Rachel Salem-Wiseman is an art historian who primarily studies early modern European prints, paintings, and textiles, focusing on perceptions of women’s labor and the body. Much of Salem-Wiseman’s recent work has focused on the laundresses and starch-women responsible for producing linen garments such as the ruff and the stürz, considering the value of these objects and the demonization of their makers. In the fall, Rachel will begin her PhD in art history at the University of Pennsylvania.

Qualifying Paper: Ruff Work: Laundresses and their Labor in Early Modern England and the Netherlands