history.
Traditionally, the ...
and
curator
A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...
of Italian and Spanish drawings at the New York
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...
who specializes in
Italian Renaissance art
Italian Renaissance painting is the painting of the period beginning in the late 13th century and flourishing from the early 15th to late 16th centuries, occurring in the Italian Peninsula, which was at that time divided into many political stat ...
. She is considered one of the world's leading specialists on
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 1452 - 2 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested o ...
, especially his drawings.
Career
Bambach received her bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
.
Commenting on the 2017 exhibition of over 130 Michelangelo drawings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, "Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer", Bambach, who curated the showing, attributed a black chalk sketch to the artist against the then current consensus among her colleagues.
She published the four-volume ''Leonardo da Vinci Rediscovered'' in 2019 to mixed reviews. The same year, she was the first recipient of the
Vilcek Prize
The Vilcek Foundation is an American nonprofit organization. The foundation's programs include the Vilcek Foundation Prizes.
The Foundation was established in 2000 by Jan and Marica Vilcek, immigrants from the former Czechoslovakia. The missio ...
for Excellence, recognizing work that reflects immigration's impact on American society.
In 2020, an honoree of the
Great Immigrants Award
The Great Immigrants Award is an annual initiative by the Carnegie Corporation of New York to honor naturalized citizens of the United States who have made significant contributions to American society, democracy, and culture. Established in 200 ...
named by
Carnegie Corporation of New York
The Carnegie Corporation of New York is a philanthropic fund established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to support education programs across the United States, and later the world.
Since its founding, the Carnegie Corporation has endowed or othe ...
.
Selected works
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External links
Published worksat
Academia.edu
Academia.edu is a commercial platform for sharing academic research that is uploaded and distributed by researchers from around the world. All academic articles are free to read by visitors, however uploading and downloading articles is restrict ...
List of publicationsat the Met
''Leonardo da Vinci Rediscovered''
Living people
1959 births
American art curators
American women curators
American art historians
Leonardo da Vinci scholars
People associated with the Metropolitan Museum of Art
American women art historians
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