Heather White

Art History: Temporary Lecturer

Heather Elizabeth White is a museum professional and art historian with over a decade of teaching and programming experience in informal learning environments. Her areas of expertise include visual literacy, interpretation, engagement, student centered learning, museum education, and knowledge creation in the gallery and classroom environments. She also specializes in American art history and Texas regionalism.

Professor White graduated magnum cum laude with an M.A. in Art Education with Museum Certificate as well as an M.A. in Art History from the University of North Texas. While completing her graduate work at U.N.T. Professor White was awarded the Priddy Charitable Trust Fellowship in Arts Advocacy and Leadership. Her master’s work in art history focused on Early Texas Artists and local collections of Texas regionalism in the DFW region. Professor White went on to study American art and material culture at the University of Oklahoma through the Art of the American West program, where she was awarded the Robert S. and Grayce B. Kerr Family Foundation Fellowship. Her original research on the Early Texas Artist, Thomas Allen, was published in the book Itinerant and Immigrant Artists and Artisans in 19th-Century Texas and presented at the David B. Warren Symposium in 2013.

Professor White has worked in art museums in Houston, Oklahoma City, Denton, and Fort Worth, as well other informal learning environments, such as libraries, schools, and universities in Oklahoma and Texas. Throughout her career, she has facilitated interpretation and led engaging interactions with works of art through gallery teaching in museums and arts non-profits. Professor White is committed to the social and educational responsibility of museums and universities in creating community, sharing collections, and providing safe and supportive environments for learning. She is passionate about making the arts and other cultural opportunities more accessible and inclusive. In 2018, she was awarded the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Award for Emerging Art Leaders through the Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability, in recognition of her accessibility and inclusion work in Oklahoma City. She has published and presented on making the arts more accessible for people with disabilities. Professor White values social service and has continuously volunteered for arts, accessibility, and educational organizations, reviewing grants, chairing committees, and working with children.

Professor White teaches Introduction to Art for non-majors (ART 1300), American Art from the colonial period to 1900 (ART 4357), 19th-Century Realism (ART 4354), and History of Impressionism and Post-Impressionism (ART 4360).

Ph.D., Art of the American West, University of Oklahoma, In Progress
M.A., Art History, University of North Texas, 2010
M.A., Art Education, magnum cum laude, University of North Texas, 2009
Graduate Museum Certificate, University of North Texas, 2009
B.A., Art History, University of North Texas, University Honors Program, 2007

Professional Work