Christy Anderson

Christy Anderson is a Professor at the University of Toronto, affiliated with both the Department of Art History and the Daniels Faculty of Architecture. She has taught at prestigious institutions like Yale, the Courtauld Institute, and MIT, and has been at UofT since 2005. Her research bridges the physical and theoretical aspects of architecture, with a focus on Early Modern Europe and Canada.

• PhD in Architectural History and Theory, MIT (1993)
• Junior Research Fellow at Oxford and Kress Fellow at the Courtauld
• Associate Chair, Undergraduate Studies (2017–2020)

Anderson’s research explores how architecture is shaped by local materials and cultural contexts. She investigates the environmental and cultural significance of materials in European architecture and Indigenous Canadian structures, particularly in Newfoundland. Her work connects early modern architectural practices to global themes like colonization, resource extraction, and maritime history.

Her publications include a history of Renaissance art and architecture, studies on Inigo Jones, and edited collections on architectural materials and the built surface. She co-founded the Canada Constructed: Architecture, Landscape, History initiative, which promotes experiential learning and public engagement with Canadian architecture.

Current projects include analyzing ships as architecture in the early-modern Atlantic and writing a hybrid memoir/history about boats and globalization. She also advocates for experiential learning through internships and partnerships with organizations like the Ontario Heritage Trust.

• Scientific awards: []

Anderson is actively involved in teaching architectural history at both undergraduate and graduate levels and leads the Canada Constructed initiative with Professor Joseph Clarke and Dr. Jessica Mace.