Research Symposium

BIO

Jewel Montalvo is a sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biology, with plans to add a second major in music. With a lifelong background in dance, music, and visual art, her research through UROP explores how studio-based material experimentation can function as a method of cultural inquiry, focusing on Filipino American identity, memory, and lived experience. She works closely with her faculty research mentor, Ysabel Flores, in developing this interdisciplinary project. Jewel plans to attend medical school. In her free time, she enjoys fitness and playing musical instruments.

Looking In Looking Out

Abstract

“Looking In / Looking Out” is an arts-based, autoethnographic project that explores how hands-on material experimentation can serve as a way to investigate culture. Inspired by thinkers like Lucy R. Lippard and David Batchelor, the project looks at how visual, spatial, and household framing systems influence the formation of Filipino American identity. Filling gaps in current research, this study presents studio practice as a way to produce knowledge. By collaborating with my research mentor, Ysabel Flores, we used material processes as both method and evidence. My mentor tore and burned canvas and created ceramic food objects, while I was taught to sew, apply gesso, and create mat boards. Weekly reflections and careful observation revealed how these processes shed light on memory, inheritance, and our connections to place. By examining how growing up in a Filipino American household shapes emotional ties to food, landscape, and representation, the project reveals how disruptions in materials reflect fragmentation and distance. Altered canvases represent the instability of diasporic identity, while sculpted food items serve as emotional records. This research indicates that identity is not fixed; it forms through fragments, relationships, and everyday practices. Studio work becomes a path to discovery, presenting a physical way to understand home and heritage.

Keywords: Looking In Looking Out