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Carrie Lambert-Beatty (at Harvard) would be a good fit for a dissertation on minimalism -- and with Jennifer Roberts, you're half-way to a committee.

whoops, Krauss (of course) not Kruass.

In terms of what to read: Start with James Meyer's Minimalism book. Make sure to read "Art and Objecthood" and Donald Judd's writings, especially "Specific Objects" (they're collected in a big yellow book). Read Briony Fer, Anne Wagner, Rosalind Kruass on Eva Hesse, Julia Wilson-Bryan's Art Workers book, Jennifer Roberts' book on Robert Smithson (Mirror Travels), and also Anne Reynold's book on Smithson, the book Robert Morris: Mind Body (collection of essays), the collection of Robert Morris's writing's (Continuous Project Altered Daily) and the collection of Robert Smithson's writings. Start plugging into jstor and google scholar names of artists who pique your interest... see what's out there. In terms of people out there to work with: Anne Reynolds is at UT Austin and Julia Bryan-Wilson is at Berkeley -- they'd be near the top of my list. Happy reading.

Not quite "represented," totally problematic....but... Marina Abramovic's "An Artist's life Manifesto" for the MOCA gala (wrap-up of fallout here: http://www.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/750513/marina-abramovics-divisive-moca-gala-left-heads-spinning-as-will-ferrell-and-dasha-zhukova-looked-on)

I also say go with the top-ranked ivy -- this makes all the difference: "but also note that school Y--being much more well endowed--will be able to support me in whatever line of research I would like to persue...." No matter how great your advisor, if you're constantly having to stop your dissertation research & writing to cobble together adjunct teaching appointments / apply for every external funding opportunity possible, then your work/time-to-degree will suffer as a result. Of course, no matter what, you'll be applying for pre-doc grants, BUT if you have the opportunity to go to a place that will be able to fund you guaranteed for 5/6 years and has some research-travel money to throw your way, then I'd say take it. Also, at many schools, its not uncommon to have one reader on your dissertation from another institution. Just because you turn down institution X doesn't mean you can't still forge a relationship with the potential advisor at school X. Also, if the potential advisor at school X is young, ambitious, and recently tenured -- there's a decent change he/she might be looking to move/ get wooed away.

For a summer sublet in DC, I'd recommend looking at the message boards at GW and American University... both to find students/gradstudents who are leaving their apartments for the summer and are looking to find a summer sublet, or to see if either of those schools rents out dorm-rooms for the summer to area interns (if my memory serves me correctly, I remember that being the case...) GW would probably be preferable, since it's walking distance from the National Gallery. Good luck.

I agree, but... I would put Eve Sedgwick's Touching Feeling near the tippy-top of a must-read theory list.

yipes. cleisthenes's "tiny sampling" is exhausting. all of marx, freud, brecht, frankfurt school, foucault in german/french... that alone would be awesome to accomplish in one's whole lifetime (but good on you if you can swing it). better off, in my opinion, to read fewer texts closely and strategically -- the Verso Aesthetics & Politics compilation is a good place to start to get a sense of how ideas were circulating among the key Frankfurt School(ish) thinkers. The newer translation of Benjamin's Work of Art in the Age of Its Mechanical Reproducibility and Other Writings on Media is also excellent.

i would just leave that part blank -- or write something vague like "flexible"

brazilianbuddy - I think you get to the heart of the matter with this last, bet-hedging question -- and I think your bet-hedging at the end is the most productive and generous part of your post. To think in terms of a right/wrong binary rules out and obfuscates a whole host of complicated and rich experiences that people have in close proximity to artworks. Rather than disparaging "sightseeing, picture-taking, been-there-done-that-bragging-rights sort of reasons" as wrong sorts of reasons, and subsequently asking whether or not/how museums can accomodate these wrong reasons, it's more productive, perhaps, to start with generative questions -- what sorts of experiences do people have in close proximity to artworks? why do museums engender certain types of experiences/expectations/responses? why do people photograph/document themselves near actual artworks? how might this phenomenon help to think through the affective power of art? of museums?

Look at Hillary Chute at UChicago -- http://english.uchicago.edu/faculty/chute Between her and WJT Mitchell... etc, the English department is quite concerned with the visual -- and you're able to build a lot of relations with the Art History department.

I'll disagree with "bamafan" to say that a low quant score (even an abysmal one) won't automatically keep you out of phd programs in art history (perhaps this is the case for bioinformatics, which is his/her stated area). It might send up the most minor of red-flags -- so it's of course worth doing as well as possible on the GREs -- but don't let a low score psych you out of applying for top programs. I don't know of any art history program that automatically screens anyone out for low GRE scores, particularly low quant scores. Focus on doing as well on the verbal and writing sections as you can, but really concentrate your energy on writing sample, statement of purpose, fostering relationships with your current professors to elicit substantial rec letters, and your gpa.

(as someone who did this particular interview successfully some years back)... be prepared to talk about the art you find most compelling (and why... we're talking specifics... artist, artwork, etc.), the art history you find most compelling and why (again, particular books, articles, authors, etc.), and relatedly, the type of methodological approach you find most compelling and why. also, be prepared to talk about your ambitions both in regard to the near future at williams -- specific museum work, coursework, interaction with research fellows, art conservation, etc. (read the website) -- and the far away future after williams. come prepared with good questions.

my two cents... just be honest and keep it short and sweet -- I wouldn't go into the details of performing during the summer, etc. Something to the effect of: "... indeed, that's me... and I want to take this opportunity to reiterate my commitment to full-time graduate study...." good luck (and indeed, that is an unusual situation)

I'd say wait until after the holidays -- if faculty are checking their emails over break, they're likely just scanning through for really important or time sensitive correspondence -- your message is likely to get lost in the shuffle. The best time to reach out is the end of the first week/beginning of the second week back.

I second BearCat -- remember, even at the MA level, you're competing against a whole lot of really smart kids for a limited number of spots (and an obscenely limited number of funded spots, in most cases). Aim to make yourself seem as smart, confident, and focused as possible.

Be as specific, confident, and truthful as possible. Demonstrate, to the best of your ability, as much mastery over your proposed area of inquiry as you can -- you'll want to give the admissions committee a strong sense of what kind of thinker you are -- no matter where in the thinking process you happen to be. If you say in your SOP that you're interested in "Feminist and Gender theories of the body and the self" -- give a strong and compelling sense of what theories pique your interest and how they inform your thinking about art. Let them know what sorts of questions are you interested in asking. Aim to be specific about what motivates your thinking without painting yourself into a corner or committing yourself to a certain region/century/set of theories/etc. At the MA level, in particular, it's good to write willingness to think expansively into your SOP -- but use your SOP to sell yourself as a rigorous thinker.

I'll pipe up and back auvers here -- I have plenty of friends in the top 5 PhD programs who did not come from ivy undergraduate institutions -- but all did distinguish themselves (no matter where they went) by doing precisely what you've said, ProspectStu... reading voraciously at a graduate level and producing graduate-level scholarship. I'd say you're on the right track. I've been following these boards sporadically over the past two (or so) years, and losemygrip has consistently trolled around espousing dated, conservative, and (at times) very misogynistic "advice" -- so take what he says with a grain of salt.

Don't sweat the GREs, seriously -- My understanding (after having gone through the process successfully twice -- MA and PhD) is that they're all but a formality. Especially at Williams -- since your application isn't being vetted first by some big, anonymous graduate admissions office (art history at Williams is one of only two very small grad programs, apps go straight to the art history department). Much more important to blow them away with a killer writing sample and compelling personal statement.

I disagree with sonatine -- and if you're worried about "torturing yourself with theory books," then maybe graduate school in art history isn't the place for you. If you're keen to study 19th-century French painting, you'll want to demonstrate as much deep engagement with the topic as possible in your SOP. Demonstrate to them that you've read the best/most influential/smartest scholarship out there. Let them know what you think about it, how you situate yourself and your thinking in relationship to it. It's totally fine to change your focus once you get to graduate school, particularly at the terminal MA level (the SOP is not a binding document) -- and it's totally good to write that curiosity and willingness to think expansively into your SOP. But there's no reason to do it at the expense of demonstrating to the admissions committee deep and sustained engagement with your primary area of focus.

Consider applying to the MA program at Williams College -- while working on your MA you are able to apply for internships at the wonderful Stone Hill Conservation Center -- it's located just behind the Clark museum. Since you're already in Western Mass -- consider taking a trip there, it's certainly worth a visit for anyone interested in conservation. You could email the graduate program coordinator in advance and perhaps ask to meet with current graduate students who have the internship. The building alone is worth a trip -- it's new, completely state of the art, designed by Tadao Ando (http://www.clarkart.edu/visit/content.cfm?ID=305). Good luck!

FYI - UMass Amherst does not have a PhD program, theirs is a terminal MA program.

Your aim shouldn't necessarily be to "call attention" to either your Ws or your lack of art history classes -- rather -- by way of explaining your intellectual biography, you should "call attention" to your interdisciplinary background. I'd say be frank about the lack of art history classes at your current university (lest you leave admissions committees wondering why you haven't worked closely with art history faculty) but spin it as an asset -- think about how your classes outside the field of art history have informed your approaches visual material and art-historical texts. What have you gleaned from reading philosophy, theory in your English classes, language study, etc..? Graduate programs look for well-rounded and engaged thinkers -- an interdisciplinary background coupled with strong language skills has the potential to set you apart from the pack.

Williams also offers a surprising number of full and half tuition scholarships for MA candidates upon admission. It's rather competitive. But I think it's safe to say that, as with most terminal MA programs, you're not necessarily expected to know exactly what you want to specialize in. MA programs will want to see evidence of deep and sustained engagement in art history, along with a solid writing sample and substantial recommendations -- where that engagement happens (be it a prestigious ivy or a little known state school) is of secondary importance. In terms of recommenders, pick professors who can speak to your abilities as a researcher and writer. If one of your recommenders has only taught you in one introductory class (for example) and has never worked with you on a paper -- it could leave admissions committees wondering why... and perhaps give the impression that you haven't worked closely or deeply with faculty much. It's totally okay to have recommenders outside of art history -- particularly if you've worked on projects with them that deal with the visual in some way. This likewise gives you the opportunity to explain in your SOP about the lack of art history courses at your undergraduate institution. Basically, think of your whole application as your opportunity to inspire confidence that you have what it takes to hit the ground running in graduate school.

I think Fullofpink is right, generally speaking, about "extracurricular activities" (no one really cares if you were president of the undergraduate art history association) but I think it's perhaps more a matter of semantics -- don't call them extracurriculars. If, as part of the undergrad art history group, you organized a conference, call yourself the conference organizer (don't lie, of course). If you edit a journal, then call yourself an editor in a cover letter, etc. On your resume, put them all under the heading "experience" or something like that. If you're applying for an administrative job at a museum, then it's certainly worthwhile to highlight any admin/organizational experience that you have. Having said that, Fullofpink is right, I think, to advise you to highlight your academic achievements. Also, in my opinion, there is no shame is taking a year to live abroad as an au pair, particularly if you work during that year to really hone your language skills in a serious way. If you go that route, consider enrolling in a class in a local college or language institute -- all of that will bode well on your application. I suspect that admissions committees wouldn't bat an eye if they see that you took time off to live in France to really master French (since you won't have time to do this and focus just on language once you're in gradschool) -- and the best way to make sure that's reflected on your application is to enroll in some sort of course while you're there. After statement of purpose, writing sample, recs, and transcript, language skills are the most important part of your application. If you have a choice between taking a low-level admin job at a museum or going abroad to hone your language skills, I'd say that going abroad will serve you better in many ways.