Graduate Student Spotlight: Sharayah Cochran

Sharayah Cochran

PhD Program in Art History, Class of 2026

Share a little about why you chose the U of I College of Fine & Applied Arts for your graduate degree.

The Art History doctoral program is structured to allow students to pursue interdisciplinary research interests. For me, this meant taking seminars in the Political Science, Media & Cinema Studies, and Comparative Literature departments to support my research on the history of documentary photography. Working with and having access to art objects is also important to me, so the Krannert Art Museum is a great resource.

What has been a highlight of your grad school experience so far?

During fall 2022, I participated in a Theories of Photography seminar co-taught by professors Amy Powell (Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Krannert Art Museum) and Terri Weissman (Associate Professor of Art History). The seminar allowed students to select photographs from the Krannert Art Museum collection that were then pulled for us to view and discuss as a class. As a group project, my fellow students and I conceptualized and curated a series of three installations that considered the theme of “maintenance” as both depicted in and performed through photographs in the museum collection. The first installation focused on images of labor and borders, and the second considered photographic representations of settler-colonial visualities. The third iteration (currently on view at the museum through the spring ’25 semester) features photographic gestures of care with an emphasis on gender performance.

more questions

Share a little about a special project you have worked on.

During summer 2024, I conducted dissertation research at the Appalshop Archive in Letcher County, Kentucky. The Appalshop Archive includes an extensive collection of locally produced documentary films, as well as the photographic negatives of William R. “Pictureman” Mullins, who documented life in Eastern Kentucky and Southwest Virginia. Critically, the Mullins Collection includes more than 3,000 photo negatives and serves as a counter-archive to federal projects that photographed the region during the 1930s and 1940s. Though most of the negatives are film, this portrait of two unidentified women is one of a small number of delicate glass plates. A 2022 flood in Eastern Kentucky affected much of Appalshop’s film and photography collections, and staff are already making tremendous strides in conserving and recovering archival material—including Mullins’ negatives—but these efforts are ongoing. Researching in the archives required not only looking through contact sheets and negatives but also helping archive staff with recovery efforts. The experience has caused me to rethink what the relationship between researcher and archive could (and, perhaps, should) look like. Rather than simply taking information from an archival source or institution, what would long-term, reciprocal research partnerships with local, community archives like Appalshop look like? I’m still working out the answer to this question as I write my dissertation.

How do you hope your graduate degree will impact your career?

Graduate degrees are usually required for curatorial careers, but credentials aside, I can already see how my time at U of I has allowed me to strengthen and develop my scholarly voice.

What is your favorite space on campus and why?

I love the Ricker Library of Art and Architecture. It has a great collection—including a materials library for art students (or anyone!). I also visit when I need a break—Ricker has puzzles and library side quests that are always fun.

What advice would you give students interested in attending your grad program?

Stay curious and take full advantage of your library privileges. The Rare Books & Manuscripts Library and University Archives have so many resources for your research (and be sure to talk to the librarians, archivists, and curators—they’re really amazing). Also, get involved with the Graduate Employee’s Organization—the union is a great way to meet and support your fellow grads.