Meet the Curators

Meet the curatorial team for Making Modernity, CHF’s permanent exhibition. Read their blog, The Collective Voice, and find out what it’s like to define, refine, and create a major exhibit.

Amanda Antonucci is CHF’s assistant image archivist. She is responsible for handling internal and external requests for photographic images in addition to maintaining and preserving photographic materials in the CHF collections. She also served as a member of the curatorial team for Making Modernity. In May 2007 Amanda received a B.A. in art history and art conservation from the University of Delaware.

Mary Ellen Bowden is a senior research fellow for CHF. She has a Ph.D. in the history of science and medicine from Yale University. After nearly 20 years on the staff of CHF, Mary Ellen retired from her position as senior research historian in 2006. She has curated several of CHF’s exhibits and written exhibit catalogs as well as books aimed at an audience of high-school and college teachers. She was a consulting historian and writer for Making Modernity.

Rosie DiVernieri is CHF’s collections coordinator. She oversees all aspects of the artifacts collection, including the substantial collection of scientific instruments, and assists with all other aspects of the CHF collections. She was a member of the curatorial teams for CHF’s Joseph Priestley, Radical Thinker and The Sky’s the Limit. She also is a member of the curatorial teams for CHF’s traveling exhibits, Molecules That Matter, and Making Modernity. Rosie received a degree in museum studies and political science from Baylor University and is currently pursuing an M.A. in public history from Rutgers University, Camden.

Marjorie Gapp, curator of art and images, has worked at CHF since 1994. She has participated in curating and mounting 14 exhibits at CHF, including Spinning the Elements: Wallace Carothers and the Nylon Legacy in 1997; Joseph Priestley, Radical Thinker in 2004; The Whole of Nature and the Mirror of Art in 2006; and Making Modernity. As keeper of the CHF art collections, she fosters research, oversees conservation, and facilitates use and appreciation by the chemical communities and the general public.

Jenn Landry is CHF’s head of collections. Jenn supervises the daily operations of the Collections group; manages the care of CHF’s archives, photographic collection, fine art, and artifacts; and oversees outreach activities related to CHF’s collections. She was curator of The Sky’s the Limit at CHF and is on the curatorial team for Making Modernity. Jenn is a certified archivist and has an M.A. in history with a concentration in archival and museum studies from Duquesne University.

Erin McLeary, curator of exhibitions, leads the team of scholars, curators, and other professionals creating Making Modernity. She has a Ph.D. in the history and sociology of science from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in biology from Reed College. Before joining CHF, Erin helped develop exhibits at several Philadelphia museums and taught history of science and medicine courses at the Universities of Pennsylvania and Delaware and at Cornell University.

Gigi Naglak serves as CHF’s curatorial assistant. She is responsible for assisting the Collections group with object preparation, correspondence, and inquiries from designers. Most important, she is the “master of the schedule.” Gigi holds a B.A. in history and theatre arts from Drew University and an M.A. in text and performance studies from King’s College London and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts.