Dr. Adele Nelson

Biography

Adele Nelson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Art and Art History at the University of Texas at Austin, where she also serves as the Co-Director of the Center for Latin American Visual Studies (CLAVIS) and is a faculty affiliate at the Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Portuguese Brazilian Studies and Art Semiotics from Brown University and her Master’s and PhD in Art History from the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University. Her specialization is in 20th and 21st Century Latin American art, focusing on postwar contemporary art in Brazil. Her research and teaching interests include the intersections of art and social identity, the history of art institutions, exhibitions, and pedagogy, as well as transnational exchange and theories of modernism and artistic activism. Nelson authored the book "Forming Abstraction: Art Institutions in Postwar Brazil," which was published in 2022 and has received multiple accolades including the Antonio Candido Prize for best humanities book in Brazil and the CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title award in 2023. Her writings on art in Latin America have appeared in various academic journals and publications. Nelson is currently engaged in research projects that explore themes of women's contributions to printmaking in Brazil and transnational activist networks.

Research Interests

Experience