Veronica Peselmann

Dr. Veronica Peselmann is an Assistant Professor of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Faculty of Arts, University of Groningen. She holds a PhD in Art History from Freie Universität Berlin and an M.A. in Art History from the University of Konstanz and University of Warsaw. Her research focuses on the intersection of materials, techniques, and historical contexts in painting and visual culture, particularly exploring extractivism, colonial memory, and environmental concerns in 19th- and 20th-century art.

Education:

• PhD in Art History, Freie Universität Berlin
• M.A. in Art History, University of Konstanz/University of Warsaw

Research Interests: Her work examines material foundations of painting, such as industrially produced canvas in 19th-century art (highlighting Courbet and Corot), and the relationship between format, scale, and colonial memory in artists' books. Her current project investigates wood, paper, and environmental concerns in art history.

Recent Contributions: Her 2025 articles address extractivism in the Yanomami Book Project and materiality in Courbet’s work. She has also published on postcolonial approaches in art historiography and publishing monopolies in artists’ books. She is a recipient of the Getty Research Institute fellowship and Volkswagen Foundation grant.

Grants & Awards:

• Getty Research Institute PhD Fellowship (2015–2016)
• Volkswagen Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship (2019–2021)

Teaching: Director of Studies for the MA Art History and Curatorial Studies program. Open office hours are held regularly in Groningen.

Research Affiliation: Member of the Research Centre Arts in Society (AiS) at the University of Groningen.