Max Grossman

Dr. Max Grossman serves as Associate Professor of Art History in the Department of Art, College of Liberal Arts, at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). He directs the Roma Aeterna study abroad program during summers while conducting research in Italy, and maintains active community engagement through historic preservation initiatives in El Paso.

His academic credentials include a B.A. in Art History and English from the University of California-Berkeley, and M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. degrees in Art History from Columbia University. His doctoral research centered on Sienese civic architecture following seven years of residence in Tuscany.

Dr. Grossman's research examines political iconography of the Sienese commune across painting, sculpture, architecture, coinage, seals, and manuscripts, while analyzing the evolution of Italian civic palaces from the twelfth through fifteenth centuries. He challenges established paradigms to develop new critical frameworks for interpreting medieval and Renaissance city-states, recently expanding his focus to El Paso's architectural heritage with emphasis on community-driven preservation.

His publications from 2013-2019 reveal a dual trajectory: foundational scholarship on Italian medieval/Renaissance architecture transitions toward applied historic preservation in the American Southwest, demonstrating how theoretical frameworks inform practical conservation efforts in contemporary urban contexts.

As Vice-Chair of The Trost Society, Dr. Grossman leads the Architectural Preservation Committee in developing strategies to protect El Paso's architectural heritage while stimulating economic development in historic districts. He founded the El Paso History Alliance, a virtual cultural community with over 52,000 followers, bridging academic research with public history initiatives and community engagement.