Rebecca Messbarger

Rebecca Messbarger is a Professor of Italian and Affiliate Professor in History, Art History, Performing Arts, and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Washington University. She directs the Undergraduate Studies in Italian and co-founded the Medical Humanities program, serving as its first director.

• Specializes in Italian Enlightenment culture
• Research focuses on women's roles in civic and academic life
• Expert on the intersection of anatomy, art, and religion

Her publications include the award-winning monograph The Lady Anatomist (2010) and co-edited Benedict XIV and the Enlightenment (2016). Notable articles include The Re-birth of Venus (2013), which won two prestigious prizes.

• Recipient of fellowships from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, NEH, and American Philosophical Society
• Current faculty scholar at Washington University's Institute for Public Health
• Lead the civic arts project Requiem of Light (2021-22) to memorialize St. Louisans lost to COVID-19