Elaine Ayers

Elaine Ayers works on the history of natural history, colonial violence, and collecting in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. She holds a Ph.D. in the History of Science from Princeton University and previously taught in New York University’s Program in Museum Studies, NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, and Brown University’s Program in Science, Technology, and Society. Elaine teaches classes situated between the arts and sciences and consults at museums and botanical gardens around the world, particularly in repatriation efforts. Her classes typically include hands-on work like scientific illustration, microscopic dissection, and glassblowing. Her book projects range from the history of tropical colonial botany and the cultural politics of moss to the intersections of white supremacy and natural historical collecting, and she writes for public-facing publications like Slate, The Public Domain Review, and Cabinet Magazine. Elaine’s work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Science Foundation, the New York Botanical Garden, and the Yale Center for British Art, among others.