Inspired by this contest, I decided to take some creative pictures of myself in the Donald Forster Sculpture Park with the letters that I am transcribing for Margot Irvine as part of her research on Judith Cladel, a lesser known French author, playwright, and art historian who lived from 1873-1958. Much of Cladel's life is documented in these letters that were exchanged between her and her siblings in the first half of the 20th century. They were donated to Prof. Irvine this summer by descendants of the Cladel family and will be important sources in the biography of Judith Cladel that she is preparing. My role as a research assistant in the experiential learning course FREN*3700 has been to transcribe the letters and, where possible, to identify proper names and places that the authors refer to. The letter I am working on in this photo contained a newspaper clipping perfectly preserved from 1949! Working with these precious letters has ignited a new passion for archival research in me that will stay with me for the rest of my life - I am so proud to be a part of this project and I can't wait to read the biography!
